One reason for non-participation in and drop-out from sports and physical activity participation is sports related injuries where especially knee and ankle injuries contribute to this problem. Therefore, the project MOVE HEALTHY: Improving Health and Sustaining Participation of Youngsters in Sports around Europe seeks to develop free-of-charge education material to effectively support sport coaches and physical educators around Europe to prevent primary lower extremity injuries of the youngsters participating in their sport trainings and physical education (PE) classes.Therefore, MOVE HEALTHY seeks to develop exercise based routines to preventsports and physical activity related injuries. The routines will be web-based including instruction videos. The routines will be based on the OPTIMAL motor learning theory and Self Determination Theory. It is intended that the consortium develops – by the process of co-creation with sport coaches and PE teachers – functional sports exercises that can be integrated in real world sport training and PE classes. With it, the project directly contributes to an improved sharing of good practices and develops innovative instruments in order to lower the risks of injuries and enhance sports participation in youngsters.The objective is to improve the motor competence of the youngsters, as well as toattitudinal and behavioral changes of the sport coaches and PE teachers during their practice. The ultimate goal of the MOVE HEALTHY project is that the youngsters can enjoy a lifelong, healthy sport participation
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Dynamic body feedback is used in dance movement therapy (DMT), with the aim to facilitate emotional expression and a change of emotional state through movement and dance for individuals with psychosocial or psychiatric complaints. It has been demonstrated that moving in a specific way can evoke and regulate related emotions. The current study aimed to investigate the effects of executing a unique set of kinetic movement elements on an individual mover’s experience of happiness. A specific sequence consisting of movement elements that recent studies have related to the feeling of happiness was created and used in a series of conditions. To achieve a more realistic reflection of DMT practice, the study incorporated the interpersonal dimension between the dance movement therapist (DMTh) and the client, and the impact of this interbodily feedback on the emotional state of the client. This quantitative study was conducted in a within-subject design. Five male and 20 female participants (mean age = 20.72) participated in three conditions: a solo executed movement sequence, a movement sequence executed with a DMTh who attuned and mirrored the movements, and a solo executed movement sequence not associated with feelings of happiness. Participants were only informed about the movements and not the feelings that may be provoked by these movements. The effects on individuals were measured using the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule and visual analog scales. Results showed that a specific movement sequence based on movement elements associated with happiness executed with a DMTh can significantly enhance the corresponding affective state. An additional finding of this study indicated that facilitating expressed emotion through movement elements that are not associated with happiness can enhance feelings such as empowerment, pride, and determination, which are experienced as part of positive affect. The results show the impact of specific fullbody movement elements on the emotional state and the support outcome of DMT on emotion regulation.
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Background: Despite the importance of sports injury prevention in youth, no broad scale approaches that work in real-life situations with significant positive effects exist. Main reasons for this are poor uptake and maintenance of current sports injury prevention exercises.Objective: In order to improve uptake of sports injury prevention routines, this project set out to: 1. identify the specifics of current injury prevention programs within 6 European countries, and 2: to establish wishes and needs regarding injury prevention of the end-users (sport coaches, physical educators and youth) within 6 European countries.Design: Semi-structured interviews and focus group sessions.Setting: Youth sports teams and physical education (PE) classes.Patients (or Participants): Interviews and focus group sessions were performed within 6 participating countries (Belgium, Denmark, Lithuania, Romania, The Netherlands, United Kingdom). National stakeholders were interviewed to identify injury prevention programs. The program owners of the identified programs were then individually interviewed. The focus group sessions were organized with youth basketball and soccer players and PE pupils. Separate focus group sessions were organized for basketball/soccer coaches and physical educators.Interventions (or Assessment of Risk Factors): This qualitative study provided input for the development of a freely available ICT based platform with video material of routines designed to prevent sports injuries in youth.Main Outcome Measurements: Overview of country specific results of interviews and focus groups.Results: This study will describe the current availability of national injury prevention programs within 6 European countries. The results of the focus group sessions will establish the differences in beliefs regarding injury prevention in 6 European countries regarding injury prevention.Conclusions: In the coming year, the Move Healthy project will use the qualitative results of this study to develop a freely available ICT based platform with video material of routines developed to prevent sports injuries in youth.
