Eindhoven Engine welcomes seven projects and supports them with 2.4 million euros

In Eindhoven Engine's OpenCall 2022, projects were once again invited to come up with innovation proposals that contribute to solving societal challenges. This time the projects were selected by a team of independent experts based on predefined criteria. The projects can continue to develop under the wings of Eindhoven Engine and bring their innovations to the market faster. In addition, they will collaborate at the Eindhoven Engine co-location at the TU/e Campus and thus contribute to the internal community.

Auxstent

In the fight against cardiovascular disease, stents and grafts are implanted in patients to support or repair damaged or high-risk vessels. These stents and grafts provide robust mechanical support, but do not provide tissue repair. It would be better if such implants actively promoted tissue repair and regeneration over time. The AUXSTENT project addresses these challenges and is already working on 3D-printable and bioresorbable stents that encourage and stimulate regeneration. At Eindhoven Engine, AUXSTENT will take the next step: developing a functional prototype. In this project, the focus is on combining the functional design of these stents with available engineering and materials knowledge.

Partners: Fillip Studios, TU/e

Collide

The CoLLidE project focuses on the market introduction of reusable food packaging. The Circulware system, developed by project partner Haval, replaces single-use food packaging with reusable and recyclable, bio-based packaging and will be applied in a living lab in this project. This will enable the use of the new packaging to be investigated from a technical, economic and social perspective. In the living lab, entrepreneurs, students, researchers, public authorities and companies will collaborate and learn together. The living lab will act as a catalyst for circular societal impact and will also investigate how a behavioral change towards food packaging can be achieved.

Partners: Fontys, Haval, Innovatiehuis de Peel, VNO-NCW, Midpoint Brabant, Avans

Direct Air Capture 2.0

Carbyon is developing technology to capture CO₂ directly from ambient air (Direct Air Capture, DAC). The captured CO₂  can be converted into a renewable carbon source in various ways. Net-zero solutions are made possible by using this CO₂ in processes and products, such as in greenhouses to improve crop growth or for the production of renewable synthetic fuels (e.g., for aviation). Net-zero solutions involve the permanent storage of CO₂ underground, for example in depleted gas fields.

Partners: Carbyon, TU/e, DIFFER

DynaPopeX

The concentration of nitrogen dioxide and particulate matter is still too high in the Netherlands according to WHO guideline values in 2021. In the Eindhoven region, several technical developments and research and innovation initiatives have been started in this field. As a result, a lot of information on population dynamics, such as commuting traffic and air pollution, is readily available. In DynaPopeX, this information is brought together for the first time and visualization techniques can be used to make connections to the sources of air pollution. The combination of data, location and human movements in Eindhoven makes it possible to take tangible measures to reduce the exposure of people on the street to harmful particulate matter and limit possible harm to health.

Partners: TNO, ZichtopData

PowerLift

In the Powerlift innovation project, research is being done on a sustainable battery for the electric aviation industry (eFlight). This battery not only has a long lifetime but can store an extraordinary amount of energy and delivers a lot of energy when used. Within Eindhoven Engine, PowerLift will further develop this technology into a standardized platform for the production of customized eFlight batteries.

Partners: LeydenJar Technologies B.V., Titan Batteries B.V., Wingtra AG

Smart Heat Shed

The Smart Heat Shed (smart heat storage) project addresses the rapid energy transition by combining two international breakthrough technologies, a heat façade and a heat battery. The heat facade (developed by TNO-Emergo spin-off Calosol) is an innovative, aesthetically versatile solar thermal facade collector, which effectively harvests solar energy at low outdoor temperatures. The heat battery (developed by the TNO-TU/e spin-off Cellcius) is the first completely loss-free heat storage solution. The latter is also 10x cheaper than electrical storage and much more compact than water or phase transition materials (PCM).

Partners: Cellcius, Emergo, TBRM, TNO, TU/e

Wecare

Currently, there are 55 million people worldwide with dementia. This number is expected to rise to 78 million by 2030 and 138 million by 2050, according to the WHO. There is currently no medical solution for dementia. In addition, there is a shortage of caregivers. This puts pressure on the care system. Technology can provide support for people with dementia and their caregivers. The WECARE project focuses on extending human care by applying the 'Warm Technology' concept to interactive agents, such as chatbots and companion robots. Warm Technology ensures that this technology is made accessible and appropriate for the environment of people with dementia and their caregivers. This project will work on developing more advanced behaviors and representations in interactive agents.

Partners: TU/e, Alzheimer Nederland, Fontys, SARA Robotics, Tinybots

Technical Innovations

Katja Pahnke, Managing Director Eindhoven Engine: "This call once again confirms that there are plenty of technical innovations emerging from the region and its ecosystem with social impact. Eindhoven Engine's co-location and cross-sector collaborations offer project partners and their innovations the place to get to market faster and more successfully."