Intelligent IoT for aged care

Smart technology keeping Australians in their own homes.

Challenge

Using IoT sensors to enable retirees and people with acquired brain injuries to live independently in their own homes for as long as possible.

Impact

Unobtrusively supporting people’s daily activities and alleviating reliance on carers.

Research Partners

  • Uniting AgeWell
  • TAC

Australia has a growing aging population, and a shortage of nurses and carers.

In Australia, there are 3.7 million people aged over 65, and this number is steadily increasing. Due to our high level of medical care, we are a nation that is living longer and healthier lives. But as we age, the risk of accidents, such as falls, increases. One solution is supervised aged healthcare such as retirement villages, but most Australians wish to stay and live in their own homes for as long as possible.

To help keep Australians living in their own homes for longer, current existing options vary from having on-site carers or security monitoring devices, which can be expensive, prohibitive, invasive and intrusive. Security pendants and medical alert bracelets can be cumbersome or forgotten, rendering them useless.

 

Solution

Our research led to the creation of a bespoke smart home solution that helps elderly Australians to live in their own homes for longer. Using multiple smart sensors, the hub is able to generate a unique and custom profile about the daily habits and routines of single occupant households. Unlike pendant solutions, our research and development has focused on wall-based sensors that passively collect data based on occupancy of rooms around the home.The hub also contains a speaker to create an audio interface to talk to occupants in a friendly and non-invasive manner, providing reminders about medication and occasional occupancy-based checks.

Our work has undergone a number of studies across Victoria. These studies have focused on supporting Australia’s elderly community in regional Victoria and providing services to people suffering from cognitive brain injuries.

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