Neurodegenerative diseases, such as Parkinson’s disease, are a major public health issue given the aging population in Europe and beyond. While curative pharmacological treatment of these diseases is not in sight, cell replacement therapies (CTs) are considered very promising, in particular with the advent of stem-cell reprogramming technologies. However, a fundamental challenge in the medical application of CTs in the brain of patients lies in the lack of control of cell behaviour at the site of transplantation, and particularly their differentiation and oriented growth. The aim of this project is to introduce a fundamentally new concept for remote control of cellular functions by means of magnetic manipulation. The technology is based on magnetic nanoparticles functionalized with proteins involved in cellular signalling cascades. These biofunctionalized MNPs (bMNPs) will be delivered into target cells, where they act as intracellular signalling platforms activatable in a spatially and temporally controlled manner by external magnetic fields. The project will focus on engineering these tools for the control of neuronal cell programming and fibre outgrowth by hijacking Wnt and neurotrophin signalling, respectively, with the ulti-mate objective of advancing cell replacement therapies for PD using dopaminergic precursor neurons. To achieve this ambitious goal, we have gathered an interdisciplinary consortium interfacing scientists having cutting-edge know-how in bMNP engineering, surface functionalization and cellular nanobiophysics with renowned experts in neuronal cell differentiation, stem-cell reprogramming and regenerative (nano-)medicine. By exploiting this complementary expertise, a novel, versatile technology for magnetic control of intracellular signalling is envis-aged, which will be a breakthrough for remote actuation of cellular functions and its successful implementation in CTs for neurodegenerative diseases and injuries within the following decade.

The European Direct-Drive Architecture (EDDA) project aims at optimizing the power chain efficiency of a spacecraft using electric propulsion, which is at the heart of technological roadmaps for future spacecraft. The objective is to develop, build and test a demonstrator of a high voltage and high power direct-drive concept. This innovative architecture supplies directly electric thrusters by a 300V-400V Solar Array without power conversion vs 28-100V in the current state of the art. The advantages are to remove power converters, to save mass, dissipation and cost, and to improve significantly the overall efficiency and reduce the thermal dissipation. In addition, at satellite level, it corresponds to a reduction of thrust duration, saving mission time. The ability of the concept to be applied to various thrusters technologies is key to maximize the impact of the architecture. Therefore this study is based on a transversal aspect of Electric Propulsion to be demonstrated on two different Electric Thruster technologies: Hall Effect Thruster (HET) from Sitael (Italy) and High Efficiency Multistage Plasma Thruster (HEMPT) from Thales-D (Germany). EDDA demonstration is based on a thruster plasma analysis (UC3M, Spain). Cathod Reference Point electronics, HET, vacuum chamber for complete testing are provided by Sitael. The bus voltage control loop and associated hardware are designed and manufactured by TAS-B. Coordination at satellite level is performed by TAS-F. Efficient Innovation provides effective management and associated tools. Tests will follow real operational conditions: no Sun, variation of illumination, thruster start-up and switch off, quick variation of consumption, and will demonstrate the robustness of this architecture easily adaptable to spacecraft (telecommunication satellites for Electric Orbit Raising reduction, In Orbit Servicing and Space-tugs, interplanetary carriers).

Tulipp will develop a reference platform that defines implementation rules and interfaces to tackle power consumption issues while delivering high, efficient and guaranteed computing performance for image processing applications. Using this reference platform will enable designers to develop an elementary board at a reduced cost to meet typical embedded systems requirements: Size, Weight and Power (SWaP) requirements. Moreover, for less constrained systems which performance requirements cannot be fulfilled by one instance of the platform, the reference platform will also be scalable so that the resulting boards be chained for higher processing power. To demonstrate its effectiveness, an instance of the reference platform will be developed during the project. The instance of the reference platform will be use-case driven and split between the implementation of: a reference HW architecture - a scalable low-power board; a low-power operating system and image processing libraries; an energy aware tool chain. It will lead to three proof-of-concept demonstrators across different application domains: real-time and low-power medical image processing product prototype of surgical X-ray system (Mobile c-arm); embedded image processing systems within Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV); automotive real time embedded systems for driver assistance. The Tulipp approach will also give rise to advances in system integration, processing innovation and idle power management. Tulipp will closely work with standardisation organisations to propose new standards derived from its reference platform to the industry. Its consortium includes the necessary and sufficient number of partners covering all the required inter-disciplinary expertise to successfully carry out the required experimentation, integration and demonstration activities as well as to assure a manageable project structure and minimise the risks to achieve the ambitious goals of the project.

Electrification of passenger cars and light-duty vehicles will have a knock-on effect on reducing the greenhouses gases emission from the transportation sector, as it is still the biggest emitter due to fossil fuel based engines. However the maturity of electrical drives and electrical engines needs a final push for better performance, better comfort and cost reduction in order to generate a massive adoption of such transport in Europe and worldwide, replacing conventional cars. ModulED aims at developing a new generation of modular electric engine based on buried-permanent magnet motor with reduced rare earth use, and electric drivetrain for various configurations of Full and Hybrid Electric Vehicles (including cost, environmental impact, efficiency, and mass manufacturing ready). The multiphase e-motor will integrate the latest GaN inverter for power electronics, advanced control with higher fault tolerance, advanced cooling features, with reduced sizing and higher efficiency. It will be linked with a performant electrical drive and transmission, adapting new regenerative braking strategies. The project takes into account industrial, user requirements and environmental impacts through life cycle analysis, to gear the activities towards a full vehicle approach design and realization of each component and whole powertrain. Also, new virtual models will be developed for reliable design and simulation of every component features. Demonstration on BMW i3 or similar vehicle will be performed at the end, validating the high performance powertrain. The project gathers 9 partners as cutting-edge from automotive, power electronics, powertrain specialists with 3 research centres, 3 Tier-1 suppliers and SMEs.