Educational and Research Uses for Smart Home and Mobile Health Technologies to Ensure Their Safety and Usability

In this paper we describe the development and subsequent use of a Smart Home Laboratory for health informatics education. The laboratory was designed to allow for the design and evaluation of a range of technologies that can be used to improve patient well-being and independence in home environments. The deployment of sensor-based technologies and development of use cases is being explored in the laboratory. We are exploring how the lab can be used to enhance health informatics education. Illustrative case examples are described of how the Smart Home Laboratory has been used for educational purposes to date. The paper also describes current and future research for educational and teaching applications of the laboratory, for teaching about the usability of devices and their integration for living safely at home. AI and robotic applications for the home environment are also being explored. A special focus of the work is to design, and provide training for deployment of technologies. Implications for future work and the need for innovative education in this area are explored.