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O'Grady, Michael J.
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O'Grady, Michael J.
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O'Grady, Michael J.
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Now showing 1 - 10 of 17
- PublicationDiversity & interoperability : wireless technologies in ambient assisted living(2010-04-22)
; ; ; ; ; Ambient Assisted Living (AAL) demands the seamless integration of a range of technologies such that the particular needs of the elderly may be met. Given the heterogeneity of the elderly population, in their needs and circumstances amongst others, this is a significant challenge. In essence, it demands that a disparate suite of technologies be deployed, integrated, managed and interacted with in a seamless and intuitive fashion. In this paper, how this heterogeneity may be managed is discussed. In particular, the use of ontologies and middleware are proposed as potential solutions to this heterogeneity problem.648 - PublicationIntelligent user interfaces for mobile computingIn this chapter, the practical issue of realizing a necessary intelligence quotient for realizing Intelligent User Interfaces (IUIs) on mobile devices is considered. Mobile computing scenarios differ radically from the normal fixed workstation environment that most people are familiar with; and it is in this dynamicity and complexity that the key motivations for realizing IUIs on mobile devices may be found. Thus the chapter initially motivates the need for the deployment of IUIs in mobile contexts by reflecting on the archetypical elements that comprise the average mobile user's situation or context. A number of broad issues pertaining to the deployment of AI techniques on mobile devices are considered before a practical realisation of this objective through the intelligent agent paradigm is presented. It is the authors hope that a mature understanding of the mobile computing usage scenario, augmented with key insights into the practical deployment of AI in mobile scenarios, will aid software engineers and HCI professionals alike in the successful utilisation of intelligent techniques for a new generation of mobile services.
1259 - PublicationAmbience & collaboration embedded agents in a human-centered world(2009-07)
; ; ; ; Supporting people in the pursuit of their everyday activities is a laudable objective and one which researchers in various disciplines including computing, actively seek to accomplish. The dynamic nature of the end-user community, the environments in which they operate, and the multiplicity of tasks in which they engage in, all seem to conspire against the desired objective of providing services to the end-user community in a transparent, intuitive and context -aware fashion. Indeed, this inherent complexity raises fundamental problems for software engineers as they frequently lack the tools to effectively model the various scenarios that dynamic user behaviour give rise to. This difficulty is not limited to exotic applications or services; rather, it is characteristic of situations where a number of factors must be identified, interpreted, and reconciled such that an accurate model of the prevailing situation at a given moment in time can be constructed. Only in this way, can services be delivered that take into account the prevailing human, social, environmental and technological conditions. Constructing such services calls for a software solution that exhibits, amongst others, diffusion, autonomy, cooperation and intelligence. In this paper, the potential of embedded agents for realising such solutions is explored.448 - PublicationImplicit interaction : a prerequisite for practical AmI(2009-06)
; ; ; ; ; Intelligent User Interfaces represent one of the three distinguishing characteristics of AmI environments. Such interfaces are envisaged as mediating between the services available in an arbitrary physical environment and its inhabitants. To be effective, such interfaces must operate in both proactive and passive contexts, implicitly and explicitly anticipating and responding to user requests. In either case, an awareness of the prevailing situation is essential – a process that demands a judicious combination of data and decision fusion, as well as collaborative and centralized decision making. Given the constraints of AmI environments realizing a distributed lightweight computational infrastructure augmented with a need to address user needs in a timely manner poses significant challenges. In this paper, various issues essential to enabling seamless, intuitive and instinctive interaction in AmI environments are explored.408 - PublicationEmbedding Agents within Ambient Intelligent Applications(IOS Press, 2012)
; ; ; ; ; This chapter reflects upon the challenges that confront the deployment of Ambient Intelligence (AmI) applications. Ambient Intelligence demands that everyday artefacts be imbued with intelligent reasoning capabilities together with the capacity for collaborative intelligent behaviour. Traditional ambient devices do not provide the requisite computational platform to support such requirements. With the ongoing developments of ubiquitous devices, however, the situation is changing. This chapter discusses a software stack, which supports the needs of ambient applications that incorporate embedded intelligence.1417 - PublicationOrange alerts : lessons from an outdoor case study.Ambient Assisted Living (AAL) is of particular relevance to those who may suffer from Alzheimer’s Disease or dementia, and, of course, their carers. The slow but progressive nature of the disease, together with its neurological nature, ultimately compromises the behavior and function of people who may be essentially healthy from a physical perspective. An illustration of this is the wandering behavior frequently found in people with dementia. In this paper, a novel AAL solution for caregivers, particularly tailored for Alzheimer’s patients who are in the early stage of the disease and exhibit unpredictable wandering behavior, is briefly described. Salient aspects of a user evaluation are presented, and some issues relevant to the practical design of AAL systems in dementia cases are identified.
