Interoperating Context Discovery Mechanisms

Context-Aware applications adapt their behaviour to the current situation of the user. This information, for instance user location and user availability, is called context information. Context is delivered by distributed context sources that need to be discovered before they can be used to retrieve context. Currently, multiple context discovery mechanisms exist, exhibiting heterogeneous capabilities (e.g. communication mechanisms, and data formats), which can be available to context-aware applications at arbitrary moments during the ap-plication’s lifespan. In this paper, we discuss a middleware mechanism that en-ables a (mobile) context-aware application to interoperate transparently with different context discovery mechanisms available at run-time. The goal of the proposed mechanism is to hide the heterogeneity and availability of context discovery mechanisms for context-aware applications, thereby facilitating their development

Challenges for the comprehensive management of cloud services in a PaaS framework

The 4CaaSt project aims at developing a PaaS framework that enables flexible definition, marketing, deployment and management of Cloud-based services and applications. The major innovations proposed by 4CaaSt are the blueprint and its lifecycle management, a one stop shop for Cloud services and a PaaS level resource management featuring elasticity. 4CaaSt also provides a portfolio of ready to use Cloud native services and Cloud-aware immigrant technologies

Software engineering perspectives on physiological computing

Physiological computing is an interesting and promising concept to widen the communication channel between the (human) users and computers, thus allowing an increase of software systems' contextual awareness and rendering software systems smarter than they are today. Using physiological inputs in pervasive computing systems allows re-balancing the information asymmetry between the human user and the computer system: while pervasive computing systems are well able to flood the user with information and sensory input (such as sounds, lights, and visual animations), users only have a very narrow input channel to computing systems; most of the time, restricted to keyboards, mouse, touchscreens, accelerometers and GPS receivers (through smartphone usage, e.g.). Interestingly, this information asymmetry often forces the user to subdue to the quirks of the computing system to achieve his goals -- for example, users may have to provide information the software system demands through a narrow, time-consuming input mode that the system could sense implicitly from the human body. Physiological computing is a way to circumvent these limitations; however, systematic means for developing and moulding physiological computing applications into software are still unknown. This thesis proposes a methodological approach to the creation of physiological computing applications that makes use of component-based software engineering. Components help imposing a clear structure on software systems in general, and can thus be used for physiological computing systems as well. As an additional bonus, using components allow physiological computing systems to leverage reconfigurations as a means to control and adapt their own behaviours. This adaptation can be used to adjust the behaviour both to the human and to the available computing environment in terms of resources and available devices - an activity that is crucial for complex physiological computing systems. With the help of components and reconfigurations, it is possible to structure the functionality of physiological computing applications in a way that makes them manageable and extensible, thus allowing a stepwise and systematic extension of a system's intelligence. Using reconfigurations entails a larger issue, however. Understanding and fully capturing the behaviour of a system under reconfiguration is challenging, as the system may change its structure in ways that are difficult to fully predict. Therefore, this thesis also introduces a means for formal verification of reconfigurations based on assume-guarantee contracts. With the proposed assume-guarantee contract framework, it is possible to prove that a given system design (including component behaviours and reconfiguration specifications) is satisfying real-time properties expressed as assume-guarantee contracts using a variant of real-time linear temporal logic introduced in this thesis - metric interval temporal logic for reconfigurable systems. Finally, this thesis embeds both the practical approach to the realisation of physiological computing systems and formal verification of reconfigurations into Scrum, a modern and agile software development methodology. The surrounding