Development of an innovative, secure platform for optimizing patient care with an integrated ECG wristwatch for long-term monitoring and symbiotic zero-knowledge security.
The Symbiotically Secure Lowcost Healthcare Platform project represents a groundbreaking initiative to revolutionise healthcare technology through the development of innovative, highly-secure, and cost-effective digital medical solutions. This ambitious project addresses the critical need for affordable yet secure healthcare infrastructure in an increasingly digital world.
Project Objectives
Our primary objective is to create a comprehensive healthcare platform that seamlessly integrates security at every level while maintaining affordability for healthcare providers of all sizes. The project aims to:
- Develop a symbiotic security architecture that provides multi-layered protection without compromising performance
- Create cost-effective solutions that make advanced healthcare technology accessible to smaller medical facilities
- Implement cutting-edge cryptographic protocols specifically designed for medical data protection
- Establish new standards for secure medical device communication and data exchange
- Ensure compliance with international healthcare data protection regulations
Key Innovation Areas
Our research focuses on developing novel approaches to healthcare security that go beyond traditional methods, incorporating symbiotic security principles where multiple security layers work together to enhance overall protection while reducing individual component costs.
Technical Approach and Methodology
This application study focuses on developing a secure ECG wristwatch based on an eWatch platform for privacy-compliant remote patient monitoring, particularly 24-hour outpatient ECG data collection. The project involves multiple partners across Germany and Turkey, with WIZnet leading as a data protection and security expert, Medron handling device development with Demsay's collaboration, as well as security analysis and modelling support by the University of Stuttgart.
The wristwatch will feature a symbiotically secure architecture SoC, low-power high-precision sensors, and comprehensive security measures to protect patient data integrity and privacy. Beyond technical development, the project includes creating training programs for medical staff and patients, conducting extensive testing for device durability and reliability, and performing detailed analysis of data transmission, performance metrics, and security protocols to optimise the system's overall effectiveness and battery life.
Expected Impact and Benefits
The successful completion of this project will have far-reaching implications for the healthcare industry and the wider European footing in advanced IoT security manufacturing:
- Democratisation of Secure Healthcare Technology: Making advanced security accessible to smaller clinics and healthcare providers
- Enhanced Patient Data Protection: Providing unprecedented levels of security for sensitive medical information, unlocking previously unavailable healthcare functionality due to safety concerns
- Reduced Healthcare Costs: Lowering the financial barrier to implementing secure digital health solutions
- Improved Interoperability: Creating standards that enable secure communication between diverse healthcare systems
- Innovation in Medical Security: Establishing new paradigms for healthcare cybersecurity, positioning Europeans SMEs as industry leaders in secure eHealth
Research Consortium and Expertise
The project consortium brings together highly specialised expertise across security architecture, hardware manufacturing, and medical device development, enabling us to research and develop a comprehensive end-to-end solution for secure healthcare IoT applications.
- WIZnet Germany GmbH - Security specialists bringing extensive experience in enterprise security architectures, cryptographic building blocks, and secure identity systems. WIZnet leads project management and the security design and specifications.
- Demsay Elektronik - The hardware manufacturing partner responsible for synthesising electronic components, particularly the secure co-processor and circuit boards. They will handle the conversion from FPGA prototypes to system-on-a-chip (SoC) production, including hardware design, prototype production, testing, manufacturing, and necessary certifications.
- Medron Medikal - The medical device company preparing the target platform, specifically developing the long-term ECG-capable wristwatch with smartphone connectivity. They handle embedded software development and testing, and are expanding existing products like eWatch with enhanced security features. Medron also explores additional healthcare IoT applications such as staff location tracking systems and emergency physician guidance systems.
- University of Stuttgart - The Institute of Computer Architecture and Computer Engineering will provide significant research expertise in preemptively evaluating and testing designs to ensure safe and reliable circuits and systems, design methodology and efficient/secure hardware architectures.
