Now showing 1 - 10 of 19
  • Publication
    Diversity & interoperability : wireless technologies in ambient assisted living
    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.
      632
  • Publication
    Virtual sensor networks : an embedded agent approach
    Many documented instances of existing research on Wireless Sensor Networks (WSN) use deployments that either fall short of, or barely meet, the resource requirements of the application. In this paper, it is envisaged that future WSN deployments will far exceed the resource requirements of any one single application. In a similar fashion to the use of virtual machines on a mainframe, sub-networks of adequate resources will be carved out of the entire deployment to fulfil the requirements of multiple applications. These will be hosted simultaneously on the network, and in many cases, certain WSN nodes will form a component in a number of these Virtual Sensor Networks (VSN). Such VSNs will also be dynamic in nature, adapting resources as nodes go offline. An additional requirement of such networks will be to engage in opportunistic power management, such as node hibernation, while the networks are adapting. In this paper, a solution for both of these issues is proposed, underpinned by a Multi-Agent System (MAS) resident on individual nodes. This solution facilitates both the practical operation of adaptive VSNs, while ensuring aggregate energy consumption can be minimised.
      2566Scopus© Citations 14
  • Publication
    Simulating interaction with wireless sensor networks
    Wireless Sensor Networks(WSNs) are primarily regarded as data gathering entities that route data to a central server for subsequent processing. However, as WSN technologies mature and their prevalence increases, it is envisaged that a range of diverse and innovative services for mobile subscribers will be launched, of which some may require remote access and interaction with individual WSNs. Such an eventuality will give rise to additional constraints in the WSN planning and deployment processes, and raise particular challenges in the practical engineering of mobile applications and services. In this paper, a simulation tool is described. This tool enables software engineers rapidly model WSN deployments, and in this way, explore how interactions between mobile users and WSNs may occur.
      737
  • Publication
    The clarity modular ambient health and wellness measurement platform
    Emerging healthcare applications can benefit enormously from recent advances in pervasive technology and computing. This paper introduces the CLARITY Modular Ambient Health and Wellness Measurement Platform, which is a heterogeneous and robust pervasive healthcare solution currently under development at the CLARITY Center for Sensor Web Technologies. This intelligent and context-aware platform comprises the Tyndall Wireless Sensor Network prototyping system, augmented with an agent-based middleware and frontend computing architecture. The key contribution of this work is to highlight how interoperability, expandability, reusability and robustness can be manifested in the modular design of the constituent nodes and the inherently distributed nature of the controlling software architecture.
      841Scopus© Citations 5
  • Publication
    Embedding Agents within Ambient Intelligent Applications
    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.
      1403
  • Publication
    Browsing the Sensor Web : Pervasive Access for Wide-area Wireless Sensor Networks
    Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) are almost exclusively regarded as data gathering entities. Various sensed data elements are captured and routed back to a central server for processing, visualization and interpretation. However, it can be realistically conjectured that scenarios will increasingly emerge that demand a facility for ad-hoc interaction with individual sensor nodes. Moreover, such interaction will occur in the physical environment in close proximity to where the sensor node is physically located. In this paper, the need for in-situ ad-hoc interaction is motivated. A methodology for facilitating such interaction is presented, and the implementation of a sensor browser is described.
      377
  • Publication
    Towards Holistic Activity Modeling and Behavioral Analyses
    As the age profile of many societies continues to increase, supporting health, both mental and physical, is of increasing importance if independent living is to be maintained. Sensing and, ultimately, recognizing activities of daily living has been perceived as a prerequisite for detecting tasks that people avoid or find increasingly difficult to perform, as well as being indicators of certain illnesses. To date, extensive research efforts have been made on activity monitoring, recognition and assistance in indoor scenarios, frequently through smart home initiatives. However, the scenarios outside of the home have not received a similar degree of attention from the research community. This paper advocates a need for platforms that enable activity recognition in a range of environments, thus enabling the construction of more complex yet realistic activity models and behavior patterns. The design of a prototype supporting an integrated approach to sensor data capture and activity model construction is proposed. The application domain is that of dementia.
      1071
  • Publication
    Enabling Intelligence on a Wireless Sensor Network Platform
    Conventional Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) usually adopt a centralised approach to data processing and interpretation primarily due to the limited computation and energy resources available on sensor nodes. These constraints limits the potential of intelligent techniques to data analy- sis and such activities on the centralised host. In contrast, Intelligent WSNs (iWSNs) will be significantly more powerful thus enabling the harnessing of intelligent techniques for diverse purposes. One such purpose is the practical realisation of smart environments, and facilitating mobility and interaction with the inhabitants of such environments. As a step in this direction, this paper presents the design of an iWSN sensor node platform that enables the hosting of lightweight Artificial Intelligence (AI) frameworks whilst enabling the ubiquitous energy constraints be quantified, mitigated and managed.
      11281Scopus© Citations 1
  • Publication
    Realising an Agent-oriented middleware for Heterogeneous Sensor Networks
    Classic computing systems are characterised by heterogeneity, with its inherent advantages and disadvantages. This raises a number of difficulties for software engineers. The vision offered by a mix-and-match approach is an attractive one, though its practical realisation comes at a cost, as the process of integration is rarely smooth. This scenario will be repeated as Wireless Sensor Networks are increasingly incorporated into mainstream computing. One potential paradigm for managing this heterogeneity is that of intelligent agents. This paper considers the viability and potential of lightweight agents as a paradigm for harnessing the potential of heterogeneous wireless sensor networks.
    Scopus© Citations 3  1120
  • Publication
    Managing diversity in practical ambient assisted living ecosystems
    Though 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.
      463