Dance! Don’t Fall – Preventing Falls and Promoting Exercise at Home

Falling is a serious danger to older adults that is usually only addressed after a person has fallen, when doctors administer clinical tests to determine the patient´s risk of falling again. Having the technological capability of performing fall risk assessment tests with a smartphone, the authors set out to design a mobile application that would enable users to monitor their risk themselves and consequently prevent falls from occurring. The authors conducted a literature review and two observation sessions before beginning the iterative design process that resulted in the Dance! Don’t Fall (DDF) game, a mobile application that enables users to both monitor their fall risk and actively reduce it through fun and easy exercise

Online Group-exercises for Older Adults of Different Physical Abilities

In this paper we describe the design and validation of a virtual fitness environment aiming at keeping older adults physically and socially active. We target particularly older adults who are socially more isolated, physically less active, and with less chances of training in a gym. The virtual fitness environment, namely Gymcentral, was designed to enable and motivate older adults to follow personalised exercises from home, with a (heterogeneous) group of remote friends and under the remote supervision of a Coach. We take the training activity as an opportunity to create social interactions, by complementing training features with social instruments. Finally, we report on the feasibility and effectiveness of the virtual environment, as well as its effects on the usage and social interactions, from an intervention study in Trento, Ital

The interplay of physical and social wellbeing in older adults: investigating the relationship between physical training and social interactions with virtual social environments

Background. Regular physical activity can substantially improve the physical wellbeing of older adults, preventing several chronic diseases and increasing cognitive performance and mood. However, research has shown that older adults are the most sedentary segment of society, spending much of their time seated or inactive. A variety of barriers make it difficult for older adults to maintain an active lifestyle, including logistical difficulties in going to a gym (for some adults, leaving home can be challenging), reduced functional abilities, and lack of motivation. In this paper, we report on the design and evaluation of Gymcentral. A training application running on tablet was designed to allow older adults to follow a personalized home-based exercise program while being remotely assisted by a coach. The objective of the study was to assess if a virtual gym that enables virtual presence and social interaction is more motivating for training than the same virtual gym without social interaction. Methods. A total of 37 adults aged between 65 and 87 years old (28 females and 9 males, mean age = 71, sd = 5.8) followed a personalized home-based strength and balance training plan for eight weeks. The participants performed the exercises autonomously at home using the Gymcentral application. Participants were assigned to two training groups: the Social group used an application with persuasive and social functionalities, while the Control group used a basic version of the service with no persuasive and social features. We further explored the effects of social facilitation, and in particular of virtual social presence, in user participation to training sessions. Outcome measures were adherence, persistence and co-presence rate. Results. Participants in the Social group attended significantly more exercise sessions than the Control group, providing evidence of a better engagement in the training program. Besides the focus on social persuasion measures, the study also confirms that a virtual gym service is effective for supporting individually tailored home-based physical training for older adults. The study also confirms that social facilitation tools motivate users to train together in a virtual fitness environment. Discussion. The study confirms that Gymcentral increases the participation of older adults in physical training compare to a similar version of the application without social and persuasive features. In addition, a significant increase in the co-presence of the Social group indicates that social presence motivates the participants to join training sessions at the same time with the other participants. These results are encouraging, as they motivate further research into using home-based training programs as an opportunity to stay physically and socially active, especially for those who for various reasons are bound to stay at home

Data S1: User-study-raw-data

Background. Regular physical activity can substantially improve the physical wellbeing of older adults, preventing several chronic diseases and increasing cognitive performance and mood. However, research has shown that older adults are the most sedentary segment of society, spending much of their time seated or inactive. A variety of barriers make it difficult for older adults to maintain an active lifestyle, including logistical difficulties in going to a gym (for some adults, leaving home can be challenging), reduced functional abilities, and lack of motivation. In this paper, we report on the design and evaluation of Gymcentral. A training application running on tablet was designed to allow older adults to follow a personalized home-based exercise program while being remotely assisted by a coach. The objective of the study was to assess if a virtual gym that enables virtual presence and social interaction is more motivating for training than the same virtual gym without social interaction.Methods. A total of 37 adults aged between 65 and 87 years old (28 females and 9 males, mean age = 71, sd = 5.8) followed a personalized home-based strength and balance training plan for eight weeks. The participants performed the exercises autonomously at home using the Gymcentral application. Participants were assigned to two training groups: the Social group used an application with persuasive and social functionalities, while the Control group used a basic version of the service with no persuasive and social features. We further explored the effects of social facilitation, and in particular of virtual social presence, in user participation to training sessions. Outcome measures were adherence, persistence and co-presence rate.Results. Participants in the Social group attended significantly more exercise sessions than the Control group, providing evidence of a better engagement in the training program. Besides the focus on social persuasion measures, the study also confirms that a virtual gym service is effective for supporting individually tailored home-based physical training for older adults. The study also confirms that social facilitation tools motivate users to train together in a virtual fitness environment.Discussion. The study confirms that Gymcentral increases the participation of older adults in physical training compare to a similar version of the application without social and persuasive features. In addition, a significant increase in the co-presence of the Social group indicates that social presence motivates the participants to join training sessions at the same time with the other participants. These results are encouraging, as they motivate further research into using home-based training programs as an opportunity to stay physically and socially active, especially for those who for various reasons are bound to stay at home

