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AI / ML

Models built on clinically labelled data, with the dataset, the training record and the performance evidence assembled the way a regulator will ask to see them.

When AI and machine learning are the right step

When a product must interpret images or signals to screen, diagnose or monitor. The model is medical device software, so the data and the testing matter as much as the accuracy.

  • Read medical images

    Classify or measure findings in images such as scans, slides or photographs, with clinicians setting the reference.

  • Interpret signals

    Detect patterns in signals such as ECG, breathing or motion, on the device or in the cloud.

  • Prepare a model for approval

    A model that works in the lab and now needs a documented dataset, a locked version and a test on unseen data.

What you bring, and what you get back

You bring

  • The clinical question, and who the output is for
  • Data you already hold, and its consent terms
  • Access to clinicians for labelling, if you have it
  • The device or software the model runs in
  • Any earlier models and their results

You get back

  • Dataset description and labelling protocol
  • Model and training record
  • A locked model version for testing
  • Performance report on held-out data
  • Plan for future model changes
  • Inputs on model errors for the risk file

Test on data the model has never seen

Training setThe model learnsfrom this dataTuning setSettings and modelchoice made hereTest setKept apartUsed once, at the endOn the locked modelThe result that counts

A model tested on data it has already seen looks better than it is. Split the data before training: one set to learn from, one to tune and choose the model, and one held back. Lock the chosen model, then test it once on the held-back set. Keep each patient in one set only, or the test is not independent. The good machine learning practice principles from FDA, Health Canada and MHRA stress the same separation.

How AI and ML development works

  1. Step 1

    Define the task

    The clinical question, the population and the reference the model is judged by.

  2. Step 2

    Build the dataset

    Collected and labelled with clinicians, then split into training, tuning and test sets.

  3. Step 3

    Train and lock

    Models trained and compared, then one version locked for testing.

  4. Step 4

    Prove performance

    Tested on data it has never seen, with a plan for how it may change.

Questions clients ask

How much data do we need?

It depends on the task, how varied the patients are and the performance you must show. The test set must be large enough to estimate performance with useful confidence, and it should reflect the people the device will be used on.

Can the model keep learning after launch?

Not freely. A regulated model is usually locked, and a change is planned, tested and approved like any other design change. Some regulators accept a plan agreed in advance that sets which changes may be made and how they are tested.

Who labels the data?

Clinicians, working to a written labelling protocol. Where experts disagree, the protocol sets how the reference label is decided.

Is an AI model a medical device?

Software that analyses data to diagnose, screen or monitor is usually regulated as a medical device. See AI and software as a medical device for how the routes differ.

The open-plan design office

Data labelled with clinicians

We work with 100+ clinician partners, and our datasets are collected and labelled with clinicians. AI is one of nine disciplines in one team, beside software, verification and regulatory.

Our quality system · About us

Devices we have worked on

We name the type of device, not the client. Client work stays confidential. See every device type.

Run under an ISO 13485:2016 quality system certified by TÜV SÜD, certificate 99 400 00046. What it covers.

Not quite you?

Standards this work is done against

  • IEC 62304Medical device software life cycle
  • ISO 14971Risk management
  • IEC 62366-1Usability engineering
  • GMLPGood machine learning practice principles (FDA, Health Canada, MHRA)

The list for a given device, and the edition of each, is set in its regulatory plan.

Where this sits

  1. 01Co-Innovate
  2. 02Co-Design & Develop
  3. 03Co-Manufacturing
  4. 04Co-Commercialize
  5. +Co-Invest

Also in Co-Design & Develop

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