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Until now, I’ve written much about how clothing worn by occupants can act as sensors which collect data about their activities and functions in real time. Such data can be transmitted through to the building to further optimize its own operations and to bring greater value to its occupants.
But I am beginning to see now that the sensing of occupant activities and functions can go well beyond clothing. You see, in the future, skin will be “upgraded”: embedded with sensors, health tattoos, or temporary skin tattoos. Such skin sensors will be able to detect occupant health cues like heart rate or even brain waves. Additionally, health tattoos will be able to help those with disabilities to manage their impairments better, where for instance; those with diabetes would use their tattoos to constantly monitor their glucose levels. (1)
In the end, scientific advancements are making it possible for designers to really tap into what makes their occupants tick. And with real-time information about how your occupants are interacting, you stand in optimum position to use emerging design techniques to bring maximum value to your occupants. So, how might you do this?
For starters, think about interactive or …[Read Full Article]…
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Seth Godin recently wrote an article on “pre-digital environments” which I encourage you to read here. Now that you have read it, I ask you…how can you as an architect push advancement from this pre-digital age?
While it seems that much of what makes a place digital depends on the technology — I will tell you that is also depends on how the “design of place” works with that technology.
If the technology that makes a place “digital” is designed as an afterthought (not well integrated into the environment) it will likely have detrimental effects. On the other hand, if the technology that makes a place digital harmonizes with the architectural design, mountains can be moved to help occupants.
The linchpin in all of this is sensory design — which can guide the …[Read Full Article]…
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Technology is embedding itself everywhere. Within environments, it is becoming smaller and can be found in more and more everyday objects as well as in the fabric that makes up the environment itself. So, the main question becomes: what should we do with all of the information that such technology gathers?
Within smart environments such everywhere technology might be in the form of sensors and actuators that gather important data that gets fedback into a system to optimize a particular environmental function. Such sensors and actuators could live within everyday occupant objects or within the environment itself — again, to use the information gathered toward a given purpose. But, for what?
The following are:
7 Ways Ubiquitous Technology Can Be Used Within Smart Environments
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Image: jurvetson | Flickr
With the uprising of more technologies that seem to track everything from sleep, to diet, to other behavioral patterns, environmental design is becoming more of an important player in helping to collect such clues that consequentially help make a person’s life better. Such clues reveal patterns that can be used to determine where, when, and how a person might make adjustments in their life to improve issues like their health, productivity, memory, creativity, or even to help them engage in more socially-conscious behaviors, like green living.
So, the key here for you as an architect is to understand how patterns are inherent to how your designed spaces get used — and such patterns, upon their collection, can help you to design better for your building occupant, and can help your building to adapt in real-time to your occupants’ everchanging needs, as they need them. Especially, the more subtle ones that make a big difference.
I’m sure you’ve already begun to see …[Read Full Article]…
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Image: jurvetson | Flickr
As you look around the world today, you will notice that not only are devices getting more interconnected, but also the people that use those devices are getting more interconnected as well. With the Internet and our increasing ability to push data onto it, you as an architect are likely beginning to wonder how such innovations are changing the way buildings function.
For instance, what if many of the architectural devices (think light bulbs, thermostats, window glass, and so on) that your occupants use each day are able to collect simple information that push data onto an Internet dashboard that can make sense of it — to meet even greater personal and collective needs for occupants within buildings? An interesting quote taken from the video which I will show you at the end of this article describes such a “dashboard which manages GSA [building] properties not as machines, but as ecosystems.”
The notion of a building being closer to an ecosystem does make some sense, particularly when you begin to think about how we are becoming better able to turn the relationship between an occupant and their …[Read Full Article]…
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Image: maistora | Flickr
Ubiquitous computing is in the works and so is the smart building.
From portable computing to smart devices and from calm computing to wearable computing, architecture will no longer exist as a static “frame” which surrounds activity. Instead, buildings will begin to “move” around their occupants — as if to gain a nervous system.
Networks will help Buildings be Smart
Computers are getting smaller and they are being increasingly networked. The result will be buildings that communicate with both their exterior and interior environments. Since computers will be embedded in just about everything, from environmental objects to occupant clothing, designing for this type of ubiquitous computing evolution will be both challenging and amazing.
For starters, buildings will have to protect while also …[Read Full Article]…
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Image: Idrutu | Dreamstime
INFORMATION EVERYWHERE
The hospital of the “future” is just around the corner. Already, research is being done to create an “interactive hospital” (1) — also known as a ubiquitous smart space.
