CONSORTIUM

Fraunhofer IGD

The Fraunhofer Institute for Computer Graphics (IGD) is the largest computer graphics institute in Europe and one of the largest and best equipped world-wide. The institute is embedded within the national institution of the Fraunhofer Society with a total of 56 institutes and over 11.000 employees (ca 8.000 scientists) and an annual budget of over 900 Mio. €. The mission of the Fraunhofer Society is to provide product solutions, know-how and basic research to the industry as well as to small & medium enterprises (SME) on a contract-based research. As a result, more than the half of the total budget is resulting from contracts with industrial and SME partners. For more information please see www.fraunhofer.de

Thales Alenia Space España

Thales Alenia Space España is a company created in 1988 dedicated to the design and manufacturing of spatial flight equipment. Thales Alenia Space España is a fully independent operational entity belonging to the newly created Thales Alenia Space company.
Thales Alenia Space España is located at the Technological Park of Madrid (Tres Cantos-Madrid-Spain), it has 1,400 m2 of clean room area and counts with 200 people. The main activities are the following:

• Satellite Systems: Advanced Telecommunication Multibeam Systems based in regenerative and transparent payloads
• On-Board Equipment: TTC, Active RF Equipment, Passive RF Equipment and Data Handling Units .
  

TAS-E has led the AmerHis project (ESA program) to produce the first DVB-RCS/DVB-S multibeam regenerative system in the world which is boarded in the Amazonas satellite (a continuation of the FP6 IBIS project). The coverage area of the AmerHis system includes 4 beams Europe, North America, South America and Brazil and allows full cross connectivity between them. TAS-E has integrated different e-learning and e-health applications to take advantage of this multiregional feature and of the real time capabilities of mesh connections.

The company has a strong R& D heritage including the participation in other FP5 and FP6 projects as IBIS, SatLife (acting as System Responsible) or Satsix to promote the interoperation of satellite and terrestrial networks. www.thalesaleniaspace.com

Geopac

Geopac is a telecommunications service provider operating exclusively in Latin America. Specializing in mobile satellite services, fixed and portable VSATs, and wireless broadband solutions, our products and services offer reliable and secure connections in the most extreme environments. Our services include strategic consulting, project design, programme implementation, and training. Our mission is to connect with Latin America by focusing on solutions for rural and isolated communities that: 1) improve access to basic services, such as health and education, 2) provide tools that promote social enterprise and 3) deliver intercultural programmes that foster respect and a sense of responsibility for conservation and human diversity. For more information please see www.geo-pac.com

VICOMTech

VICOMTech is a research centre for located in San Sebastian, Spain. It was established in March 2001 as a joint venture between the international network INI-GraphicsNet Foundation and the Basque EITB broadcasting group. The mission of VICOMTech is to provide the industry and institutions of various profiles with solutions in the domain of the computer graphics.
VICOMTech's main research lines include medical image processing, advanced interfaces in healthcare, telemedicine, digital TV and interactive services, 3D multimedia environments for GIS and tourism applications, speech and gesture recognition systems and advanced visualisation tools for industrial processes.

VICOMTech has previous experience in projects involving liable signal transmission for healthcare applications and has an ongoing project on a videoconference tool for health practitioners.
VICOMTech has been involved in European eHealth projects, such as @HOME (IST-2000-26083) and T@LEMED (@LIS-2002).
In addition to a strong local support, VICOMTech enjoys a world-wide network of partners which enables its staff to continuously improve its qualification. Thanks to these efforts and the continued assessment of the research processes, VICOMTech has been awarded with the Innovation and Technology Centre certification by the Spanish Ministry of Education and Science.

A short description of the staff members who are expected to be involved in the MedNET project is provided below. www.vicomtech.es

MedCom GmbH

MedCom GmbH is located in Darmstadt, Germany, and has been founded in October 1997 as a spin-off company of the Fraunhofer Institute for Computer Graphics, the world leader Research and Development (R&D) Institution for Computer Graphics Technologies. One of the missions of MedCom is to implement and boost Fraunhofer's commercial activities. MedCom licensed the IPRs on the InViVo technology with the goal to develop InViVo to a commercial product in the sense of the international regulations (CE, FDA).

