Mobile Agent based Market Basket Analysis on Cloud

This paper describes the design and development of a location-based mobile shopping application for bakery product shops. Whole application is deployed on cloud. The three-tier architecture consists of, front-end, middle-ware and back-end. The front-end level is a location-based mobile shopping application for android mobile devices, for purchasing bakery products of nearby places. Front-end level also displays association among the purchased products. The middle-ware level provides a web service to generate JSON (JavaScript Object Notation) output from the relational database. It exchanges information and data between mobile application and servers in cloud. The back-end level provides the Apache Tomcat Web server and MySQL database. The application also uses the Google Cloud Messaging for generating and sending notification of orders to shopkeeper.Comment: 6 pages, 7 figure

Contributions to interoperability, scalability and formalization of personal health systems

The ageing of the world's population combined with unhealthy lifestyles are contributing to a major prevalence of chronic diseases. This scenario poses the challenge of providing good healthcare services to that people affected by chronic illnesses, but without increasing its costs. A prominent way to face this challenge is through pervasive healthcare. Research in pervasive healthcare tries to shift the current centralized healthcare delivery model focused on the doctors, to a more distributed model focused on the patients. In this context Personal Health Systems (PHSs) consists on approaching sampling technologies into the hands of the patients, without disturbing its activities of the daily life, to monitor patient's physiological parameters and providing feedback on their state. The use of PHSs involves the patients in the management of their illness and in their own well being too. The development of PHSs has to face technological issues in order to be accepted by our society. Within them it is important to ensure interoperability between different systems in order to make them work together. Scalability it is also a concern, as their performance must not decrease when increasing the number of users. Another issue is how to formalize the medical knowledge for each patient, as different patients may have different target goals. Security and privacy are a must feature because of the sensitive nature of medical data. Other issues involve the the integration with legacy systems, and the usability of graphical user interfaces in order to encourage old people with the use these technologies. The aim of this PhD thesis is to contribute into the state-of-the-art of PHSs by tackling together different of the above-mentioned challenges. First, to achieve interoperability we use the CDA standard as a format to encode and exchange health data and alerts related with the status of the patient. We show how these documents can be generated automatically through the use of XML templates. Second, we address the scalability by distributing the computations needed to monitor the patients over their devices, rather than performing them in a centralized server. In this context we develop the MAGPIE agent platform, which runs on Android devices, as a framework able to provide intelligence to PHSs, and generate alerts that can be of interest for the patients and the medical doctors. Third, we focus on the formalization of PHSs by providing a tool for the practitioners where they can define, in a graphical way, monitoring rules related with chronic diseases that are integrated with the MAGPIE agent platform. The thesis also explores different ways to share the data collected with PHSs in order to improve the outcomes obtained with the use of this technology. Data is shared between individuals following a Distributed Event-Based System (DEBS) approach, where different people can subscribe to the alerts produced by the patient. Data is also shared between institutions with a network protocol called MOSAIC, and we focus on the security aspects of this protocol. The research in this PhD focuses in the use case of Diabetes Mellitus; and it has been developed in the context of the projects MONDAINE, MAGPIE, COMMODITY12 and TAMESIS.L'envelliment de la població mundial combinat amb uns estils de vida no saludables contribueixen a una major prevalença d'enfermetats cròniques. Aquest escenari presenta el repte de proporcionar uns bons serveis sanitaris a les persones afectades per aquestes enfermetats, sense incrementar-ne els costos. Una solució prometedora a aquest repte és mitjançant l'aplicació del que en anglès s'anomena "pervasive healthcare". L'investigació en aquesta camp tracta de canviar l'actual model centralitzat de serveis sanitaris enfocat en el personal sanitari, per un model de serveis distribuït enfocat en els pacients. En aquest context, els Personal Health Systems (PHSs) consisteixen en posar a l'abast dels pacients les tecnologies de monitorització, i proporcionar-los informació sobre el seu estat. L'ús de PHSs involucra els pacients en la gestió de la seva enfermetat i del seu propi benestar. L'acceptació dels PHSs per part de la societat implica certs reptes tecnològics en el seu desenvolupament. És important garantir la seva interoperabilitat per tal de que puguin treballar conjuntament. La seva escalabilitat també s'ha de tenir en