The DOMHO project aimed to revolutionize the domain of smart buildings through the integration of home automation technologies based on the Internet of Things (IoT) paradigm into the daily lives of individuals with disabilities, their caregivers, and older adults. The project encompassed design and development activities to create “intelligent” environments with the objective of enhancing the independence and autonomy of individuals with disabilities and older adults in their daily activities, thereby providing them with a positive life experience.
The IoT environment was conceived and developed based on the desires and needs of end-users through Focus Group sessions conducted by HTlab members. An advanced residential smart apartment was specifically designed for people with disabilities and elderly, including both professional and non-professional caregivers. This apartment served as a platform for experimentation to assess the efficiency, subjective perceptions (i.e., usability, acceptance), and beneficial effects of IoT technologies on both end-users and their caregivers. Additionally, the positive impact of co-housing multiple users was evaluated. Consequently, weekends were organized during which the apartment was inhabited by two or three individuals with disabilities.

During the evaluation of the “intelligent” apartment, HTlab provided its expertise in utilizing quantitative methods (e.g., questionnaires and performance evaluation) and qualitative methods (e.g., interviews) to analyze usability, user experience, technology acceptance, and control interfaces of the integrated IoT system installed in the apartment. The studies involved users and caregivers and also considered voice-controlled devices, yielding highly promising results. These studies underscored the advantages in terms of independence and autonomy for the individuals involved, as well as the simplicity and accessibility of the control interfaces, leading to a reduction in the workload of caregivers.
Finally, HTlab identified a methodological approach that allows for the estimation of an individual with disabilities’ ability to effectively and efficiently use voice commands to control the smart apartment through neuropsychological and psychopedagogical tests.

References:

Gamberini, L., Bacchin, D., Pluchino, P., Grippaldi, A. Z., Dainese, G., Campagnaro, V., … & Sozza, A. (2022). DOMHO: Internet of Things for Ambient Assisted Co-housing. In Italian Forum of Ambient Assisted Living (pp. 117-128). Cham: Springer International Publishing.

Bacchin, D., Pluchino, P., Grippaldi, A. Z., Mapelli, D., Spagnolli, A., Zanella, A., & Gamberini, L. (2021). Smart Co-housing for People With Disabilities: A Preliminary Assessment of Caregivers’ Interaction With the DOMHO System. Frontiers in psychology, 12, 734180.

Zanella, A., Mason, F., Pluchino, P., Cisotto, G., Orso, V., & Gamberini, L. (2021). DOMHO: A smart assisted-living solution for Fragile people. In ICT FOR HEALTH: SENSING, DATA ANALYSIS, APPLICATIONS (pp. 143-162). Texmat di N. Gariazzo.

Masina, F., Pluchino, P., Orso, V., Ruggiero, R., Dainese, G., Mameli, I., … & Gamberini, L. (2021). VOICE Actuated Control Systems (VACS) for accessible and assistive smart homes. a preliminary investigation on accessibility and user experience with disabled users. In Ambient Assisted Living: Italian Forum 2019 10 (pp. 153-160). Springer International Publishing.

Masina, F., Orso, V., Pluchino, P., Dainese, G., Volpato, S., Nelini, C., … & Gamberini, L. (2020). Investigating the accessibility of voice assistants with impaired users: mixed methods study. Journal of medical Internet research, 22(9), e18431.

Zanella, A., Mason, F., Pluchino, P., Cisotto, G., Orso, V., & Gamberini, L. (2020). Internet of things for elderly and fragile people. arXiv preprint arXiv:2006.05709.
Gamberini, L., Pluchino, P., Bacchin, D., Dainese, G., Campagnaro, V., Zanella, A., Mapelli, D., Mondini, S., Campana, G., Cipolletta, S., Spagnolli, A., Sozza, A. (2020). Domho project: an accessible and inclusive smart co-housing solution for people with disability. In Italian Forum for Ambient Assisted Living | ForItAAL 2020.

Gamberini, L., Fabbri, L., Orso, V., Pluchino, P., Ruggiero, R., Barattini, R., & Sozza, A. (2019). A cyber secured IoT: Fostering smart living and safety of fragile individuals in intelligent environments. In Ambient Assisted Living: Italian Forum 2018 9 (pp. 335-342). Springer International Publishing.