Between November 2021 and March 2022, four pilot experiences of the Bionic project were carried out -two with a short execution period and two with a longer trial period- in the two sectors of activity involved in this initiative belonging to the Horizon 2020 programme: construction and industry. It is a European project led by the German Centre for Research in Artificial Intelligence -DFKI-, in which Fundación Laboral de la Construcción participates, together with nine other partners from Spain, Germany, the Netherlands and Greece.

The Bionic project researches, develops and applies 'smart' clothing for working people, with the aim of monitoring their movements and providing guidelines for improving occupational health in order to support and promote active and healthy ageing.

Tests during real working time

These pilot tests were carried out with the complete Bionic system, integrated in the work clothes and connected to ergonomic assessment tools to achieve, through the information collected by the system, an early action by occupational physicians or occupational health and safety managers.

The two pilots in the construction sector were carried out at Acciona's facilities in Valencia and Alicante, respectively, with the participation of seven volunteer workers, three in the short-term pilot and four in the longer-term pilot, the latter during a week of real work. The other two pilots in the industrial sector took place at the MTU-Rolls Royce facilities.

Both partner companies of the project participated in these experiences, with the support of DFKI, the coordinating entity of the project and knowledgeable about the whole system and its interconnections, as well as Interactive Wear, the company responsible for the chosen clothing, and for the integration of smart chips and wiring in the clothing, Body Sensor Network (BSN) and the necessary power supply.

In parallel and in a complementary manner, Baua has been carrying out laboratory tests to validate the system in relation to the two ergonomic evaluation methodologies that have been integrated into the system (OWAS and ISO). The other partners have also been involved: Hiperclic, for its responsibility in information flows, and Roessingh, as the entity responsible for gamification (application integrated into the system to help in the proposal of physical activity, exercises, etc., that compensate the areas of the body most affected by the performance of the work activity).

Evaluation for improvements in the system

The participation of Fundación Laboral de la Construcción has been fundamental in the evaluation of the experience of the workers who have taken part in the pilots, in which quantitative research techniques have been used (evaluation questionnaire created ad hoc for this project and the experiences of the workers) and qualitative (although originally designed with discussion groups, it had to be modified with interviews, as a result of Covid-19). Overall, the feedback gathered from workers using these techniques has been very positive, and will serve to point out possible improvements to the system before launching it.

The medium to long term plan is that, after the project is completed, the system will be shown at various European industrial and technological innovation fairs, such as IFA Berlin, one of the oldest industrial trade fairs in Germany, where the Bionic system has already been presented. Even partners such as Interactive Wear are interested in its commercial application.

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