True Visions: The Emergence of Ambient Intelligence

453 Pages·2006·14.64 MB·English

by  Emile Aarts

TrueVisions
E.H.L. Aarts J.L. Encarnac¸a˜o
(Eds.)
True Visions
The Emergence of Ambient Intelligence
With 153 Figures, 5 in color and 5 Tables
123
Prof. Dr.EmileAarts
PhilipsResearchLaboratoties
High Tech Campus 36, 5656 AE Eindhoven,TheNetherlands
E-mail:[email protected]
ProfessorDr.-Ing.Dr.h.c.mult.,Dr.e.h.,Hon.Prof.mult.Jose´Encarnac¸a˜o
Institutfu¨rGraphischeDatenverarbeitung,FraunhoferGesellschaft
Fraunhoferstr.5,64283Darmstadt,Germany
E-mail:[email protected]
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Foreword
by
Prof. Dr.-Ing. habil. Prof. e.h. Dr. h.c. mult. Hans-J¨org Bullinger,
President of the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft,
Corporate Management and Research
The realization of Ambient Intelligence (AmI) requires the integration of
different scientific topics, such as human–computer interaction, middleware
and agent technologies, as well as aspects of virtual reality and artificial in-
telligence, into one single cooperative vision. The generation of new products
and devices also requires the enhancement of hardware-oriented branches of
research, such as embedded systems, sensor technologies, or awareness and
presence technologies.
To face this challenge, the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft – the largest organiza-
tion for applied research in Europe, with roughly 80 research units at over 40
different locations throughout Germany – bundled its research competencies
and research efforts and identified 12 innovation topics that will define the
future of research over the next years. Intelligent products and smart envi-
ronments are one major focus of these efforts. Here, intelligent products and
smartenvironmentsrefertotheallocationofinformationinanindividualized
manner and the cooperation of embedded devices and networked intelligent
services. The environment will adaptively and autonomously adjust itself
according to the user’s needs and goals and will help to gain information,
toestablishcommunication,toguaranteesafety,toensurephysicalwell-being,
and to deliver entertainment and education. Furthermore, the Fraunhofer-
Gesellschaft seeks not only to support humans, but also machinery, vehicles,
oranimals,assmartplayerswithinAmIscenarios.TherealizationofAmbient
Intelligence, however, means more than the support of smart players within
smart environment scenarios. Ambient Intelligence will overcome the device-
and function-oriented interaction paradigm and will establish a user-centric
approach. Instead of offering the multiplicity of diverse functions that over-
whelm the user, the environment will proactively support the smart player in
reaching his goals.
At present, various Fraunhofer Institutes – together with external and in-
ternal partners – are involved in many projects dealing with the realization
of Ambient Intelligence. The focus is on the application and development of
innovativesensortechnologiesandself-organizingsensornetworks,andonthe
VI Forword
development and enhancement of middleware technologies to support ad-hoc
cooperation of distributed device ensembles. Technologies that enhance the
communication and interaction possibilities of their users in order to ensure
theparticipationofagingcitizenswithintheinformationsocietyandtomain-
tain their social connectivity are also a major focus of Fraunhofer research
activities. Innovative technologies for context management, the recognition
andinterpretationofthesituationwillberesearchedandenhancedtodevelop
context-aware solutions that guarantee the assistance of the smart player in
the most appropriate fashion. The Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft identified several
AmI scenarios, which define the guideline for future research. Within the sce-
nario “health assistance”, smart environments of the future will be developed
that assist in particular the elderly. Novel sensor networks will be able to
measure and interpret the activities of daily life. Consequently, the elderly
will feel safe and secure as they are supported in living independently. Intelli-
gent environments for logistics and production will overcome the centralistic
approaches of today’s production and logistic solutions and will thus open up
new possibilities within logistics, transportation, and traffic. Finally, scenar-
ios and solutions for intelligent travel will support the user in getting along
in foreign environments and places. Context-aware and adaptive technologies
willassisthiminfindinghisdestinationorlocationsandoccasionsofinterest.
More than 20 Fraunhofer Institutes with different background competen-
cies are working together so that these visions will come true. Together, they
will invest more than 20 million Euros in the realization and development of
three demonstration platforms in order to demonstrate the AmI concepts,
as well as the feasibility of the approaches proposed by the Fraunhofer-
Gesellschaft. Health assistance, self-organizing logistic solutions, and intel-
ligent travel support will each play a major role in the Fraunhofer vision of
Ambient Intelligence.
This book is an amazing opportunity to illustrate the innovative ideas of
AmbientIntelligence.Itoffersanexcellentoverviewoverthedifferentbranches
of research that have to be integrated in order to realize ambitious AmI so-
lutions. The contributions to this book range from the realization of smart
environments to mobile computing, from computing to software platforms,
and on to the application of context-aware technologies. Cultural issues of
Ambient Intelligence, user support by novel user interfaces and reports from
experience settings are also the focus of important chapters of this book. The
contributions are all written by leading experts with a proven expertise in
the area. Therefore, the content of this book is at the highest level of techni-
cal quality. The reader not only gets an excellent overview but also detailed
knowledge about the relevant key components of Ambient Intelligence and
related enabling technologies which we estimate to be the most important
research subjects in the realization of the vision of Ambient Intelligence.
