Activate
Description
ACTIVATE – A platform on Cloud for families to care for dependent people. The aim of ACTIVATE is to develop a system based on ICT and the Cloud concept, which improves surroundings for dependants and independent people suffering from lack of autonomy, to better manage the daily routine of Long Term Care, due to availability of continued and accurate information on the dependant’s activity and surroundings.
The system is divided into 3 very different parts:
- In the dependent person’s living space, a limited number of ambient sensors are installed with the aim of acquiring continued information on the key aspects of that person’s daily routine: getting up in the morning, activity in the kitchen and in the bathroom (personal hygiene), leaving the house, an index of general activity in the home, falls, monitoring of nocturnal activity. Each person will dispose of a package of different elements depending on his/her needs and how these may change over a period of time. This infrastructure in the home will follow the paradigm of the Internet of Things. Also, a device will act as a Gateway to the cloud and will be responsible for sending secure information through public networks. All the dependant has to do is behave normally, although he/she will have certain control over the workings of the system.
- In the cloud (and in particular in the installations of the infrastructure service providers for Cloud Computing) data is collected in real time, analysed using advanced algorhythms and each user is treated differently according to their profile. Both the original and processed information is then stored. It is possible in certain cases to send alerts in real time to a particular destination.
- In the access terminal of the informal carer (any browser on any device connected to internet) and/or their SmartPhone (iPhone, Android), the family member will have up to the minute access to all the information processed as well as real time alerts which the system can generate. The user will have a series of basic secondary tools at his/her disposal such as Carer Diary to keep a register of the dependant’s evolution or access to basic documentation.
The main beneficiary is the family member, also known as the informal carer, of the dependant, since he/she is equipped with a tool giving information in real time as to the behaviour of the patient, which allows for better management of time dedicated to informal care. The second beneficiary is the dependant, who consequently receives better care as a result of the improvement in care management. Also, the impact of technology in the home of the elderly is minimised, as there is no need to deal with any devices, simply benefit from the improvement in care due to the availability of information.