methodological approach is intended to provide a frame for the systematic development of physiological computing systems from first psychological findings to a working software system with both satisfactory functionality and software quality aspects. By integrating practical and theoretical aspects of software engineering into a self-contained development methodology, this thesis proposes a roadmap and guidelines for the creation of new physiological computing applications.Physiologisches Rechnen ist ein interessantes und vielversprechendes Konzept zur Erweiterung des Kommunikationskanals zwischen (menschlichen) Nutzern und Rechnern, und dadurch die Berücksichtigung des Nutzerkontexts in Software-Systemen zu verbessern und damit Software-Systeme intelligenter zu gestalten, als sie es heute sind. Physiologische Eingangssignale in ubiquitären Rechensystemen zu verwenden, ermöglicht eine Neujustierung der Informationsasymmetrie, die heute zwischen Menschen und Rechensystemen existiert: Während ubiquitäre Rechensysteme sehr wohl in der Lage sind, den Menschen mit Informationen und sensorischen Reizen zu überfluten (z.B. durch Töne, Licht und visuelle Animationen), hat der Mensch nur sehr begrenzte Einflussmöglichkeiten zu Rechensystemen. Meistens stehen nur Tastaturen, die Maus, berührungsempfindliche Bildschirme, Beschleunigungsmesser und GPS-Empfänger (zum Beispiel durch Mobiltelefone oder digitale Assistenten) zur Verfügung. Diese Informationsasymmetrie zwingt die Benutzer zur Unterwerfung unter die Usancen der Rechensysteme, um ihre Ziele zu erreichen - zum Beispiel müssen Nutzer Daten manuell eingeben, die auch aus Sensordaten des menschlichen Körpers auf unauffällige weise erhoben werden können. Physiologisches Rechnen ist eine Möglichkeit, diese Beschränkung zu umgehen. Allerdings fehlt eine systematische Methodik für die Entwicklung physiologischer Rechensysteme bis zu fertiger Software. Diese Dissertation präsentiert einen methodischen Ansatz zur Entwicklung physiologischer Rechenanwendungen, der auf der komponentenbasierten Softwareentwicklung aufbaut. Der komponentenbasierte Ansatz hilft im Allgemeinen dabei, eine klare Architektur des Software-Systems zu definieren, und kann deshalb auch für physiologische Rechensysteme angewendet werden. Als zusätzlichen Vorteil erlaubt die Komponentenorientierung in physiologischen Rechensystemen, Rekonfigurationen als Mittel zur Kontrolle und Anpassung des Verhaltens von physiologischen Rechensystemen zu verwenden. Diese Adaptionstechnik kann genutzt werden um das Verhalten von physiologischen Rechensystemen an den Benutzer anzupassen, sowie an die verfügbare Recheninfrastruktur im Sinne von Systemressourcen und Geräten - eine Maßnahme, die in komplexen physiologischen Rechensystemen entscheidend ist. Mit Hilfe der Komponentenorientierung und von Rekonfigurationen wird es möglich, die Funktionalität von physiologischen Rechensystemen so zu strukturieren, dass das System wartbar und erweiterbar bleibt. Dadurch wird eine schrittweise und systematische Erweiterung der Funktionalität des Systems möglich. Die Verwendung von Rekonfigurationen birgt allerdings Probleme. Das Systemverhalten eines Software-Systems, das Rekonfigurationen unterworfen ist zu verstehen und vollständig einzufangen ist herausfordernd, da das System seine Struktur auf schwer vorhersehbare Weise verändern kann. Aus diesem Grund führt diese Arbeit eine Methode zur formalen Verifikation von Rekonfigurationen auf Grundlage von Annahme-Zusicherungs-Verträgen ein. Mit dem vorgeschlagenen Annahme-Zusicherungs-Vertragssystem ist es möglich zu beweisen, dass ein gegebener Systementwurf (mitsamt Komponentenverhalten und Spezifikation des Rekonfigurationsverhaltens) eine als Annahme-Zusicherungs-Vertrag spezifizierte Echtzeiteigenschaft erfüllt. Für die Spezifikation von Echtzeiteigenschaften kann eine Variante von linearer Temporallogik für Echtzeit verwendet werden, die in dieser Arbeit eingeführt wird: Die metrische Intervall-Temporallogik für rekonfigurierbare Systeme. Schließlich wird in dieser Arbeit sowohl ein praktischer Ansatz zur Realisierung von physiologischen Rechensystemen als auch die formale Verifikation von Rekonfigurationen in Scrum eingebettet, einer modernen und agilen Softwareentwicklungsmethodik. Der methodische Ansatz bietet einen Rahmen für die systematische Entwicklung physiologischer Rechensysteme von Erkenntnissen zur menschlichen Physiologie hin zu funktionierenden physiologischen Softwaresystemen mit zufriedenstellenden funktionalen und qualitativen Eigenschaften. Durch die Integration sowohl von praktischen wie auch theoretischen Aspekten der Softwaretechnik in eine vollständige Entwicklungsmethodik bietet diese Arbeit einen Fahrplan und Richtlinien für die Erstellung neuer physiologischer Rechenanwendungen