compte, ja que el seu rendiment no s'ha de veure afectat al incrementar-ne el número d'usuaris. Un altre aspecte a considerar és com formalitzar el coneixement mèdic per cada pacient, ja que cada un d'ells pot tenir objectius diferents. La seguretat i privacitat són característiques desitjades degut a la naturalesa sensible de les dades mèdiques. Altres problemàtiques impliquen la integració amb sistemes heretats, i la usabilitat de les interfícies gràfiques per fomentar-ne el seu ús entre les persones grans. L'objectiu d'aquesta tesi és contribuir a l'estat de l'art dels PHSs tractant de manera conjunta varis dels reptes mencionats. Per abordar l'interoperabilitat s'utilitza l'estàndard CDA com a format per codificar les dades mèdiques i alertes relacionades amb el pacient. A més es mostra com aquests documents poden generar-se de forma automàtica mitjançant l' ús de plantilles XML. Per tractar l'escalabilitat es distribueixen les computacions per monitoritzar els pacients entre els seus terminals mòbils, en comptes de realitzar-les en un servidor central. En aquest context es desenvolupa la plataforma d'agents MAGPIE com a framework per proporcionar intelligència als PHSs i generar alertes d'interès per al metge i el pacient. La formalització s'aborda mitjançant una eina que permet als metges definir de manera gràfica regles de monitorització relacionades amb enfermetats cròniques, que a més estan integrades amb la plataforma d'agents MAGPIE. La tesi també explora diferents maneres de compartir les dades recol·lectades amb un PHS, amb l'objectiu de millorar els resultats obtinguts amb aquesta tecnologia. Les dades es comparteixen entre individus seguint un enfoc de sistemes distribuïts basats en events (DEBS), on diferents usuaris poden subscriure's a les alertes produïdes per el pacient. Les dades també es comparteixen entre institucions mitjançant un protocol de xarxa anomenat MOSAIC. A la tesi es desenvolupen els aspectes de seguretat d'aquest protocol. La test es centra en la Diabetis Mellitus com a cas d'ús, i s'ha realitzat en el context dels projectes MONDAINE, MAGPIE, COMMODITY12 i TAMESIS.El envejecimiento de la población mundial combinado con unos estilos de vida no saludables contribuyen a una mayor prevalencia de enfermedades crónicas. Este escenario presenta el reto de proporcionar unos buenos servicios sanitarios a las personas afectadas por estas enfermedades, sin incrementar sus costes. Una solución prometedora a este reto es mediante la aplicación de lo que en inglés se denomina "pervasive healthcare". La investigación en este campo trata de cambiar el actual modelo centralizado de servicios sanitarios enfocado hacia el personal sanitario, por un modelo distribuido enfocado hacia los pacientes. En este contexto, los Personal Health Systems (PHSs) consisten en poner al alcance de los pacientes las tecnologías de monitorización, y proporcionarles información sobre su estado. El uso de PHSs involucra a los pacientes en la gestión de su enfermedad y en su propio bienestar. La aceptación de los PHSs por parte de la sociedad implica ciertos retos tecnológicos en su desarrollo. Es importante garantizar su interoperabilidad para que puedan trabajar conjuntamente. Su escalabilidad también se debe tener en cuenta, ya que su rendimiento no tiene que verse afectado al incrementar su número de usuarios. Otro aspecto a considerar es cómo formalizar el conocimiento médico para cada paciente, ya que cada uno puede tener objetivos distintos. La seguridad y privacidad son características deseadas debido a la naturaleza sensible de los datos médicos. Otras problemáticas implican la integración con sistemas heredados, y la usabilidad de las interfaces gráficas para fomentar su uso entre las personas mayores. El objetivo de esta tesis es contribuir al estado del arte de los PHSs tratando de manera conjunta varios de los retos mencionados. Para abordar la interoperabilidad se usa el estándar CDA como formato para codificar los datos médicos y alertas relacionados con el paciente. Además se muestra como estros documentos pueden generarse de forma automática mediante el uso de plantillas XML. Para tratar la escalabilidad se distribuye la computación para monitorizar a los pacientes en sus terminales móbiles, en lugar de realizarla en un servidor central. En este contexto se desarrolla la plataforma de agentes MAGPIE como framework para proporcionar inteligencia a los PHSs y generar alertas de interés para el médico y el paciente. La formalización se aborda mediante una herramienta que permite a los médicos definir de manera gráfica reglas de monitorización relacionadas con enfermedades crónicas, que ademas están integradas con la plataforma de agentes MAGPIE. La tesis también explora distintas formas de compartir los datos recolectados con un PHS, con el fin de mejorar los resultados obtenidos mediante esta tecnología. Los datos se comparten entre individuos siguiendo un enfoque de sistemas distribuidos basados en eventos (DEBS), donde distintos usuarios pueden suscribirse a las alertas producidas por el paciente. Los datos también se comparten entre instituciones mediante un protocolo dered llamado MOSAIC. En la tesis se desarrollan los aspectos de seguridad de este protocolo. La tesis se centra en la Diabetes Mellitus como caso de uso, y se ha realizado en el contexto de los proyectos MONDAINE, MAGPIE, COMMODITY12 y TAMESIS.Postprint (published version

