Grant: Applied Research and Development Grants - Level 1

An area of significant growth in mobile computing is location-awareness and wearable devices. Virtually all companies now employ the use of mobile devices in some fashion or another and the growth in the wearable device market is exploding. However, despite the rapid growth and recent success MindrMobile has had, there are many applied research problems yet to be solved. This research proposal involves collaboration between Sheridan and MindrMobile to develop innovative solutions for mobile devices in the area of smart interactions, context-aware mobile apps, micro-location technologies (iBeacons), and wearable devices. The Sheridan team, in collaboration with MindrMobile, proposes to design and develop two prototypes: 1. Mobile devices and iBeacons: In this project, we will create a mobile app and a multi-tier computer system that monitors the routes and activities that security guards undergo daily. 2. Apple Watch and Senior Support: This research will involve exploring the data available collectively from the Apple Watch and iPhone to provide an algorithm to make probabilistic inferences on the well being of the wearer (e.g., the user falls and can't get up or is unconscious). The information from the Apple Watch includes: heart rate, accelerometer, microphone and haptic responses. Together with the instrumentation on the iPhone (e.g., GPS, health data), the research will focus on developing an algorithm to make accurate predictions.