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Horse riding falls under the “Sport for Life” disciplines, where a long-term equestrian development can provide a clear pathway of developmental stages to help individuals, inclusive of those with a disability, to pursue their goals in sport and physical activity, providing long-term health benefits. However, the biomechanical interaction between horse and (disabled) rider is not wholly understood, leaving challenges and opportunities for the horse riding sport. Therefore, the purpose of this KIEM project is to start an interdisciplinary collaboration between parties interested in integrating existing knowledge on horse and (disabled) rider interaction with any novel insights to be gained from analysing recently collected sensor data using the EquiMoves™ system. EquiMoves is based on the state-of-the-art inertial- and orientational-sensor system ProMove-mini from Inertia Technology B.V., a partner in this proposal. On the basis of analysing previously collected data, machine learning algorithms will be selected for implementation in existing or modified EquiMoves sensor hardware and software solutions. Target applications and follow-ups include: - Improving horse and (disabled) rider interaction for riders of all skill levels; - Objective evidence-based classification system for competitive grading of disabled riders in Para Dressage events; - Identifying biomechanical irregularities for detecting and/or preventing injuries of horses. Topic-wise, the project is connected to “Smart Technologies and Materials”, “High Tech Systems & Materials” and “Digital key technologies”. The core consortium of Saxion University of Applied Sciences, Rosmark Consultancy and Inertia Technology will receive feedback to project progress and outcomes from a panel of international experts (Utrecht University, Sport Horse Health Plan, University of Central Lancashire, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences), combining a strong mix of expertise on horse and rider biomechanics, veterinary medicine, sensor hardware, data analysis and AI/machine learning algorithm development and implementation, all together presenting a solid collaborative base for derived RAAK-mkb, -publiek and/or -PRO follow-up projects.
Various companies in diagnostic testing struggle with the same “valley of death” challenge. In order to further develop their sensing application, they rely on the technological readiness of easy and reproducible read-out systems. Photonic chips can be very sensitive sensors and can be made application-specific when coated with a properly chosen bio-functionalized layer. Here the challenge lies in the optical coupling of the active components (light source and detector) to the (disposable) photonic sensor chip. For the technology to be commercially viable, the price of the disposable photonic sensor chip should be as low as possible. The coupling of light from the source to the photonic sensor chip and back to the detectors requires a positioning accuracy of less than 1 micrometer, which is a tremendous challenge. In this research proposal, we want to investigate which of the six degrees of freedom (three translational and three rotational) are the most crucial when aligning photonic sensor chips with the external active components. Knowing these degrees of freedom and their respective range we can develop and test an automated alignment tool which can realize photonic sensor chip alignment reproducibly and fully autonomously. The consortium with expertise and contributions in the value chain of photonics interfacing, system and mechanical engineering will investigate a two-step solution. This solution comprises a passive pre-alignment step (a mechanical stop determines the position), followed by an active alignment step (an algorithm moves the source to the optimal position with respect to the chip). The results will be integrated into a demonstrator that performs an automated procedure that aligns a passive photonic chip with a terminal that contains the active components. The demonstrator is successful if adequate optical coupling of the passive photonic chip with the external active components is realized fully automatically, without the need of operator intervention.
All4Talent richt zich op alle arbeidsmarktprofessionals, arbeidsorganisaties en samenwerkingsverbanden die er alles aan doen om een inclusieve arbeidsmarkt te realiseren, in het bijzonder voor doelgroepen met een ondersteuningsbehoefte. All4Talent wil eraan bijdragen dat mensen met een kwetsbare arbeidsmarktpositie (kunnen blijven) meedoen. In het SPRONG-programma All4Talent wordt een toolbox ontwikkeld die bestaat uit nieuwe kennis, best practices, producten en diensten en manieren om samen te werken richting een inclusieve arbeidsmarkt. De betrokken partners werken in een kennisplatform samen aan kennisuitwisseling en -ontwikkeling. De SPRONG-subsidie biedt de onderzoeksgroep ruimte om kennis en tools te ontwikkelen voor het beter inzetten van werknemers en -zoekenden die aan de zijlijn staan.
