An AAL collaborative system: the AAL4ALL and a mobile assistant case study

"15th IFIP WG 5.5 Working Conference on Virtual Enterprises, PRO-VE 2014, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, October 6-8, 2014"The areas of Ambient Assisted Living (AAL) and Intelligent Systems (IS) are in full development, but there are still some issues to be resolved. One issue is the myriad of user oriented solutions that are rarely built to interact or integrate with other systems available in the market. In this paper we present the AAL4ALL project and the UserAccess implementation, showing a novel approach towards virtual organizations, interoperability and certification. The aim of this project is to provide a collaborative network of services and devices that connect every user and product from other developers, building a heterogeneous ecosystem. Thus establishing an environment for collaborative care systems, which may be available to the users in from of safety services, comfort services and healthcare services.Project "AAL4ALL", co-financed by the European Community Fund FEDER, through COMPETE - Programa Operacional Factores de Competitividade (POFC). Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT), Lisbon, Portugal, through Project PEst-C/CTM/LA0025/2013 and the project PEst-OE/EEI/UI0752/2014. Project CAMCoF - Context-aware Multimodal Communication Framework fund-ed by ERDF -European Regional Development Fund through the COMPETE Pro-gramme (operational programme for competitiveness) and by National Funds through the FCT - Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology) within project FCOMP-01-0124-FEDER-028980

Advances and trends for the development of ambient-assisted living platforms

Ambient Assisted Living (AAL) and Ambient Intelligence (AmI) try to achieve a future where technology surrounds the users and helps them in their daily lives. In this sense, the urgent need of solutions to cover the rapid increase of the elderly population with chronic diseases led to the increase of projects related with AAL and AmI. During the latest years, several projects have been proposed to tackle different medical problems, some building devices and others services. This paper presents iGenda and its evolution, the UserAccess, with the main objective of developing an AAL platform. It features an analysis of the latest developments and points future directions for the work. These projects display the importance of the interoperability of the platforms, demonstrating a case study for AAL development.This work has been supported by FCT – Fundação para a Ciência eTecnologia within the Project Scope: UID/CEC/00319/2013 and COMPETE: POCI-01-0145-FEDER007043. A. Costa thanks the Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT) the post-doc scholarship with the ref. SFRH/BPD/102696/2014. This work is also partially supported by the MINECO/FEDER TIN2015-65515-C41-R.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Using the NIST reference model for refining logical architectures

The emergence of the Internet as a ubiquitous means of communication fostered the growth of new business and service models based on Cloud Computing. Information and Communication Technology companies use reference models to define their Cloud Computing strategies. NIST Cloud Computing Reference Architecture is one of these reference models that assist in the design of business, services, and architecture models. This paper aims to present the use of NIST reference architecture in the design of Cloud Computing architectures by employing a method that enables the application of the reference architecture to the refinement of logical architectures. © 2014 Springer International Publishing

A caregiver support platform within the scope of an ambient assisted living ecosystem

The Ambient Assisted Living (AAL) area is in constant evolution, providing new technologies to users and enhancing the level of security and comfort that is ensured by house platforms. The Ambient Assisted Living for All (AAL4ALL) project aims to develop a new AAL concept, supported on a unified ecosystem and certification process that enables a heterogeneous environment. The concepts of Intelligent Environments, Ambient Intelligence, and the foundations of the Ambient Assisted Living are all presented in the framework of this project. In this work, we consider a specific platform developed in the scope of AAL4ALL, called UserAccess. The architecture of the platform and its role within the overall AAL4ALL concept, the implementation of the platform, and the available interfaces are presented. In addition, its feasibility is validated through a series of tests.Project “AAL4ALL”, co-financed by the European Community Fund FEDER, through COMPETE—Programa Operacional Factores de Competitividade (POFC). Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT), Lisbon, Portugal, through Project PEst-C/CTM/LA0025/2013. Project CAMCoF—Context-Aware Multimodal Communication Framework funded by ERDF—European Regional Development Fund through the COMPETE Programme (operational programme for competitiveness) and by National Funds through the FCT—Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology) within project FCOMP-01-0124-FEDER-028980. This work is part-funded by National Funds through the FCT - Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology) within project PEst-OE/EEI/UI0752/201

