By David Gundry - CTO at Mirno

From my earliest experiences in programming, what interested me the most was realtime simulation of complex systems - that is physics, lighting, behaviours, economies, etc. - This interest led me to many great opportunities working in Video Games and Simulator development. Today I’m in the fortunate and fairly-unique position to be working with a team of brilliant medical experts, together we have a shared mission to develop Virtual medical simulation solutions from a new perspective.

As we see it, current medical simulations can be grouped into two broad categories:

🔬 High Specialisation Simulations - for example, organ-specific physiological simulation, with a tendency to be highly-academic in nature, non-realtime, and extremely focused.

🧮 Low Fidelity Simulations - primarily used in current medical simulation training, there are pre-determined physiological states which are progressed through based on defined conditions.

Our physiological simulation is unique in that it exists between these groups, as a highly scalable, realtime, dynamic and interactive simulation for medical training.

Coming from a background in video games, my go-to analogy of our method is to look at Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024.

MS Flight Simulator is an ultra-high fidelity, consumer-focused flight simulator. In simulators such as these, high specialisation simulation is neither feasible nor desirable due to a lack of controllability and speed. Conversely, if the simulation is too low fidelity (for example, lacking detail in cockpit controls and systems) the simulator will struggle to accurately recreate real-world scenarios such as emergencies.

What’s required is a middle ground of simulation - a predictable and easily-configurable real-time analogy of the aircraft and its characteristics.

Our Physiological simulator follows the exact same philosophy - however, it’s only due to tech developments over the last couple of years that we’ve been able to turn this into reality. This physiological simulation is a core part of our Virtual Patient technology, which in turn is central to all of our training solutions. Lastly, as a nerd I’d love to be sharing the gritty details of how this all works, but for now we’ve got to keep some secrets! 🤓🤫

I’m really excited to be pushing the boundaries of technology which we believe will become expected from medical simulation learning.

Follow Mirno for upcoming examples of how our physiological simulation is making a difference in medical training.

Mirno and the The Institute of Biomedical and Neural Engineering (IBNE) at the University of Reykjavik have signed an agreement to collaborate on research and development in the field of Virtual Patients and Virtual healthcare training solutions.

Birgir Már Þorgeirsson - CEO of Mirno, and Professor Paolo Gargiulo - Director of IBNE at Reykavik University signed this landmark agreement. The agreement promises to share Mirno's Virtual Patient technology with the renowned research institution, and offers the possibility of cutting-edge imaging from the Institute of Biomedical and Neural Engineering to feature within Virtual Patient simulations for the first time.

This agreement is typical of IBNE which was established to coordinate large-scale, multi-disciplinary research initiatives between Reykjavik University, University of Iceland, Landspitali and MedTech companies.

IBNE Researchers led by Professor Gargiulo have been successfully utilising Virtual Reality Technology in novel ways to experience advanced 3D imaging.

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Mirno developers have a strong track record in developing commercially-successful applications in VR and will use their experience to support efforts at IBNE.

Mirno are on a mission to develop innovative Virtual Patient technology. The inclusion of digitised imaging in future simulations promises to increase the clinical value of simulations featuring Virtual Patients.

Follow Mirno on LinkedIn to keep up with the latest developments in Virtual Patient technology.

At Agency of None, we recently had the pleasure of collaborating with Mirno to create a visual identity system that would not only reflect Mirno's innovative spirit but also convey the essential elements of their mission. In this blog post, we will walk you through some of our design process and the key decisions that shaped the final outputs of Mirno's identity system and website.

Word Mark: Simplicity with a Medical Twist

We aimed for a word mark that was clean, simple, and subtly evocative of the medical field. Drawing inspiration from the graphs and readouts that are ubiquitous in emergency rooms, we crafted the curves of the 'M' and the shape of the 'N' to mirror the forms found in monitoring equipment. This nod to the medical industry was intentional yet understated, creating a balance between professional relevance and modern simplicity. The logo was designed on a simple grid, which became the foundation for the supporting graphical elements used throughout the system.