Service-Oriented Device Integration for Ubiquitous Ambient Assisted Living Environments

As a result of the increment of population in countries of Europe, a lot of efforts from European Authorities are coming from. In our research we want to bring forward a suite of developments related to build a ubiquitous AAL (Ambient Assisted Living) environment. We consider that recent approaches are based on ad-hoc technologies so its application is in this context isolated just in one domain of application. Our approach addresses to a reliable services platform for heterogeneous devices integration. On this basis we want to consider as well, the underlying benefits that a Service-oriented platform is giving to us in our Ambient Assisted Living Applications.Ministerio de Educación y Ciencia TSI2006-13390-C02-02Junta de Andalucía TIC-2141Ministerio de Industria, Turismo y Comercio TSI-020400-2008-11

Context-aware management of multi-device services in the home

MPhilMore and more functionally complex digital consumer devices are becoming embedded or scattered throughout the home, networked in a piecemeal fashion and supporting more ubiquitous device services. For example, activities such as watching a home video may require video to be streamed throughout the home and for multiple devices to be orchestrated and coordinated, involving multiple user interactions via multiple remote controls. The main aim of this project is to research and develop a service-oriented multidevice framework to support user activities in the home, easing the operation and management of multi-device services though reducing explicit user interaction. To do this, user contexts i.e., when and where a user activity takes place, and device orchestration using pre-defined rules, are being utilised. A service-oriented device framework has been designed in four phases. First, a simple framework is designed to utilise OSGi and UPnP functionality in order to orchestrate simple device operation involving device discovery and device interoperability. Second, the framework is enhanced by adding a dynamic user interface portal to access virtual orchestrated services generated through combining multiple devices. Third the framework supports context-based device interaction and context-based task initiation. Context-aware functionality combines information received from several sources such as from sensors that can sense the physical and user environment, from user-device interaction and from user contexts derived from calendars. Finally, the framework supports a smart home SOA lifecycle using pre-defined rules, a rule engine and workflows

The SATIN component system - a metamodel for engineering adaptable mobile systems

Mobile computing devices, such as personal digital assistants and mobile phones, are becoming increasingly popular, smaller, and more capable. We argue that mobile systems should be able to adapt to changing requirements and execution environments. Adaptation requires the ability-to reconfigure the deployed code base on a mobile device. Such reconfiguration is considerably simplified if mobile applications are component-oriented rather than monolithic blocks of code. We present the SATIN (system adaptation targeting integrated networks) component metamodel, a lightweight local component metamodel that offers the flexible use of logical mobility primitives to reconfigure the software system by dynamically transferring code. The metamodel is implemented in the SATIN middleware system, a component-based mobile computing middleware that uses the mobility primitives defined in the metamodel to reconfigure both itself and applications that it hosts. We demonstrate the suitability of SATIN in terms of lightweightedness, flexibility, and reusability for the creation of adaptable mobile systems by using it to implement, port, and evaluate a number of existing and new applications, including an active network platform developed for satellite communication at the European space agency. These applications exhibit different aspects of adaptation and demonstrate the flexibility of the approach and the advantages gaine

Upnp-Based Discovery And Management Of Hypervisors And Virtual Machines

The paper introduces a Universal Plug and Play based discovery and management toolkitthat facilitates collaboration between cloud infrastructure providers and users. The presentedtools construct a unified hierarchy of devices and their management-related services, thatrepresents the current deployment of users’ (virtual) infrastructures in the provider’s (physical)infrastructure as well as the management interfaces of respective devices. The hierarchycan be used to enhance the capabilities of the provider’s infrastructure management system.To maintain user independence, the set of management operations exposed by a particulardevice is always defined by the device owner (either the provider or user)