SNN-Unit

Yesterday, we had the opportunity to present our project Digital Scrubs at the final event of the BMBF funding initiative “AI-based assistance systems for process-supporting healthcare applications (KIAS)” in Frankfurt. From compact project spotlights to thought-provoking workshops, the event highlighted the diversity and real-world potential of AI in healthcare – while also addressing the remaining hurdles on the way to clinical implementation. A true highlight: the open exchange with other project teams and the discussions on AI as a co-pilot in hospitals and how to carry research into practice. Many thanks to BMBF and the organizing team for this inspiring day – we’re taking home plenty of fresh ideas!

Last week marked the official start of VI-Screen PRO, the follow-up to our successful BMBF-funded project VI-Screen. The project was launched with a productive kick-off meeting, bringing together all consortium partners. VI-Screen PRO is supported by the BMBF within the funding framework “BMBFTR – Innovationen im Einsatz: Praxisleuchttürme der zivilen Sicherheit”. The aim of the project is to develop a demonstrator system for contactless virus screening, targeting the mitigation of virus transmission in high-traffic environments. We are excited to collaborate once again with our esteemed partners: Saarland University, Saarland University Hospital, TU Berlin, and our new partner Cubical GmbH. Together, we look forward to a successful project phase and impactful outcomes.

At the first Saarland Digital Health Congress, we had the opportunity to present our project Digital Scrubs and join more than 100 experts in discussing what healthcare could look like in 2030. We gained valuable insights through workshops on topics like the electronic patient record, user-centered design, and digitalization barriers. A true highlight: the keynote by Dr. Tobias Grandt – a passionate call for courage and progress in healthcare. An inspiring day full of exchange, future visions, and a shared goal: driving digital health forward in Saarland!

Yesterday, we were honored to welcome Mr. Milde from the Federal Ministry for Research, Technology, and Space (BMBFTR), along with Ms. Kriewald from the Ministry of Science of Saarland. The visit provided an excellent opportunity for in-depth discussions on the current landscape of research at German universities of applied sciences. During the exchange, we presented several of our ongoing projects in various research fields, showcasing the interdisciplinary work driving innovation in the field. We are grateful for the visit and the productive dialogue, and we look forward to continued collaboration at both the federal and state levels.

Dr. Farah Corona-Strauss recently visited several partner universities in Mexico to present ongoing research conducted in our laboratory and to introduce students to the international Master’s program in Neural Engineering offered in Germany.
During her trip, Dr. Corona-Strauss had the pleasure of visiting the Instituto Tecnológico de Mérida, where she met with the university president, Dr. José Antonio Esquivel. She also returned to her alma mater, the Universidad Iberoamericana in Mexico City, strengthening ties with her academic roots.
The presentations were met with great interest, highlighting the strong enthusiasm for research collaboration and international study opportunities. We are pleased to continue fostering close connections with our colleagues and academic partners in Mexico.
We sincerely thank our hosts for their warm welcome and generous invitation!

On May 9, we had the opportunity to present our EU-funded project Multi Immerse at Europe Day in Saarbrücken. The project focuses on enhancing the sense of human closeness through multisensory optimization of immersive virtual visits to seriously ill children. Together with our partners from UKS, EmRoLab, ZeMa, and DFKI, we showcased various components of the project, including our contactless camera system for detecting microexpressions and a robot designed to virtually transmit human touch.

This year, together with htw Saar, we had the honour of serving as a hosting institution for the br41n.io hackathon 2025, which forms an integral part of the g.tec spring school. Over the course of 24 hours, four teams developed brain–computer-interface (BCI) projects. Altogether, 95 teams from 80 countries competed, underscoring the truly global scope of this event. We even had a small kids-team from the local Marienschule that took first place in the childrens Gaming section.

The projects ranged from generating music in response to EEG-derived emotional states, to controlling video games through ear-muscle signals, to enabling a collaborative robot to adjust its behaviour based on the user’s stress levels. Each concept demonstrated remarkable technical sophistication and a forward-looking spirit.

We are particularly proud that one of our teams secured second place in the “BCI Programming & Arts Projects” category—congratulations to the team for this outstanding achievement. A brief report on the Hackathon also aired on local television; you can view it here: https://www.sr.de/sr/mediathek/video/FS_AB_11446.html

Prof. Dr. Dr. Daniel J. Strauss was invited to participate as a speaker in a panel discussion on Automotive Health at the Health Tech Hub Styria in Graz last week. The conference was aimed at advancing medical research projects in vehicle, among other things, and further networking clinics and industry. We were also invited to present our research vehicle as well as research results on passenger monitoring.
Thank you for having us!