In addition, to offer the technology as complete product to customers, thus implementing commercialisation activities not offered by the IGD. Though the exclusive licensing of Fraunhofer-technology, MedCom was able to extend and further develop products on a solid technological base and to provide high-technology products within a short time. In particular, MedCom has licensed the exclusive rights for commercial purposes in the area of 3D-ultrasound and related fields. More details about all of our projects, including flyers and technical documentation, numerous images, videos etc., can be found on our web page www.medcom-online.de

National Technical University of Athens

EPU-NTUA is a multidisciplinary scientific unit which carries out research and development projects and provides consulting services on a wide range of complex business, societal and technical problems. The unit operates within the Electrical & Computer Engineering Department of the National Technical University of Athens (NTUA), the oldest, most prestigious and most competitive academic institute in Greece. EPU-NTUA has a long and successful tradition in consulting, training and research activities, in the wide area of decision support systems with emphasis on energy policy formulation and analysis; energy economy and environmental planning at regional and national level; monitoring and evaluation of large projects; development of energy and environmental models; training and information dissemination on energy related topics; scientific preparation and organisation of large conferences and workshops. In addition, EPU-NTUA covers all aspects of information systems, decisionmaking, communication, e-training, planning and forecasting for contemporary organisations in the public and private sector. Within this framework, EPU-NTUA provides high quality consulting services and develops solutions for real life problems in industry, trade, education, health and public administration. The academic descent of EPU-NTUA coupled with its international exposure has resulted to high-level professionalism in its work, which in combination with the age traits of its staff gives a unique spirit of enthusiasm and dynamism to the group. EPU-NTUA was established in 1980 by a core staff that is still responsible for the steering of its activities. Since then, it is growing constantly, expanding its spectrum of activities and its clientele base. Today, more than 100 highly qualified experts are occupied in EPU-NTUA, ready to offer scientific consulting services to private and public organisations. www.ntua.gr

DIRESA Junin

DIRESA Junín officially emerged from the decentralisation process in Peru, specifically the STATUTORY LAW OF REGIONAL GOVERNMENTS No 27867 on 13/01/2003. As such it is an independent legal entity. It is also an organ of the Regional Government of Junín that depends both from the Regional Government of Junín (administrative issues) and from the Ministry of Health (technical issues). Diresa Junín's strategic role, as Junín's public health authority, is to protect the personal dignity of the population by:

• Promoting health and constructing a culture of health, respect of life and solidarity between people and institutions.
• Constructing objective common in favour of the people, of the family and local communities.
• Diminishing disparities and promoting active citizenship and responsible for health, considering the family like a basic unit of health where the culture of values in favour of health and life begins.
• Preventing diseases and guaranteeing the integral attention of all inhabitants integrating the preventive-promotional aspects with the welfare curatives.
• Fulfilling the policies and national objectives of health in conjunction with all the social sectors public and actors.
• Considering the person as the centre of its mission to which one dedicates with respect and in defence of the life and fundamental rights of the population, from their conception to their natural death, respecting the course of life and contributing to the great national task to obtain the development of all the citizens. www.diresajunin.gob.pe

Industry Federation of Rio grande de Sul- SENAI-CETA

The Center of Excellence in Advanced Technologies SENAI (CETA SENAI) is a R&D institute with the mission to develop and execute cooperative applied research projects together with universities and other R&D centers in several sectors of the industry, bringing technological innovation to companies and to the society, promoting the development of the country. CETA was founded in 1999 and is a private R&D, non-profit organization financed by contractual customers from the industry, by the federal Brazilian public sector (government), and by the Industry Federation of Rio Grande do Sul State (SENAI). The institute applies efficient Project Management methodologies, verified in several industry projects which the competencies involve (in an integrated way) Product and Production Development and Information Technology and Communication, having the Environment theme as a transversal focus. The R&D activities includes services in technological innovation and development, resulting in innovative solutions (products and processes), as well as the knowledge transfer of international excellence centers. In the several fields of work, the following can be attached: computer graphics, communication, production and automation, logistics, materials, food processing, and cleaning technology.
In the field of Health, CETA SENAI has expertise on innovative ICT solutions for telemedicine, e-home care, ambient intelligence and communication. As a co-partner, CETA participated on the European Latin American telemedicine project T@lemed (@LIS fund) in which a telehealth platform based on ultrasound images for real-time collaborative tele-consultations has been introduced and implemented in Brazil. In addition, the institute carries other three projects in that area: portable tele-consultation platforms using ultrasound (financed by the Brazilian government), ambient intelligence applied for elderly people, and PLC (Power Line Carrier) communication with the telemedicine platform resulted from the T@lemed project as an application. Web site: www.senairs.org.br/ceta

