LiKeIT - RFID-Based KeepInTouch Lifestyle Monitoring

Well-being of individuals is influenced by various mental, physical, and social aspects. While some aspects are related to personal predisposition or the environment and thus impossible or hard to change, the personal lifestyle, which can be influenced much easier, has a significant impact on several of these aspects. Frequent physical activity, for example, reduces the risk for heart related diseases and also reduces the risk of severe fractures due to falls. Consequently it is important to maintain a healthy lifestyle, throughout the whole lifespan, especially for elderly people. When developing solutions for and with elderly people it is important to regard their different experiences, abilities, and needs. Therefore, and as the personal lifestyle may change over time, solutions supporting people in managing their lifestyle have to be flexible and cover different aspects of their lives. Furthermore solutions have to grow with the users, i.e. to be applied for a specific need firstly, but then being extended to satisfy the increased needs of the user e.g. because of changed life circumstances. Doing so, the user can get familiar with the usage of new technologies more easily and learn step-by-step how to use additional functionalities. In the project LiKeIT we aim to develop a flexible solution to support elderly people in managing their lifestyle. In a stakeholder workshop at the beginning of the project physical activity, nutrition/drinking, and health were identified as the key aspects to be supported. We are currently setting up a solution incorporating intuitive data acquisition using Near-Field Communication (NFC), a tablet PC for user interaction, and various sensors, to create a flexible, yet cost efficient solution. To be able to develop an accepted and appropriate application, elderly people are involved in the ongoing development. The final application will not only support people in maintaining their lifestyle by providing them with according information and feedback, but also provide special information for other stakeholders like authorized relatives, caregivers, and physicians.