623 - PublicationManaging diversity in practical ambient assisted living ecosystemsThough the motivation for developing ambient assisted living (AAL) systems is incontestable, significant challenges exist in realizing the ambience that is essential to the success of such systems. By definition, an AAL system must be omnipresent, tracking occupant activities in the home and identifying those situations where assistance is needed or would be welcomed. Embedded sensors offer an attractive mechanism for realizing ambience as their form factor and harnessing of wireless technologies aid in their seamless integration into pre-existing environments. However, the heterogeneity of the end-user population, their disparate needs and the differing environments in which they inhabit, all pose particular problems regarding sensor integration and management.
475 - PublicationService fusion in mobile contextsService provision for mobile users poses several challenges for those managing enterprise information systems. Some of these are ubiquitous, for example, privacy and security. Others give rise to integration and interoperability issues. The agent paradigm, though offering potential in fixed networked scenarios, has not been seriously considered as a mechanism for incorporating mobile clients, primarily to their computational intractability on mobile devices. However, recent developments in agent and mobile computing technologies – both from a hardware and software perspective, have rendered the mobile phone a viable platform for agents. One implication of this is that agents now offer a viable platform for service delivery to mobile users. This chapter reflects on some of the pertinent issues necessary for this, including Agent Oriented Software Engineering (AOSE). The discussion is illuminated with a systematic description of EasyLife – a framework that harnesses the agent paradigm to construct and deliver services to mobile users.
520Scopus© Citations 1 - PublicationTowards evolutionary ambient assisted living systems(Springer, 2010-03)
; ; ; ; Ambient Assisted Living (AAL) is advocated as technological solutions that will enable the elderly population maintain their independence for a longer time than would otherwise be the case. Though the facts motivating the need for AAL are indisputable, the inherently heterogeneous nature and requirements of the elderly population raise significant difficulties. One particular challenge is that of designing AAL systems that can evolve to meet the requirements of individuals as their needs and circumstances change. This demands the availability of an adaptive, open, scalable software platform that incorporates a select combination of autonomic and intelligent techniques. Given that the first generation of AAL systems will be deployed in the near future, it is incumbent on designers to factor this need for evolution and adaptivity in their designs and implementations. Thus this paper explores AAL from a number of prospective and considers an agent-based middleware approach to realising an architecture for evolutionary AAL.5999Scopus© Citations 71 - PublicationAgency, ambience, assistance : a framework for practical AALAmbient Assisted Living (AAL) is a societal imperative in many countries due to their aged demographic profile. Ambient Intelligence (AmI) offers a viable and intuitive framework by which such systems may realised in practice. However, a number of issues must be addressed if AmI is to become sufficiently mature and robust to support AAL. One such issue is the seamless combination of services, based on a diverse range of embedded artifacts, such that AAL systems can be rapidly designed, implemented and deployed. This paper considers, albeit briefly, issues pertaining to the design of an intelligent middleware solution for the provision of AAL services.
678Scopus© Citations 1