A Framework for Improving User Experience in Ambient Assisted Living

Ambient Assisted Living (AAL) refers to the integration of all kind of computerized devices into a home environment in order to provide their residents with a better quality of life. Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) can empower the growing elderly population by providing them with a longer independence, security and a lifestyle enhancement. In order to solve the problems of accessibility to elderly users who might have cognitive, physical or other limitations, interchangeable or adaptive interfaces are required. Looking into the future, adaptive interfaces with intelligent agents, known as assistive environments, can act as a substitute for care and benefit elderly users by increasing their level of activity and quality of life. This paper proposes a framework for improving the user experience by designing adaptive interfaces to support elderly people living in smart environments. This framework has been developed through experience of designing user interfaces for elderly and disabled users gained while conducting the EU-funded EASY LINE+ project (no. 045515)

Assistive Human-Machine Interfaces for Smart Homes

Computer systems have shown in the past (Zajicek, 2000) that they can be powerful allies in home-based health care and offer great potential to improve quality of life - but only if they are designed to take into consideration the specific needs of their beneficiaries. Satisfying usability as well as the functional requirements in such a home setting are equally critical. This paper discusses the development of user interfaces, following the “Designfor- all” philosophy, oriented towards a multi-agent system interacting with an intelligent engine. Originally, the system will focus on the control of white goods (large kitchen appliances) but will have scalability properties making it appropriate and extensible for the inclusion of other devices that may be deployed thereafter. The interfaces must be flexible enough to adapt to the targeted public, fit any user’s preferences and/or needs and make the interaction as simple and intuitive as possible. This work is part of the EU FP6 IST e-inclusion ‘EASY LINE+’ project

A Survey of Applying Ad Hoc Wireless Sensor Actuator Networks to Enhance Context-Awareness in Environmental Management Systems

Sensor mesh networking is set to be one of the key tools for the future of Ambient Intelligence (AmI) due to new emerging technologies in Ad hoc Wireless Sensor Networks (AWSNs). AWSNs symbolize the new generation of sensor networks with many promising advantages applicable to most networked environments. Unfortunately, however, these practical technologies have some technical problems and, as a consequence, this fascinating field has created novel and interesting challenges, which in turn, have inspired many ongoing research projects and more are likely to follow. Almost certainly, there will be notable improvements in the management of control/actuator networks as a consequence of enhancing the sensitivity capabilities of systems. With an emphasis on Ad hoc Wireless Sensor Actuator Networks (AWSANs) this study presents a systematic analysis of the different existing techniques to improve such systems. It also discusses, analyzes and summarizes the advantages these technologies offer in certain applications and presents a generic solution, in the form of a case study, for an AmI system to enhance the overall environmental management of a campus based on a hierarchical network using an AWSAN

A case study using a methodological approach to developing user interfaces for elderly and disabled people

In this paper, we present a case study on the development of interfaces for elderly and disabled users. The domain of the case study was situated in the home environment, where we focused on producing affordable technologies to enable users to interact with and to control home appliances. We have developed ambient user interfaces that are integrated in familiar home artefacts, such as televisions and digital picture frames. These interfaces are connected remotely to a home network and are adaptive to users’ expected increasing physical and cognitive needs. To support the development of the project, we created a novel methodology that is grounded in the ethical issues associated with a project of this nature. Our success with it has led to us presenting it here as a practical approach to developing user interfaces for a range of interactive applications, especially where there may be diverse user populations. This paper describes our journey through this project, how the methodology has been used throughout and the development of our user interfaces and their evaluation

A Framework for Improving User Experience in Ambient Assisted Living

Ambient Assisted Living (AAL) refers to the integration of all kind of computerized devices into a home environment in order to provide their residents with a better quality of life. Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) can empower the growing elderly population by providing them with a longer independence, security and a lifestyle enhancement. In order to solve the problems of accessibility to elderly users who might have cognitive, physical or other limitations, interchangeable or adaptive interfaces are required. Looking into the future, adaptive interfaces with intelligent agents, known as assistive environments, can act as a substitute for care and benefit elderly users by increasing their level of activity and quality of life. This paper proposes a framework for improving the user experience by designing adaptive interfaces to support elderly people living in smart environments. This framework has been developed through experience of designing user interfaces for elderly and disabled users gained while conducting the EU-funded EASY LINE+ project (no. 045515)

Assistive Human-Machine Interfaces for Smart Homes

Computer systems have shown in the past (Zajicek, 2000) that they can be powerful allies in home-based health care and offer great potential to improve quality of life - but only if they are designed to take into consideration the specific needs of their beneficiaries. Satisfying usability as well as the functional requirements in such a home setting are equally critical. This paper discusses the development of user interfaces, following the “Designfor- all” philosophy, oriented towards a multi-agent system interacting with an intelligent engine. Originally, the system will focus on the control of white goods (large kitchen appliances) but will have scalability properties making it appropriate and extensible for the inclusion of other devices that may be deployed thereafter. The interfaces must be flexible enough to adapt to the targeted public, fit any user’s preferences and/or needs and make the interaction as simple and intuitive as possible. This work is part of the EU FP6 IST e-inclusion ‘EASY LINE+’ project

User Modelling in Ambient Intelligence for Elderly and Disabled People

Combining ongoing Ambient Intelligence (AmI) technological developments (e.g. pervasive computing, wearable devices, sensor networks etc.) with user-centred design methods greatly increases the acceptance of the intelligent system and makes it more capable of providing a better quality of life in a non-intrusive way. Elderly people could clearly benefit from this concept. Thanks to smart environments, they can experience considerable enhancements, giving them an opportunity to live more independently and for longer in their home rather than in a health-care centre. However, to implement such a system, it is essential to know for whom we are designing. In this paper, we present an intelligent system with a monitoring infrastructure that will help mainly elderly users with impairments to overcome their handicap. The purpose of such a system is to create a safe and intuitive environment that will facilitate the achievement of household tasks in order to preserve independence of elderly residents for a while longer. Pursuing this goal, we propose to use the persona concept to help us build a user model based on the personas’ aptitudes. The practice of user modelling emphasizes the importance of user-centred techniques in any AmI system development and highlights the potential impacts of AmI for certain targeted groups - in this case, the elderly and people with disabilities

The Easyline+ Project: Evaluation of a User Interface Developed to Enhance Independent Living of Elderly and Disabled people

This paper reports the usability evaluation of interfaces developed to enable elderly and disabled people interact remotely with kitchen appliances in the home to enhance their independent living. A number of evaluation exercises were undertaken throughout the project’s development, including user-participative workshops and focus groups. This paper focuses on the summative usability evaluation exercise, which comprised a laboratory-based study in a simulated home environment, with a view to determining the appropriateness of employing this approach with potentially vulnerable participants. The study involved 27 participants interacting with the user interface. Their behaviour was observed and recorded, and their interaction with the system was analysed. They were also given a post-session questionnaire, where their opinions of the usability of the interface were solicited. The results of the usability testing were positive, and insight has been gained into how products of this nature can be further improved. The experience of conducting laboratory-based studies with vulnerable users was positive and led to propose in this paper a set of guidelines for future work in evaluating usability for work in this domain