Ambient intelligence (AmI) is a term used in computing to refer to electronic environments that are sensitive and responsive to the presence of people. The term is generally applied to consumer electronics, telecommunications, and computing.
Ambient intelligence is intended to enable devices to work in concert with people in carrying out their everyday life activities in an intuitive way by using information and intelligence hidden in the network connecting these devices. An example of ambient intelligence is the Internet of Things. A typical context of the ambient intelligence environment is home, but it may also be used in workspaces (offices, co-working), public spaces (based on technologies such as smart streetlights), and hospital environments.
The concept of ambient intelligence was originally developed in the late 1990s by Eli Zelkha and his team at Palo Alto Ventures for the time frame 2010–2020. Developers theorize that as devices grow smaller, more connected, and more integrated into our environment, the technological framework behind them will disappear into our surroundings until only the user interface remains perceivable by people.
Overview
The ambient intelligence concept builds upon pervasive computing, ubiquitous computing, profiling, context awareness, and human-centric computer interaction design. It is characterized by systems and technologies that are: Embedded: Many networked devices are integrated into the environment. Context aware: These devices can recognize you and your situational context. Personalized: They can be tailored to your needs. Adaptive: They can change in response to you. Anticipatory: They can anticipate your desires without conscious mediation.
Successful implementation of ambient intelligence requires several vital technologies to exist. These include hidden, user-friendly hardware such as miniaturization, nanotechnology, and smart devices, as well as human-centric computer interfaces (intelligent agents, multimodal interaction, context awareness, etc.). These systems and devices operate through a seamless mobile/fixed communication and computing infrastructure characterized by interoperability, wired and wireless networks, and service-oriented architecture. Systems and devices must also be dependable and secure, which may be achieved through self-testing and self-repairing software and privacy-ensuring technology.
Ambient intelligence has relationship with - and depends on advances in - sensor technology and sensor networks.
User experience became more important to developers in the late 1990s as a result of the many digital products and services that were difficult to understand or use. In response, the user experience design emerged to create new technologies and media around the user's personal experience. Ambient intelligence is influenced by user-centered design, where the user is placed in the center of the design activity and gives feedback to the designer.
History and invention
In 1998, the management board of Philips commissioned a series of presentations and internal workshops organized by Eli Zelkha and Brian Epstein of Palo Alto Ventures. Zelkha, together with Simon Birrell, coined the term 'ambient intelligence' to investigate different scenarios that would transform the high-volume consumer electronics industry of the 1990s, which they described as "fragmented with features", into an industry where user-friendly devices supported ubiquitous information, communication, and entertainment by 2020. While developing the ambient intelligence concept, Palo Alto Ventures created the keynote address for Roel Pieper of Philips for the Digital Living Room Conference in 1998. The group included Eli Zelkha, Brian Epstein, Simon Birrell, Doug Randall, and Clark Dodsworth. These plans continued to develop throughout the 1990s, and in 2000, plans were made to construct a feasibility and usability facility dedicated to ambient intelligence. This HomeLab officially opened on 24 April 2002. In 2005, Philips joined the Oxygen alliance, an international consortium of industrial partners within the context of the MIT Oxygen project, aimed at developing technology for the computer of the 21st century.