An adaptive home environment supporting people with balance disorders

Abstract

This paper presents an architecture allowing simple access to Ambient Intelligent Systems deployed in domestic environments, particularly focused on people with balance disorders. Our aim is to develop a systemic life-space solution, for indoor environments, by integrating heterogeneous physiological and environmental real-time data that will result in a continuous monitoring and early warning system of people with mobility problems due to loss of balance. The designed control system is adaptive, and it can accommodate to changing conditions of inhabitants. The system recognizes the state of the environment by integrating different contextual data from different devices and sensors. It processes both video and audio signals to detect dangerous events and trigger automatic warnings. The proposed unobtrusive system permits elder people to augment their perception of independence and safeness at home. © Springer International Publishing Switzerland 2014.