The planning and creation of an e-learning and recreational platform for seniors

Europe is facing great demographic changes. It is predicted that seniors will represent almost 30% of the European population by the year 2050. Ambient Assisted Living (AAL) solutions may provide an answer to the challenges that these demographic changes bring. AAL as a concept is to interconnect Information and Communication Technology (ICT) with certain devices in order to create products and services to assist its users in all periods of life (e.g. difficulty in climbing stairs can be compensated for by a mechanical stair lift). One important area of AAL is lifelong learning which aims to allow continuous education during the course of a person's life. One way of enabling lifelong learning for seniors is by using electronic-learning platforms (E-Learning). These platforms enable their users to access learning content from almost any location. However, the level of complexity of these platforms may arise as an obstacle for seniors. The Ambient Assisted Living for All (AAL4ALL) project was launched to create a wide range of AAL-related products and services. One of the services which will be offered by this project is an E-Learning and recreational platform especially designed for seniors. The objective of this dissertation is to plan and create the prototype of such a platform. In order to develop a prototype of this nature, we required assistance from the senior population to carry out two different types of studies. First a requirements study was performed in order to gather feedback from our target group before moving on to the development phase. Once the development phase was complete, a usability study was performed to test how seniors interacted with the prototype.A Europa está a enfrentar grandes alterações demográficas. Está previsto que a população idosa representará quase 30% da população Europeia em 2050. O Ambient Assisted Living (AAL) pode oferecer soluções para responder aos desafios que resultam destas alterações demográficas. O AAL significa a ligação de Tecnologias de Informação e Comunicação (TIC) com determinados dispositivos, visando a criação de produtos e serviços que permitem auxiliar os seus utilizadores ao longo das suas vidas (por exemplo: a dificuldade de subir escadas pode ser compensada pelo uso de um elevador de escadas mecânico). Uma área importante do AAL consiste na aprendizagem ao longo da vida, que permite uma educação contínua no percurso da vida de uma pessoa. Uma forma de possibilitar a aprendizagem ao longo da vida à população idosa é através do uso de plataformas de E-Learning, as quais permitem aos seus utilizadores acederem a conteúdos de aprendizagem de praticamente qualquer local. Contudo, o interface utilizado neste tipo de plataformas tende a ser muito complexo para esta faixa etária. Neste sentido, o projecto chamado Ambient Assisted Living for All (AAL4ALL) foi lançado para criar uma vasta gama de produtos e serviços do AAL. Um dos serviços que será disponibilizado por este projecto é uma plataforma E-Learning especialmente concebida para idosos. O objetivo desta dissertação é planear e criar o protótipo desta plataforma. Com o intuito de desenvolver um protótipo desta natureza pedimos a colaboração de alguns seniores para realizar estudos de duas tipologias diferentes. Primeiro, foi elaborado um estudo de requisitos para obter as suas opiniões sobre o planeamento do protótipo. Por fim, após o desenvolvimento do protótipo, foi elaborado um estudo de usabilidade para testar como os idosos interagem com o mesmo

A collaborative platform for an ambient assisted living ecosystem

The population ageing is a global trend that affects almost all countries in the world. The global share of people with 60 years or over is expected to reach 21.6% by 2050. The social and economic impact of this tendency is huge, creating new challenges to healthcare and social support services. Furthermore, population ageing is linked to an increased number of people with physical limitations together with the isolation of persons. The Ambient Assisted Living paradigm seeks to answer to some of this challenges through the integration of innovative technologies, products, systems and services. Aiming the development of an ecosystem of products and services for Ambient Assisted Living, the AAL4ALL project was created joining more than thirty research, academic and industry partners. During the AAL4ALL project a 3-layered model of services ecosystem was adopted for the conceptual architecture. This work presents a collaborative platform as a contribution to the top layer of the conceptual architecture - AAL Ecosystem.O envelhecimento da população é uma tendência global que afeta quase todos os países no mundo. A nível mundial, a percentagem de pessoas com mais de 60 anos deve atingir os 21,6% até 2050. Os impactos sociais e económicos desta tendência são enormes, criando novos desafios aos serviços de saúde e de assistência social. Além disso, o envelhecimento populacional significa um aumento do número de pessoas com limitações físicas bem como o seu isolamento. O paradigma de Ambient Assisted Living procura responder a alguns destes desafios através da integração de tecnologias, produtos, sistemas e serviços inovadores. Com o objetivo de desenvolver um ecossistema de produtos e serviços de Ambient Assisted Living, o projeto AAL4ALL foi criado reunindo mais de trinta parceiros das áreas académica, de investigação e indústria. Durante o projeto AAL4ALL, um modelo de ecossistema de serviços de 3 camadas foi adotado para a arquitetura conceptual. Este trabalho apresenta uma plataforma colaborativa como contributo para a camada superior da arquitetura conceptual – Ecossistema AAL