Investigating a DTV-based physical activity application to facilitate wellbeing in older adults

This paper describes a study that examined the usability and acceptability of a physical exercise application using the digital television platform for older adults. A key aim of this study was to obtain feedback from representative older users to inform further development of this application. Other key outcomes were to measure physical exertion objectively and subjectively whilst using this application and to investigate potential acute effects of the session on cognitive function and mood. The results indicated that the settings used for the current exercises did not produce physical exertion at a high enough intensity to have significant health benefits, although a positive impact on mood was found. Subjective feedback identified a number of issues regarding various application features and possible adaptations for the future design and development of this application, including the use of gesture based user-control and the potential importance of monitoring user heart-rate to set exercise parameters

Motion-Based Video Games for Older Adults in Long-Term Care

Older adults in residential care often lead sedentary lifestyles despite physical and cognitive activities being crucial for their well-being. Care facilities face the challenge of encouraging their residents to participate in leisure activities, but as the impact of age-related changes grows, few activities remain accessible. Video games in general – and motion-based games in particular – hold the promise of providing mental, physical and social stimulation for older adults. However, the accessibility of commercially available games for older adults is not considered during the development process. Therefore, many older adults are unable to obtain any of the benefits. In my dissertation, this issue is addressed through the development of motion-based game controls that specifically address the needs of older adults. The first part of this thesis lays the foundation by providing an overview of motion-based game interaction for older adults. The second part demonstrates the general feasibility of motion-based game controls for older adults, develops full-body motion-based and wheelchair-based game controls, and provides guidelines for accessible motion-based game interaction for institutionalized older adults. The third part of this thesis builds on these results and presents two case studies. Motion-based controls are applied and further evaluated in game design projects addressing the special needs of older adults in long-term care, with the first case study focusing on long-term player engagement and the role of volunteers in care homes, and the second case study focusing on connecting older adults and caregivers through play. The results of this dissertation show that motion-based game controls can be designed to be accessible to institutionalized older adults. My work also shows that older adults enjoy engaging with motion-based games, and that such games have the potential of positively influencing them by providing a physically and mentally stimulating leisure activity. Furthermore, results from the case studies reveal the benefits and limitations of computer games in long-term care. Fostering inclusive efforts in game design and ensuring that motion-based video games are accessible to broad audiences is an important step toward allowing all players to obtain the full benefits of games, thereby contributing to the quality of life of diverse audiences

Modelo de privacidad digital en inteligencia ambiental basado en sistemas multiagente

