Project description
Bionic feedback system to restore feeling in the legs
In Europe alone, it has been estimated that there are approximately 1.5 million amputees and 7.5 million people who suffer from polyneuropathy and serious sensory problems. Apart from putting great strain on the healthcare system, these conditions also severely affect quality of life. The EU-funded BFS project aims to improve the quality of life of people who lack feeling in their legs, whether as a result of polyneuropathy or amputation. The solution involves a bionic feedback system comprising a sensor sole and a transmission part applied on the stump or leg. This system will help affected persons reclaim the feeling of the missing or damaged leg, providing the brain with the sensory information it had lost.
Objective
The BIONIC FEEDBACK SYSTEM. The Austrian company SAPHENUS Medical Technology, founded in 2016, has set itself
the goal of improving the quality of people who lack the feeling in the legs, whether through polyneuropathy or through
amputation. 1,5 million amputees and 7,5 million people with polyneuropathy and serious sensory problems are affected all
over Europe. For these two target groups SAPHENUS has the breakthrough solution using the bionic principle. With the
Bionic Feedback System (BFS) the affected persons get back the feeling of the lost or damaged foot, they feel authentic
again, and the brain is provided with sensory information again. SURALIS and CUTANEUS, the two BFS-products of SAPHENUS
are patented high-tec add-on devices that consist of (i) a sensor sole and (ii) a transmission part which is applied on the
stump or leg. SURALIS and CUTANEUS represent a new medical product category supporting cost-efficient, affordable,
optimised care for amputees and diabetics. SAPHENUS has a strong network in medical research as well as in health
insurances and in distribution partners. The SME-Instrument phase 1 business plan shall now be further implemented. The
phase 2 workplan foresees a duration of 24 months and requests 1,8 mio of EC funding.
Fields of science
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques.
Programme(s)
Funding Scheme
SME - SME instrumentCoordinator
3500 KREMS AN DER DONAU
Austria
The organization defined itself as SME (small and medium-sized enterprise) at the time the Grant Agreement was signed.