System Objectives

To address the issues described in the background to the work, the ART project aims to facilitate interaction between a user and potentially numerous controllable devices within their environment, particularly where the user or the situation requires this to be done with minimal physical input and/or dexterity. The system therefore has a number of criteria which it must satisfy, including the need to:

• accommodate many controllable devices with a simple interface
• offer intuitive selection of the necessary controls for any controllable device of interest
• allow relatively quick interaction with both controllable objects and the system itself
• require as little diversity and complexity of user-input actions as possible
• accommodate a wide range of simple input techniques, as is appropriate to the specific user and their situation
• cope with controllable objects being moved around within the environment, and where possible being partially occluded and/or visible in a number of different orientations
• cope with the user moving or being moved around within their environment
• keep false or unintended actuation of objects to a minimum
• work within the range of typical environmental conditions and situations to be found in the home or office