Darmstadt, March 2006 Hans-J¨org Bullinger
Foreword
by
Dr. Rick Harwig,
Chief Technology Officer of Philips
Since the gebinning of recorded history substantial evidence has accumulted
for the proposition that technological innovation has contributed in a major
way to the advancement of mankind. Evidently, groundbreaking inventions
suchastheincandescentlamp,thetelephone,andthetelevisionhavechanged
thelivesofmanypeopleintheworld.Lookingatmorerecenttimesthedevel-
opmentoftheInternetcancertainlybecountedasoneofthemostinfluential
anddisruptivetechnologiesboostingtheinformationandcommunicationsoci-
etythroughglobalconnectivityandpersonalizedservices.So,anyonewhohas
harbored serious doubts that technology is the key to modern society’s inno-
vationareputtorestbytheseandmanyothertechnological innovationsthat
haveprovidedordinarypeoplewithsupportandcomfortovertime.Obviously,
eachagedictatesitsowncharacteristicsocio-economicalproblemsandissues.
The development of the rapidly growing new economies such as China, India,
and the Latin American countries set the pace for technological innovation
in the classical western economies of Europe, Japan, and the United States.
The proliferation of digital personalized media, the sustainable development
of our society, and the care for the aging population are the contemporary
fields that call for disruptive innovation. Interestingly, the role of technology
in this respect is drastically changing, as it can no longer be seen as the only
driving force of innovation. Moreover, existing innovation processes are sub-
ject to major overhaul due to the increased self-awareness of people and the
complexity imposed by the large diversity of stakeholders that are involved.
Through its unique way of combining elements from technology, society, and
business into a unifying multi-dimensional approach to innovation, Ambient
Intelligence canbeseenasoneofthemostinterestingdevelopmentsofpresent
times.
ToPhilipsasacompanyAmbient Intelligence hasbeenquiteinfluentialin
introducing a common view on the development of future electronic products
and services. In the world of Ambient Intelligence few things operate on a
stand-alone basis. Lighting, sound, vision, domestic appliances and personal
healthcare products and services all communicate and cooperate with one
VIII Forword
another to improve the total user experience. Spearheaded by Philips Re-
search, the vision of Ambient Intelligence has brought a common and tangi-
ble focus to a variety of endeavors, encouraging many in our organization to
see how their activities fit into the overall concept of an environment that is
sensitive and responsive to the presence of people and sympathetic to their
needs. The Philips Active Ambilight TelevisionTM and the Philips Ambient
ExperienceTM are two examples of products that resulted from the AmI vi-
sionandweresuccessfullylaunchedinthemarket.Asuser-systeminteraction
research is recognized as one of the key factors in the realization of Ambi-
ent Intelligence, Philips Research established its HomeLab in 2002 as a fully
functional house equipped with an extensive observation system that offers
behavioural scientists a unique instrument for studying human behaviour in
contexttosupportthecompanytodeliveronitsbandpromiseknownasSense
andSimplicity.TheAmIvisionhasalsoenabledPhilipsResearchtoestablish
newcollaborationsandfocussedpartnershipswithotherstrongplayersinthe
field such as the Fraunhofer Gesellaschaft, IBM, INRIA, IMEC, MIT, and
Thomson Multimedia.
Along with the build up of the vision for Philips, a parallel track was fol-
lowed which was aimed at positioning the vision as an open initiative for the
advancementoftheinnovationininformationandcommunicationtechnology
in Europe. During a series of workgroups organized by ISTAG (Information
Society and Technology Advisory Group) which serves as an influential ad-
visory board to the European Community, the vision of Ambient Intelligence
was adopted as the leading theme for the sixth framework on IST research in
Europe. This is a major achievement in the development of a united Europe
because it provides the European Union with a unique instrument that can
be used to set novel competitive landmarks in relevant innovation domains
such as High-Tech systems, Creative Industries, Healthcare, and Mobility. It
is my true conviction that major business innovations in these domains can
only be achieved in the years to come by building an open and collaborative
atmosphere that allows both large and small enterprises to develop jointly
new products and services from within an eco-system of collaborative efforts
in which no major dominant players are active. Moreover, disruptive and re-
newingdevelopmentsleadingtobreakawayandmarketinnovationsoftentake
place at the crossroads of well-established domains, and Ambient Intelligence
hasprovedtobequitehelpfulindevelopingsuchcrossborderdomainsbecause
of its inherent multi-disciplinary nature.