Smart Tagging System for Diving Equipment

The use of Near Field Communication (NFC) has revolutionized many industries through digitalization. This process of digital immersion has been further accelerated through the mainstream availability of NFC-enabled devices and the substantial decline in the cost of NFC smart tags. The purpose of this thesis was to design and implement an end-to-end, smart tagging solution for diving equipment. The project involved an Android application, an AngularJS web application and the backend was developed using Amazon Web Services (AWS). A server-less architecture using AWS micro services was employed in the project. The Android application is used to register NFC tags by writing and reading data from NFC tags and communicating with the backend through a RESTful API. The AngularJS application provides access to the corresponding data. In addition, user authentication is achieved by using Google as an Identity Provider (IdP). This document provides an overview of the steps necessary to implement and integrate applications running on different platforms with AWS services, in a cost-effective and scalable manner. Even though this document addresses topics relevant to a specific project, most of the implementation and design instructions can be used to serve other use-cases, particularly by startups. Since the project involves applications developed on different platforms, only the most important aspects of the process are presented throughout this document.Lyhyen kantaman tiedonsiirron (NFC:n) käyttö on mullistanut monia teollisuuden aloja digitalisoinnin kautta. Näiden digitaalisen upotuksien prosessi on kiihtynyt entisestään, NFC yhteensopivien laitteiden ja saatavuuden noustessa. Prosessi myös supistaa toimintotunnisteiden kustannuksia merkittävästi. Tämän opinnäytetyön tarkoituksena on suunnitella ja toteuttaa päästä päähän toimintotunnisteratkaisu ajovarusteisiin. Projektiin sisältyy Android sovellus, An-gularJS web sovellus ja back end on kehitetty käyttäen Amazon Web Serviceä (AWS). AWS micro palveluja käytetään projektissa palvelimettoman arkkiteh-tuurin avulla. Android sovellusta käytetään NFC-tunnisteien rekisteröimiseen dataa kirjoitta-malla ja lukemalla niitä NFC-tunnisteesta sekä kommunikoimalla back endiin RESTfulAPI:n kautta. AngularJS sovellus tarjoaa pääsyn vastaavaan tietoon. Lisäksi käyttäjän todennus saavutetaan käyttämällä Googlen Identity Provideria (idP). Tässä dokumentissa on yleiskatsaus tarvittavista toimenpiteistä, joilla toteutus ja integrointi pystytään tekemään, eri alustoilla käynnissä olevilla prosesseilla AWS palveluissa.kustannustehokkaasti ja mitattavissa olevilla tasoilla. Vaikka tässä asi-akirjassa käsitellään tiettyyn projektiin liittyviä aiheita, useimpia toteutus- ja suun-nitteluohjeita voidaan myös soveltaa muihin käyttötarkoituksiin, erityisesti startup ideoille. Koska projekti sisältää sovelluksia, jotka on kehitetty eri alustoille, ainoastaan tärkeimmät prosessin näkökohdat on esitetty dokumentissa

Service Migration from Cloud to Multi-tier Fog Nodes for Multimedia Dissemination with QoE Support.