The first step for better hospital design is a shift in mind-set where computers need to be thought of differently — departing from the traditional “office-type” mentality.
You see, hospitals deal with all formats of information that need to be accessible anytime and anywhere within the hospital. (1) Instead of providing one computer per person, an interactive hospital would provide an array of computer embedded just about everywhere so information can travel seamlessly, wherever and whenever it is needed.
A PRO-HEALING ENVIRONMENT
As ubiquitous computing technologies come together to make medical smart spaces, it becomes possible for all kinds of medical devices to help with data and collaboration management. The first step is for hospital technologies and environments to become interactive — helping the medical team to do a better job, more quickly.
Here is a glimpse of how an interactive hospital might work: …[Read Full Article]…
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Image: Adistock | Dreamstime
The development of smart environments causes a lot of concern for both designers and skeptics. Both want to make sure that such innovations have great benefits that will greatly outweigh the costs. For this reason, it is important to question advancements as designers and engineers continue to research, test and develop smart environments.
A BRIEF DEFINITION
I recently wrote a very brief “smart environment” description as follows:
A smart environment takes the notion of interactive architecture a bit further. With the use of sensing devices and actuators it will be possible to coordinate different objects and materials in a built environment to make buildings more functional and better able meet occupant needs in real-time. One trend is to make smart environments “goal-based” (thus, occupant-centered).
Here’s another post where I describe the “goal-based” smart environment trend: Why Ubiquitous Computing should be Goal-based
If you would like to read more about smart environments, be sure to visit the Sensing Architecture Article Page to see more posts listed under the “Smart Environment” section (to the right on the page).
Also, a book that discusses ubiquitous computing is: Everyware: The Dawning Age of Ubiquitous Computing (Voices That Matter)
CRITICAL CHALLENGES + CONCERNS
In certain circles the notion of a “smart environment” can be a very hot topic. And yes, although there are many benefits to developing such smart spaces, there are numerous reasons why people get concerned when hearing about this development. The following are a few of the challenges and concerns that I have heard expressed: …[Read Full Article]…
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Image: Kentoh | Dreamstime
Ubiquitous computing is giving architecture many benefits that we will continue to see embedded in our buildings. Ubiquitous computing is the wave of the future – providing us with many new architectural functions as well as challenges. For now, let’s focus on the benefits.
The following are the top seven benefits brought about by ubiquitous computing as they impact architecture and occupants in everyday life: …[Read Full Article]…
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Image: Marinini | Dreamstime
The smart environment is made up of numerous ubiquitous computing devices. They each function to sense and actuate according to a given occupant’s need. But what happens when one device contradicts the other? How can the devices cooperate so that a ubiquitous computing environment responds correctly, as a whole?
The paper Smart Environments and Self-Organizing Appliance Ensembles raises the very interesting question, “How do you control devices you do not perceive?”. An answer to this question revolves around goal oriented device cooperation. You see, the smart system cannot rely on the user to provide a step-by-step process of how each device should behave. Similarly, the designer cannot predict all combinations of how an ensemble ubiquitous computing environment needs to respond. Instead, a system may be driven by a user’s goal – where the system generates the strategy.(1)
Within a smart environment, “goal based interactions” are likely to be at its heart. How a computing device carries out a function is not what matters most to a user. It is rather the effect of ubiquitous computing devices that is key.(1) The following is a diagram as described in the paper to illustrate how such a goal oriented context-aware environment will work.
Image: Goal Based Interaction | Smart Environments and Self-Organizing Appliance Ensembles
As you can see, “intention analysis” and “strategy planning” are critical to how the ubiquitous computing system will work. Both are necessary for goal based interactions.(1)
A user’s needs may be quite varied and the smart environment’s devices must cooperate with each other in unison. In addition, as users add or remove devices to their smart environment, ubiquitous computing technologies must easily allow for such user changes.(1) In the end, a goal oriented approach calls for a dynamic system, so the user’s needs are met – even as they change in real-time.
The smart environment will be able to simultaneously feed the senses so occupants can carry out a multitude of functions. With few interface techniques a user may communicate based on their intention; and therefore, their goals. Smart environments will work seamlessly to orchestrate a smart space through context aware techniques. Appliances will form an ensemble, giving rise to architectural space that yields greatest value.
(1) Heider, Thomas & Kirste, Thomas Smart Environments and Self-Organizing Appliance Ensembles. Rockstock University. Germany.