Finally, there is the issue of outreach, which calls for direct participation
ofsocietyinthedevelopmentandrealizationofthevision.AsAmbientIntelli-
gence impliesforpeoplethattechnologywillbeinvisiblyintegratedintotheir
environment,thisputsthemintotheforeground.So,theyneedtobeinvolved
early on, so as to become aware of the potential of this novel development.
Never before in the history of modern society have we as technologists been
facedwithsuchachallenge.Wecannolongerhideinsideourlaboratoriesand
research new technologies with the conviction that what we are producing is
Foreword IX
exactly what people are waiting for. We need to open up and involve society.
We have to tell and educate ordinary people about our innovation endeavors
with the aim of involving them preferably as co-creators or at least as co-
users.ThisbookTrue Visions canplayaroleinthisrespectbecauseitbrings
together in a unique way all aspects relevant to the development and roll-out
of the AmI vision.
So, after its first five years of steady development we can safely state that
the AmI vision has reached a well-recognized status of maturity. Both inside
andoutsidePhilipsthebuild-upofthevisionneedstocontinueandweneedto
demonstrateitsaddedvaluetosociety.Thiscallsforaunitedapproachwithin
an open innovation spirit that empowers those working on the realization of
Ambient Intelligence, and convinces those who are not directly involved that
this vision is going to be something that will provide added value.
Eindhoven, March 2006 Rick Harwig
Preface
ThevisionofAmbientIntelligence (AmI)providesaparadigmforuser-centric
computing for the first two decades of the 21st century. Building on early
developments in Ubiquitous Computing and Pervasive Computing, Ambient
Intelligence opens a new venue based on the design of smart electronic en-
vironments that are sensitive and responsive to the presence of people. AmI
environments consists of many embedded electronic devices that enable users
tointeractwiththeirenvironmentinanaturalway,thusprovidingthemubiq-
uitousaccesstocontent,information,andservicesinacontextaware,person-
alized, and (pre)responsive way, thereby enhancing productivity, healthcare,
well-being, expressiveness, and creativity.
The salient novel aspect of Ambient Intelligence is the incorporation of
the physical world into the interaction between human being and computing
devices. This incorporation can be achieved by a massive embedding of intel-
ligent computing devices.Ambient Intelligence aims attaking theintegration
of computing devices to a maximum by involving any physical object in the
interaction between people and their environments. The perceived user value
is the improved productivity, well-being and self-expression through the en-
hanced user-system interaction. Large scale embedding of electronic devices,
ubiquitouscommunication,networkedintelligence,andnaturaluserinterfaces
are the main technological issues posing major research questions for the re-
alization of the AmI vision. No matter how important and challenging these
technological aspects may be, the true merits of the AmI success will depend
on the take up it receives from ordinary people in their every-day lives.
Evidently, the focus of the AmI paradigm is not only on the physical in-
tegration of electronics, but also on the creation and generation of enhanced
experiences. As a consequence thereof many disciplines need to be combined
to achieve the required insights that may lead to the ultimate user experi-
ence. Obviously, integration is the magic word, and this in more than one
respect. Video, audio, vision, and lighting need to be integrated into a novel
approach to multimedia applications. Physical and virtual worlds need to be
integrated into a single end-user reality. Physical objects and devices need
XII Preface
to be integrated into a seamlessly interoperable environment. Users need to
be integrated into content production chains to set up their own activities
in creative industries. Finally, the digital and the physical worlds need to be
fully integrated. It all comes down to the challenge of mastering the experi-
encethroughadvancedinteractionconcepts.Thisimpliesthatmanyscientific
disciplines come together to constitute a novel interdisciplinary science and
technology building on the individual achievements made in mathematics,
computing science, electrical engineering, industrial engineering, and human
factors.
True Visions is one of the first books that brings together in a single
volume all the constituent elements originating from the various disciplines
that matter to the development of Ambient Intelligence. The broadness of
the spectrum of activities is amazing and we as editors where astonished by
the amount of relevant items that were brought up by the authors in their
individualchapters.Allauthorsareexpertsintheirownspecificdomainsand
withoutexceptiontheyhavesucceededinpositioningtheirdomainofexpertise
withinthegreaterendeavourcalledAmbient Intelligence.Wehavechosenthe
title True Visions: The Emergence of Ambient Intelligence toemphasizethat
thedevelopmentofAmbientIntelligence isstillinanearlyphase.Itallstarted
with a vision of a new digital world, providing us with novel opportunities to
becomemoreproductive,expressourselvesbetter,andimproveourwell-being.
Wehavenowleftthestageofarticulatingandevangelizingthevision,inorder
to enter the stage of its realization, which is a tedious and very challenging
effort. True Visions reports on the achievements made so far, and we are
confident that it contains a wealth of information for the interested reader.
Wealsobelieve,however,thatanyonewhohasdigesteditscontentswillshare
our opinion that True Visions reveals that the integral realization of Ambient
Intelligence in daily life still requires a major effort.
Eindhoven, Darmstadt Emile Aarts
March 2006 Jos´e Encarna¸ca˜o