Interreg Vlaanderen Nederland - Nano4SportsInterreg Vlaanderen-Nederland
Interreg Vlaanderen Nederland - Nano4Sports
Interreg Vlaanderen-Nederland
Cycling and running are two sports with increased popularity, both on the competitive as recreational level. However, knowhow on sports technology and innovation in the south part of The Netherlands and the north part of Belgium (Flanders) has not yet been brought together in a larger platform, thereby profiling the region as ‘sport innovator’. In addition, current available technologies do not fully meet the needs of the end-users (athletes, coaches, trainers, therapists, etc.).
Project description
Based on end-user input, technologies for cycling and running will be developed by a consortium of partners (KU Leuven, Ghent University, IMEC Flanders and The Netherlands, Fontys Sporthogeschool and TU Eindhoven). An open call will be launched for companies who want to participate in the project. Events such as networking nights, open field-lab days, a hackathon, etc. will facilitate communication between stakeholders and the broader public.
The new technologies will be innovative on the level of sensor, data communication, analytics and user implementation level. Current sport infrastructure will benefit from a living lab approach in which sport professionals work closely together with scientists and companies in creating new products and services. Sport companies and startups will be able to create new ventures based on the prototypes developed during the project.
Objectives
These are the objectives of Nano4Sports:
Specific cycling and running use cases are now being defined based on interviews with various stakeholders.
Specific Nano4Sports communication channels are being created so people can be kept up to date about the project.
Companies and startups focusing on innovation in sports are contacted in order to implement their input from the start.
Role of Ghent University
Ghent University will take care of the sports and movement related aspects of one of the running (Prof Dirk De Clercq and Prof Marc Leman) and cycling (Prof Philip Roosen) cases. Our Internet and Data Lab (Philip Leroux) will work on the technical developments on data and data communication level, where our Centre for Microsystems Technology group (Prof Jan Vanfleteren) will (as part of IMEC Flanders) focus on the sensor integration aspects. From the side of Victoris, Kristof De Mey will facilitate collaborative actions between partners and federations, companies and start-ups, co-organize events and assist in communication and valorization activities.