Santa Casa de Porto Alegre

The Hospital Complex of the Casa Saint of Porto Alegre, that commemorated in 2003, two centuries of assistance to the health as an organization in tune with the vanguard of the medicine. In this its history also inserts the development in education and research, being the Institution the origin, in 1898, of the first School of Medicine of the current State College of Medicine of the Federal University of the Rio Grande Do Sul and, in 1961, of the Foundation Federal College of Medical Sciences of Porto Alegre. The Hospital Complex Casa Saint of Porto Alegre is composed of seven hospitals, having been two specialized general hospitals and five, being distinguished the areas of medical clinic, general surgery, cardiology, brain surgery, pneumology, cancer, pediatrics and transplants. Integrated for enabled professionals and advanced technologies, beyond modern installations, that guarantee the comfort of the customer, the hospitals of the Santa Casa are reference in the assistance in health in Latin America, due to carried through quality of the procedure. In function of this commitment with its increasing qualification, the Casa Saint conquered the National Prize of Quality - PNQ in 2002, granted for the Foundation for the National Prize of the Quality in recognition to the organizations that more are distinguished for the practical one of excellency managements. The Casa Saint of Porto Alegre is the first hospital and the first organization of private law without lucrative ends of the Country to receive the PNQ. In 2003, the Program Gaucho of Quality and Productivity - RS conferred to the Institution the Trophy Diamond, in recognition to the certification of the PNQ. www.santacasa.org.br

Hispasat S.A.

Hispasat is the Spanish satellite operator that has become a reference for the American continent in terms of traditional and broadband communication services. With 5 satellites in orbit, Hispasat is able to give connectivity to both American and European continents, and with AmerHis, Amazonas satellite is the first satellite in the world with a DVB-S/RCS on board processor working as a regenerative system.

From the very beginning HISPASAT S.A. staff is participating in major national and international Committees for technical and operational recommendations on the use of satellites. Thus, HISPASAT is a recognized exploitation company in the UIT making contributions and sending delegates to Study Groups 1, 4, 5, 8, 10 and 11 and Working Groups 4A, 4B, 4/2, 8D, 10-11S, etc, It is a formal member of the European Telecommunication Standardization Institute (ETSI), participating in the work of ETSI SES Committee and STC SES2, 3 and 4.
HISPASAT is from the very beginning a member of the Digital Video Broadcasting Project, and specially has participated in the definition of technical solutions for the implementation of satellite digital TV and interactive services.

HISPASAT has participated in some international projects, as the EUREKA 95 for High Definition Television, in the definition of a contribution digital HDTV link. It has collaborated in the development of a reconfigurable contoured beam antenna for ESA (ASYRIO Project) and has been the coordinator of RACE DIGISMATV project within the RACE program. HISPASAT has leaded the DIGISAT and S3M ACTS projects, which have developed the required technology for the implementation of a return channel via satellite, and has analyzed the new services allowed by the digital TV technology. Furthermore, he has been the coordinator of MOBILITY and FLEXIMATV projects, both within the Fifth Framework Research and Development Programme. At the moment, within the Sixth Framework Programme, HISPASAT is coordinating SATLIFE project, focused on improvements over AmerHis, which is in the phase of real trials, working in SATSIX project, an Integrated Project dealing with new features such as Ipv6 and DVB-S2, and also in two ESA projects: one focused in Satellite Services in Latin America and Africa based on the DVB-RCS Standard and another one working in the Interoperability Enhancement during Civil protection deployments outside Europe. www.hispasat.com

Gobierno Regional de Junin

The Regional Government of Junín provides a wide range of services to over 1.3 million inhabitants. It is committed to working with other public, private and voluntary bodies and has recently pledged to work towards ensuring that by 2012 “the region is healthy, productive, with a high index of human development, an integrated health system, which is efficient, united and transparent and guarantees the rights and equal access to a quality service to the most vulnerable sections of the community”. In addition to its political, economic and administrative authority it has specific responsibilities to provide:

• Public health care for all its citizens
• Schools and other educational opportunities
• Social Care services for young and older people
• Libraries, Museums and other cultural activities
• Planning advice as the strategic planning authority
• Advice, assistance and support to SMEs
  

Vladimiro Huaroc Portocarrero is the current Regional President of Junín. A committed political activist, he was a recent candidate for the Vice Presidency of Peru. Vladmiro has previously worked as regional co-ordinator for the United Nations in Nicaragua, Guatemala and El Salvador as well as managing the UN offices in Southern Mexico.