Mobile & Pervasive ComputingCSC 332 - Fall 2019

Intro to Ubiquitous/Pervasive Computing

What is Ubiquitous or Pervasive Computing?

• 3rd era of modern computing - Roy Want, 2010

• 1st era: mainframe computers

• single computer, owned by organization, used by many people

• 2nd era: PC computers

• one computer, primarily owned & used by one person

• 3rd era: ubiquitous computing

• Network of many portable & embedded computers, own & used by one person

Origins• Mark Weiser, Xerox Park, 1988

• Envisioned computing technologies embedded into everyday artifacts, supporting daily activities

• “The most profound technologies are those that disappear. They weave themselves into the fabric of everyday life until they are indistinguishable from it.”

• Technological implication

• Mobile & embedded processors communicate with each other and the surrounding infrastructure, coordinating operations to support a variety of needs.

Weiser’s Key Ideas• Invisible computing

• Improving the style of computing interaction imposed on users

• Sitting, staring at screen, typing on keyboard, using mouse separate users from the world around them, solitary all-consuming experience.

• Instead, computation could be integrated into common objects that users interact with in everyday activities.

• Example: printed paper

• Involves careful deposition of ink in thin sheets of paper to provide best contrast, durability, etc.

• People engage reading and comprehending, without needing to understand ink characteristics, manufacturing processes, etc.

• No need to maintain it, configure it, update it, etc.

• Printing technology “gets out of the way”

Weiser’s Key Ideas• Calm technology

• Push computing technology into the world

• PC philosophy pushes world into the technology

• icons for desktop, trash can, documents, printers, etc.

• Example: reading documents in a PC

• Graphic made to look like printed page

• Instead, create a dedicated document reader with embedded processor

• Book-like dedicated function is part of the UX

Weiser’s Key Ideas• Scales of human interaction

• Yard-scale

• Large and immovable objects

• Foot-scale

• Hand-size portable objects

• Inch-scale

• Fit in pocket, forgotten about while doing other things

• Ubiquitous computing could be designed around everyday capabilities at these scales

Research at Xerox PARC• Computer Science Laboratory (CSL)

• Led by M. Weiser

• Focused on 3 devices

• ParcTab (pocket size)

• ParcPad (notebook size)

• Liveboard (large desktop)

• Matched scale of user interaction

• And provide numerous networked capabilities

ParcTab (pocket-size), infrared transceiver base station

ParcPad (notebook size), near-field communication base station

Liveboard (large desktop), LCD panel, infrared pen, wired network

Other Associated Concepts• Context Awareness

• Allows applications to understand their environments and adapt their operation accordingly

• Arose out of use of ParcTab as location beacon

• System could keep track of movement of Tabs & infer user position

• Dimensions of a user/device context

• Location, identity of nearby devices, time of day, sound, motion, temperature, orientation, and other physical variables

• But could also include: user’s emotional state, focus of attention, etc.

Other Associated Concepts• Embedded computing platforms

• ITRON operating system and T-Engine embedded platforms across various scales (University of Tokyo)

• Smart-Its (by University of Karlsruhe), embedded computers for furniture, clothing, cups, packaging, etc.

• Real-world objects linked with web content

• Web presence:

• Every object could serve its own identity, ownership, services, etc. through embedded web server

• Or could advertise presence via unique electronic tags

• Including people, places, and things

• (HP Labs, Cooltown project)

Other Associated Concepts• Wearable computing

• Portable computer unobtrusively integrated with or hidden in clothing (MIT Media Lab)

• Deviation from Weiser’s model

• User must adapt and learn how to use specialized equipment

• Potential related applications

• Augmented reality

• SenseCam by Microsoft Research

• Captured images of the world as the user moves, to augment contextual data

Other Associated Concepts• Aware spaces

• Space embedded with sensors, computing, control center

• Aware Home Project, Georgia Tech

• Building used cameras, RFID tags, floor pressure sensors, etc. to identify and track occupants

• Monitored usage of services, etc

• Applications for elderly populations

Other Associated Concepts• Indoor location systems

• Active Badge Location System by Olivetti

• Used diffuse infrared beacons in electronic badges

• Sensor network to receive beacon signals, system able to associate badges/people with rooms

• Enabled location based services

• GUIDE project by Lancaster University

• Electronic tour guide using a microcellular communication network to determine location

Other Associated Concepts• Sensor networks

• Network of wireless nodes sensing and transmitting data

• Can be used for monitoring, but can also allow control of the environment

Ubiquitous Computing Systems • Topics and challenges (Bardram & Friday)

• Resource-aware computing

• Power foraging

• Cyber foraging

• Service discovery

• Volatile execution environments

• Heterogeneous execution environments

• Fluctuating execution environments

• Location-based computing

• Context-aware computing

• Activity-based computing

• Autonomic computing

• Multiagent systems

• Contingency management

• Graceful degradation

• Location and context-based security

To learn about these topics, read textbook Ubiquitous Computing Fundamentals, Chapter 2, pp. 38 - 51 by Tuesday Oct. 1.