SciTransfer
VITALISE · Project

Shared Living Lab Network That Lets Companies Test Health Products With Real Users

healthTestedTRL 5
vitalise-project.eu

Imagine you've built a new rehab device or a care app, but you have no idea if real patients and caregivers will actually use it. VITALISE connected 17 Living Labs across Europe into one network so that companies and researchers can walk in, test their health products with real people in real homes and clinics, and get honest feedback before going to market. They also built shared digital tools so that data collected in one lab can be compared and reused by others, and created a Panel Management Tool to keep track of participants across sites.

By the numbers
17
Living Lab research infrastructures connected across Europe
19
consortium partners
11
countries represented in the network
47
project deliverables produced
6
SMEs in the consortium
The business problem

What needed solving

Companies developing health technologies — rehab devices, care apps, assistive tools — face a painful gap between lab testing and real-world adoption. They need real patients, caregivers, and elderly users to try their products in actual homes and clinics, but setting up multi-country user tests is expensive and slow. Without this real-world validation, products fail after launch because they don't fit how people actually live and receive care.

The solution

What was built

VITALISE built a connected network of 17 Living Lab research infrastructures with shared ICT tools for data collection, storage, and cross-site sharing. They delivered a working Panel Management Tool (with demo and tutorial videos) for managing research participants, plus harmonized processes for transnational and virtual access to health and wellbeing research data across 47 total deliverables.

Audience

Who needs this

Medical device companies needing real-world user validation before market launchDigital health startups building telehealth or remote monitoring platformsElderly care operators evaluating new assistive technologiesRehabilitation equipment manufacturers expanding into new European marketsHealth insurance companies assessing the effectiveness of new care interventions
Business applications

Who can put this to work

Medical device manufacturing
SME
Target: Companies developing rehabilitation equipment or assistive technologies

If you are a rehab device maker struggling to test your products with real patients across multiple countries — VITALISE built a network of 17 Living Labs where you can run user tests in actual care settings. Their shared ICT tools let you collect comparable data from different sites, and the Panel Management Tool helps you manage participants. The consortium included 19 partners across 11 countries, giving you access to diverse user populations.

Digital health
any
Target: Software companies building telehealth, remote monitoring, or care coordination platforms

If you are a digital health company that needs to validate your platform with real caregivers and patients before launch — VITALISE created harmonized processes for testing health technologies in everyday living environments. Their virtual access system lets you tap into existing datasets on rehabilitation, transitional care, and everyday life activities without running your own expensive study. The project produced 47 deliverables including data-sharing tools you could leverage.

Elderly care and assisted living
mid-size
Target: Care home operators and home care service providers exploring technology adoption

If you are a care provider looking to introduce new technologies but unsure what actually works for your residents and staff — VITALISE tested health and wellbeing solutions in real living environments through 17 research infrastructures. Their training methods help care organizations understand how to co-design solutions with the people who will use them. The project covered rehabilitation, transitions in care, and daily living activities — exactly the areas where care providers need evidence.

Frequently asked

Quick answers

What would it cost my company to access these Living Labs?

The project offered transnational access to 17 Living Lab infrastructures, which during the project period was funded through the EU grant (RIA funding scheme). Now that the project has closed, access terms would depend on individual Living Labs. Contact the European Network of Living Labs (ENoLL) coordinator for current pricing.

Can this scale to test products across multiple countries simultaneously?

Yes — that was a core design goal. VITALISE connected 17 Living Labs across 11 countries with harmonized processes and common ICT tools specifically so that multi-site, multi-country testing could happen. The shared data infrastructure means results from different sites are comparable.

Who owns the IP — can I license the tools they built?

The project was coordinated by the European Network of Living Labs (ENoLL), a non-profit based in Belgium. The ICT tools and Panel Management Tool were developed within the consortium of 19 partners. IP and licensing terms would need to be discussed directly with the coordinator, as RIA projects typically allow partners to retain ownership of their results.

Is this just research or has it been tested with real users?

VITALISE went beyond pure research. They delivered a working demo of their Panel Management Tool with explanatory videos, and the entire project was built around real-world testing in actual living environments, care facilities, and homes. The 47 deliverables suggest substantial operational output.

How does this fit with our existing clinical trial or user testing processes?

VITALISE was designed to complement traditional clinical research by adding real-life validation. Their harmonized data collection and sharing tools can integrate with existing research workflows. The training materials they developed can help your team adopt Living Lab methods alongside your current processes.

What kind of data can we access remotely?

The project offered virtual access to datasets covering three domains: rehabilitation, transitional care, and everyday life activities. These were collected across multiple Living Labs using harmonized processes, making cross-site comparison possible. Based on available project data, specific dataset formats and access procedures would need to be confirmed with the consortium.

Consortium

Who built it

The VITALISE consortium brings together 19 partners from 11 countries, with a balanced mix of 7 universities, 5 industry players, 4 research organizations, and 3 other entities. The 26% industry ratio and 6 SMEs signal genuine commercial interest alongside strong academic grounding. The coordinator is the European Network of Living Labs (ENoLL), a well-established non-profit that operates as the umbrella organization for Living Labs worldwide — meaning the network infrastructure is likely to outlast the project funding period. Partners from Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Greece, Spain, Finland, France, Hungary, Italy, and the Netherlands give the network broad European coverage with a Canadian link for transatlantic reach.

How to reach the team

The coordinator is the European Network of Living Labs (ENoLL) based in Belgium. As a well-known Living Lab network organization, their contact details are publicly available through enoll.org.

Order a report on this consortiumSee EUROPEAN NETWORK OF LIVING LABS IVZW profile →
Next steps

Talk to the team behind this work.

Want to test your health product in real care settings across Europe? SciTransfer can connect you with the right Living Lab partners from this network and help you navigate access options.

Order a report on this topicMore in Health & Biomedical
More in Health & Biomedical
See all Health & Biomedical projects →
Automated Allergy Test Covering All Allergens in One Run, Ready to Ship
AllergyExplorer
Open →
Lab-Sized 3D Cell Microscope Replaces 12-Month Waits at Giant Synchrotron Facilities
LICENT
Open →
Blood Test Platform That Catches Rare Diseases Early Using AI-Powered Diagnostics
METAdiag
Open →