Brand Mark: Connection and Space

The brand mark for Mirno is a multi-faceted symbol. The 'M' can be interpreted as two people holding hands, a poignant reference to the many moments of comfort shared between parents and children in emergency rooms. This element of human connection is central to Mirno's mission of creating a supportive training environment for paediatric clinicians.

Additionally, space is a core concept in Mirno's offering. Their technology provides a virtual space for clinicians to train, available whenever they need it. We embedded this idea of space into the identity system, creating a brand mark that gives an illusion of either protruding or being recessed, depending on the viewer's perspective. This visual ambiguity echoes the innovative and flexible nature of Mirno's virtual training environment.

Colour Palette: High Contrast for High Pressure

Starting with the colours of hospital scrubs, we developed a unique palette for Mirno that emphasises high contrast. This decision was driven by the high-pressure situations in which Mirno's technology is used, where clarity and focus are paramount. The vibrant and contrasting colours not only draw attention but also symbolise the critical and dynamic environment of paediatric healthcare.

Pattern: Distinctive and Impactful

The patterns we created for Mirno were derived from gauze textures, medical graphs and block patterns representing space. Each pattern was designed to be distinctive and offer bold usage, ensuring a memorable and impactful visual identity. These patterns serve to reinforce the technological and medical aspects of Mirno's brand while providing a visually engaging experience.

Imagery: Harmonizing Reality and Graphics

Mirno's technology creates incredibly lifelike virtual patients, making training scenarios feel authentic. It was crucial for us to find a way to seamlessly integrate these 3D renders with the graphical elements of the brand. The result is a coherent and harmonious system that maintains flexibility for various applications. This integration ensures that the imagery supports the brand's narrative and enhances the overall identity.

Conclusion

Our collaboration with Mirno was a real creative journey. By thoroughly understanding their mission and the unique challenges they address, we were able to develop a brand identity system that is not only visually appealing, but also deeply connected to the core values of the company. At Agency of None, we are proud of the work we've done with Mirno and look forward to seeing how their new brand identity helps them continue to revolutionise paediatric clinician training.

In May 2024, Mirno travelled to Sahlgrenska Science Park in Gothenburg to pitch alongside other exciting startups working in health and medical technology.

Soon after, we learned that Mirno would be only the second-ever Icelandic startup to be accepted into the accelerator program. The first was the successful Icelandic healthtech company Sidekick Health

With 17,000 staff, Sahlgrenska University Hospital is the largest hospital in Sweden, and the second-largest hospital in all of Europe. With such an expansive campus, they have facilities which few other can boast. Notably, the Sahlgrenska Science Park.

CO-AX is the newly rebranded accelerator at Sahlgrenska Science Park. They have full-time Business Advisors, who are extremely valuable sources of knowledge in medical technology.

Mirno is lucky to have 3 expert Pediatricians and Neonatologists on our Medical Team. Our clinicians all work in the Gothenburg area, and CO-AX have generously offered their excellent facilities to host collaboration between our doctors and the Iceland-based team when we are able to visit.

In addition to coaching, CO-AX assist with access to Swedish investor networks and host regular events which help bring startups, medical contacts and investors together.

The Mirno team are thrilled to be a part of CO-AX and we hope to soon become another of their many success stories!

Vitalis is the largest eHealth event in Scandinavia, attracting attendees with the shared aim of networking, building their knowledge, and improving tomorrow’s health care.

The Nordic region, and Sweden in particular, features world-class healthcare and research institutions, highly skilled hardware and software expertise, including a thriving industry and a strong startup scene.

David, one of our co-founders at Mirno, travelled to the Swedish Exhibition & Congress Centre in Gothenburg to take part, learning from leaders in health technology space, and meeting new contacts with whom we may work together in the future.

At Vitalis, we made sure to bring along our latest Virtual Patient. This was in the form of a web-based demo shown on an iPad. The attendees who met with David could try the demo and see for themselves just how accessible and powerful our latest Virtual Patient simulations are.

Mirno is based in Iceland, but we have a growing team of medical experts in Sweden, and upcoming collaborations with elite Swedish medical institutions are in the works.

We very much enjoyed Vitalis and are likely to be back in 2025!