El gran desarrollo de las Tecnologías de la Información y la Comunicación utilizadas en los dominios de aplicación de la Inteligencia Ambiental (AmI), ocurrido en la última década, nos sitúa inmersos en los llamados entornos inteligentes, rodeados de una extensa variedad de dispositivos y tecnologías con capacidad de adquirir, almacenar y transmitir nuestra información personal. La complejidad y volumen de los sistemas involucrados en las aplicaciones desarrolladas en Inteligencia Ambiental hacen que seamos incapaces de conocer y controlar toda la información que estos sistemas son capaces de adquirir y transmitir, tanto si esta información ha sido proporcionada por nosotros directamente, como si ha sido adquirida de forma indirecta por otros sistemas sin nuestro conocimiento; lo que pone en riesgo la protección de nuestro derecho a la privacidad. Considerando que, el principal objetivo de la Inteligencia Ambiental es el de ofrecernos diferentes tipos de servicios personalizados en cualquier lugar y en todo momento, facilitándonos así la realización de nuestras actividades cotidianas, se ha llevado a cabo un estudio sobre las aplicaciones desarrolladas en AmI, que ha revelado la necesidad de incluir las cuestiones de tipo social y ético en el diseño del AmI, destacando entre ellas la privacidad por ser uno de los derechos fundamentales de las personas, como así queda reflejado en la Declaración Universal de los Derechos Humanos (Artículo 12). Por ello, para el verdadero desarrollo y aceptación de la Inteligencia Ambiental deberá considerarse no solo los aspectos tecnológicos, sino que, resulta fundamental tener en cuenta las implicaciones sociales y éticas. Esta es la idea del concepto “Design by Privacy” que se ha utilizado en la investigación realizada. En base a este concepto, se han establecido las políticas de privacidad del usuario según los dominios de aplicación del AmI. Partiendo de la base de que sean las propias técnicas utilizadas en AmI las que ayuden a proteger nuestra información personal, se han utilizado los agentes de los modelos de confianza como herramienta para determinar los derechos de privacidad que deben cumplir los agentes en sus comunicaciones, y que ha servido para decidir con quién compartimos nuestras opiniones privadas, minimizando de esta forma los riesgos de la privacidad de nuestra información al interaccionar con los servicios ofrecidos por las aplicaciones del AmI. Así pues, el motivo de investigación de esta tesis es el de presentar un Modelo de Privacidad Digital basado en Sistemas Multiagente, que nos ayudará a decidir en quién confiar a la hora de compartir nuestras opiniones privadas. Este modelo ha sido implementado para su validación en el entorno de experimentación del ART testbed (Agent Reputation and Trust), en el que el dominio de aplicación del AmI es el relacionado con la tasación de cuadros o pinturas de arte. Una vez implementada la manera de decidir con quién compartimos nuestra información privada, y con el fin de controlar el cumplimiento de los derechos de privacidad que se han establecido en las comunicaciones entre los agentes, se han formalizado las posibles infracciones sobre los derechos de privacidad utilizando la Institución Electrónica “Islander” como herramienta de especificación de las normas y sanciones correspondientes que deben cumplir los agentes en sus comunicaciones.The great development of Information and Communication Technologies used in the domains of application of Ambient Intelligence, which has taken place in the last decade, places us immersed in intelligent environments surrounded by a wide variety of devices and Technologies with the ability to acquire, store and transmit our personal information. The complexity and volume of the systems involved in the applications developed in Environmental Intelligence mean that we are unable to know and control all the information that these systems are able to acquire and transmit, whether this information has been provided by us directly, or whether it has Been acquired indirectly by other systems without our knowledge; Which puts at risk the protection of our right to privacy. Considering that the main objective of Environmental Intelligence is to offer different types of personalized services in any place and at all times, facilitating us to carry out our daily activities, a study has been carried out on the applications developed in AmI, which has revealed the need to take into account social and ethical issues in the design of the AmI, highlighting among them the privacy as one of the fundamental rights of the people, as reflected in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (Article 12). For that reason, for the true development and acceptance of Ambient Intelligence, not only the technological aspects must be taken into account, but it is fundamental to consider the social and ethical implications. This is the idea of the concept "Design by Privacy" that has been used on the research carried out. Based on this concept, user privacy policies have been established and should be taken into account in the AmI application domains. Based on the idea that the techniques used in AmI are those that help protect our personal information, the agents with a trust model have been used as a tool to determine the privacy rights that agents must comply with in their communications, and that has served to decide with whom we share our private opinions, thus minimizing the risks of privacy of our information when interacting with the services offered by AmI applications. Therefore, the aim of the research of this thesis is to present a Digital Privacy Model based on Multi-Agent Systems, which will help us to decide who to trust when sharing our private opinions. This model has been implemented for validation in the experimental environment of the ART testbed (Agent Reputation and Trust), in which the domain of the AmI application, is the one related with the evaluation of art pictures. Once the way to decide with whom we share our private information has been implemented, and in order to control the compliance with the privacy rights established in the communications between the agents, possible violations of privacy rights have been formalized using the Electronic Institution "Islander" as a tool for specifying the standards and corresponding sanctions that agents must comply with in their communications.Programa Oficial de Doctorado en Ciencia y Tecnología InformáticaPresidente: Jesús García Herrero.- Secretario: Clara Benac Earle.- Vocal: Ana María Bernardos Barboll