Perception of smart home technologies to assist elderly people
Authors: Chernbumroong, S., Atkins, A.S. and Yu, H.
Journal: SKIMA 2010 - Proceedings of the 4th International Conference on Software, Knowledge, Information Management and Applications: ''Towards Happiness and Sustainable Development''
Pages: 90-97
ISBN: 9789746725569
Abstract:In the last decade, the number of elderly population has increased significantly which affects human in many aspects, especially in healthcare. Many studies have shown increases in expenditures on long-term care. New models of care are needed including supported self-care and home-based services. Advance in sensor and network technologies have made these possible. A smart home which is a residence equipped with smart technologies providing services that enhance human way of living i.e. safety, security, entertainment, etc would allow elderly to maintain living independently in their homes and still in control of their healthcare cost and status. This paper reviews various topics on smart home technologies including smart home projects, smart home network, smart home appliance and sensor technologies for smart home. A successful adoption of smart home technologies requires appreciation of stakeholders' perceptions, needs and concerns. A survey has been carried out at a major hospital, nursing homes and general population to explore the perception of six smart home technologies to assist elderly people and concerns regarding the use of smart home technologies. Overall, the result showed positive feedbacks toward these technologies. Participants were concerned about issues such as lack of human responders, user friendliness of the device and the need of learning new technology. In terms of willingness of adoption of these technologies is still unclear. However, it is suggested that by giving real experiences of smart home technologies, their usefulness and effectiveness would be more appreciated.
Source: Scopus