Development of an ambient assisted living ecosystem

Dissertação para obtenção do Grau de Mestre em Engenharia Electrotécnica e de ComputadoresThe society that we live in faces today big demographic changes. Nowadays, peo-ple live longer, and it is expected that this trend will proceed. In 2000, there were already 420 million people with more than 65 years old, which correspond to about 7% of the world population. In 2050, it is expected that this number reaches 1500 million which corresponds to about 16% of the world population. Naturally, in these circumstances, the number of disabled people will increase as well. This context brings new challenges to the traditional health care systems in Portugal and in the rest of the world. There is an urgent need to search for new solutions that will allow people to live in the best possible way, in the latest stages of life. In order to fulfill this need, it is necessary to develop systems that allow to extend their life in their favorite environment, improving their safety, autonomy, mobility and welfare. Nowadays, information and communication technologies (ICT) offer new opportunities to provide care and assistance. Ambient Assisted Living (AAL), is such a paradigm, in which technology is used as a way to improve the independ-ence and welfare of aged or disabled people at their homes. This dissertation has the purpose of contributing to providing an answer to this necessity, associated to a development of an ecosystem for Ambient Assisted Living, associated to a business model and the search for the possibility of collabo-rative networks creation, in order to look for efficient and accessible solutions for AAL services provision

The caregiver perspective: an assistive AAL platform

The Ambient Assisted Living area has spawned several projects that aim to help the user on his/her daily activities. The AAL4ALL (ambient assisted living for all) project aims to develop a unified ecosystem using fully compatible devices and services. The UserAccess platform is part of the AAL4ALL and has as a goal to provide assistance to a type of actor that is commonly forgotten in the Ambient Assisted Living area, the caregiver. This paper presents the archi-tecture, implementation, and interfaces, along with a brief analysis of caregiver’s needs and work related issues.Project "AAL4ALL", co-financed by the European Community Fund FEDER, through COMPETE - Programa Operacional Factores de Competitividade (POFC). Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT), Lisbon, Portugal, through Project PEst-C/CTM/LA0025/2013 and the project PEst-OE/EEI/UI0752/2014. Project CAMCoF - Context-aware Multimodal Communication Framework funded by ERDF -European Regional Development Fund through the COMPETE Programme (operational programme for competitiveness) and by National Funds through the FCT - Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology) within project FCOMP-01-0124-FEDER-028980

A different approach in an AAL ecosystem: a mobile assistant for the caregiver

Currently the Ambient Assisted Living and the Ambient Intelligence areas are very prolific. There is a demand of security and comfort that should be ensured at people’s homes. The AAL4ALL (ambient assisted living for all) pro-ject aims to develop a unified ecosystem and a certification process, allowing the development of fully compatible devices and services. The UserAccess emerges from the AAL4ALL project, being a demonstration of its validity. The UserAc-cess architecture, implementation, interfaces and test scenario are presented, along with the sensor platform specially developed for the AAL4ALL project.Project "AAL4ALL", co-financed by the European Community Fund FEDER, through COMPETE - Programa Operacional Factores de Competitividade (POFC). Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT), Lisbon, Portugal, through Project PEst-C/CTM/LA0025/2013 and the project PEst-OE/EEI/UI0752/2014. Project CAMCoF - Context-aware Multimodal Communication Framework funded by ERDF -European Regional Development Fund through the COMPETE Programme (operational programme for competitiveness) and by National Funds through the FCT - Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology) within project FCOMP-01-0124-FEDER-028980

Semantic HMC for Big Data Analysis

Analyzing Big Data can help corporations to im-prove their efficiency. In this work we present a new vision to derive Value from Big Data using a Semantic Hierarchical Multi-label Classification called Semantic HMC based in a non-supervised Ontology learning process. We also proposea Semantic HMC process, using scalable Machine-Learning techniques and Rule-based reasoning