A wide range of multimedia services is expected to be offered for mobile users via various wireless access networks. Even the integration of Cloud Computing in such networks does not support an adequate Quality of Experience (QoE) in areas with high demands for multimedia contents. Fog computing has been conceptualized to facilitate the deployment of new services that cloud computing cannot provide, particularly those demanding QoE guarantees. These services are provided using fog nodes located at the network edge, which is capable of virtualizing their functions/applications. Service migration from the cloud to fog nodes can be actuated by request patterns and the timing issues. To the best of our knowledge, existing works on fog computing focus on architecture and fog node deployment issues. In this article, we describe the operational impacts and benefits associated with service migration from the cloud to multi-tier fog computing for video distribution with QoE support. Besides that, we perform the evaluation of such service migration of video services. Finally, we present potential research challenges and trends

A First Look at QUIC in the Wild

For the first time since the establishment of TCP and UDP, the Internet transport layer is subject to a major change by the introduction of QUIC. Initiated by Google in 2012, QUIC provides a reliable, connection-oriented low-latency and fully encrypted transport. In this paper, we provide the first broad assessment of QUIC usage in the wild. We monitor the entire IPv4 address space since August 2016 and about 46% of the DNS namespace to detected QUIC-capable infrastructures. Our scans show that the number of QUIC-capable IPs has more than tripled since then to over 617.59 K. We find around 161K domains hosted on QUIC-enabled infrastructure, but only 15K of them present valid certificates over QUIC. Second, we analyze one year of traffic traces provided by MAWI, one day of a major European tier-1 ISP and from a large IXP to understand the dominance of QUIC in the Internet traffic mix. We find QUIC to account for 2.6% to 9.1% of the current Internet traffic, depending on the vantage point. This share is dominated by Google pushing up to 42.1% of its traffic via QUIC

Security Code Smells in Android ICC

Android Inter-Component Communication (ICC) is complex, largely unconstrained, and hard for developers to understand. As a consequence, ICC is a common source of security vulnerability in Android apps. To promote secure programming practices, we have reviewed related research, and identified avoidable ICC vulnerabilities in Android-run devices and the security code smells that indicate their presence. We explain the vulnerabilities and their corresponding smells, and we discuss how they can be eliminated or mitigated during development. We present a lightweight static analysis tool on top of Android Lint that analyzes the code under development and provides just-in-time feedback within the IDE about the presence of such smells in the code. Moreover, with the help of this tool we study the prevalence of security code smells in more than 700 open-source apps, and manually inspect around 15% of the apps to assess the extent to which identifying such smells uncovers ICC security vulnerabilities.Comment: Accepted on 28 Nov 2018, Empirical Software Engineering Journal (EMSE), 201

AI Dining Suggestion App

Trying to decide what to eat can sometimes be challenging and time-consuming for people. Google and Yelp have large scale data sets of restaurant information as well as Application Program Interfaces (APIs) for using them. This restaurant data includes time, price range, traffic, temperature, etc. The goal of this project is to build an app that eases the process of finding a restaurant to eat. This app has a Tinder-like user friendly User Interface (UI) design to change the common way that lists of restaurants are presented to users on mobile apps. It also uses the help of Artificial Intelligence (AI) with neural networks to train both supervised and unsupervised learning models that can learn from one\u27s dining pattern over time to make better suggestions at any time

Building a software service for mobile devices to enhance awareness in web collaboration

(c) 2014 IEEE. Personal use of this material is permitted. Permission from IEEE must be obtained for all other users, including reprinting/ republishing this material for advertising or promotional purposes, creating new collective works for resale or redistribution to servers or lists, or reuse of any copyrighted components of this work in other works.In this paper, we propose the construction of an effective event notification software service for mobile devices to provide anytime anywhere awareness to online work teams during Web collaboration. The software service is first designed to achieve the required flexibility to be used in different collaborative work situations, from professional work to informal communities of practice. Then, the building of our event-oriented service for mobile clients is reported from all the stages of our software engineering methodology and it is prototyped for evaluation purposes. We believe the outcomes of our approach will be very beneficial for achieving more productive and quality Web collaboration practices. The ultimate aim of this research is to provide software designers of Web collaboration tools and applications with general guidelines as for how to face common issues and challenges when incorporating a complete event management and notification system in their developments.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft