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Expected Results & Impacts
BrainAble will produce a commercial product and a set of technologies intended to assist people with physical disabilities regardless of cause. The technology has the potential to assist those with other individual needs ranging from speech disorders to Motor Neurone Disease or locked-in patients.
BrainAble brings innovation in human machine interfaces for the disabled, who cannot manipulate a standards interface such as a keyboard and mouse. It represents two innovative and capital purposes to overcome barriers as a result of disability: First, the management of accessible networks of interoperable devices which will improve dramatically the quality of life experienced by people with a disability within their living environment; and access to computer-based social networks for social inclusion. There is significant opportunity for the exploitation of the outcomes of BrainAble by European companies which target biomedical and assistive equipment markets and accessible Smart Home automation markets that can leverage their position to become prominent and relevant in the global market.
BrainAble contributes actively to the expansion of the European URC ecosystem movement, as initiated and promoted by ICT project i2home and other sibling ICT projects, by adapting and integrating the URC/UCH platform into the BrainAble system architecture. Although the project targets clearly the development of technology to overcome two main barriers experienced by people with motor disabilities, quality access to assistive and home automation devices and quality access to human relationships, the associated research will have direct effect in the link of enhanced human interfaces to interoperable networks of devices and people.
The modular architecture and middleware utilised by BrainAble to connect user-centred bio-interfaces and interactive immersive environments to networks of devices and people, provide attractive assets for the market of high-tech home automation devices and intelligent and integrated smart homes.
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Objectives of the project
1. To conduct a truly user-centric design of a platform which improves the quality of life of people with motor disabilities and investigate its effectiveness to compensate deficit after the rehabilitation process, increase autonomy in daily life activities, decrease barriers and increase participation favouring social inclusion and quality of life.
2. To create a specifically designed HCI, which integrates BNCI with other specific sensor technologies.
3. To create a user-centric virtual environment for home and urban automation control, social networking and training.
4. To create Ambient Intelligent (AmI) and ubiquitous computing services for accessible device integration.
5. To create self-expression tools and social networking services. |