Mobility for All – The Use of Ambient Intelligence in Addressing the Mobility Needs of People with Impairments: The Case of ASK-IT

Athens, Greece (PRWEB) June 3, 2006

The ASK-IT International conference marks the two year point of this EU research funded project. The conference will provide the opportunity to take stock of the progress made in ASK-IT so far. It will also provide a unique occasion for different stakeholders, whether it be telecom providers, industry, user representatives, research institutes or local authorities, to gather together to discuss the role of Information Communication Technology in aiding and improving the everyday lives of mobility impaired people. The conference will welcome high level speakers and experts from around the world that will look at various issues, such as making content accessible, accessible tools and Ambient Intelligence, and will provide state-of-the-art information on accessibility initiatives in Europe and beyond.

ASK-IT –Ambient Intelligence System of Agents for Knowledge based and Integrated Services for Mobility Impaired Users

ASK-IT is an integrated project, partly funded by the European Commission under the 6th Framework Programme, e-Inclusion. The driving vision behind the ASK-IT project is to develop services based on Information Communication Technologies (ICT) that will allow Mobility Impaired people to live more independently. Through a device (mobile phone, PDA) users will have access to relevant and real-time information primarily for travelling but also whilst home, for work and leisure services. The emphasis is on a seamless service provision and a device that is intelligent enough to address the personal needs and preferences of the user. For example, information for a visually impaired person will be given orally, while for an illiterate person mostly in graphics. The project involves a demonstration phase during which the ASK-IT system will be tested and evaluated in 8 cities across Europe. ASK-IT involves 57 partners from a range of organisations, including industry, research institutes and European user associations and is coordinated by SIEMENS (Spain) and CERTH/HIT (Hellenic Institute of Transport, Greece).

Preliminary Conference Programme

Day 1: 26th October 2006

09:00    Registration and Coffee

10:00    Opening session

Chairman: John Gill – Royal National Institute for the Blind

Welcome and Introduction, Maria Garcia – Siemens

Addressing the Mobility Needs of People with Impairments, Bruno Gaurier – Association des Paralysés de France

EC Policy on e-Accessibility, European Commission

The Role of the Industry in Design for All, Microsoft

The ASK-IT Approach, Angelos Bekiaris – Hellenic Institute of Transport

12:00    Lunch

13:30    Session A1: Accessibility content and services

    Chairman: Karel Brookhuis – Delft University of Technology

    Main speaker: Spyros Michailidis - EWORX

    Session A2: Ontologies and models for service provision

    Chairman: Alexandros Mourouzis – FORTH

    Main speaker: John Bateman – University of Bremen

15:30     Coffee break

16:00    Exhibition and posters

17:30    End of Day 1

Day 2: 27th October 2006

09:30    Session B1: Accessibility tools for the mobile user

    Chairman: Phil Blythe – University of Newcastle upon Tyne

Main speaker: Xiwen Zhang - Beratung und Planung im Verkehrswesen / Yuhang Zhang – Beijing Municipal Office of Informatisation

    Session B2: Usability issues for the mobile user

    Chairman: Greg Vanderheiden – Trace Center (tbc)

    Main speaker: Alexandros Mouzouris – FORTH

12:00    Lunch

13:30    Session C1: Ambient Intelligence in the services of accessibility

    Chairman: Angelos Bekiaris – Hellenic Institute of Transport

    Main speaker: Panos Markopoulos – Technical University Eindhoven

    Session C2: Accessibility initiatives in Europe

    Chairman: Spyros Michailidis – EWORX

    Main speaker: Alexio Picco – AMI Genoa

15:30    Coffee

16:00    Session D: World experiences

Chairman: Xiwen Zhang – Beratung und Planung im Verkehrswesen/ Yuhang Zhang – Beijing Municipal Office of Informatisation

    Main speaker: Liddy Nevile – La Trobe University, Sunrise Research Laboratory

17:00    Conclusions

    Angelos Bekiaris – Hellenic Institute of Transport

Exhibition and sponsors

The conference exhibition area will be formally opened and form an integral part of the conference. Delegates will be given ample time to visit the exhibition area. For more information on the exhibition and rates please fill in the form enclosed and we will contact you.

Call for papers: Deadline 31 May 2006

The conference welcomes high quality contributions from a variety of stakeholders from across Europe and beyond for all sessions. Below, you will find a short description of each session, indicating its scope and expectations.

Session A1: Accessibility content and services

This session focuses on the existence, creation and exploitation of accessible content on the web (or elsewhere) related to buildings, historical sites, transport etc. It also focuses on accessibility services offered regarding transport, tourism or people on the move in general. Issues of interest include content ownership, management, maintenance, quality of service, business models, coverage, key actors, evaluation etc.

Session A2: Ontologies and models for service provision

This session focuses on ontological frameworks for semantic web services. It will look at content and service delivery format and structure. Accessibility attributes are the focus, although do not necessarily have to be covered in each paper.

Session B1: Accessibility tools for the mobile user

This session looks at technologies and tools to support the mobility-impaired user to find his/her way (localisation, accessible route guidance), to drive and get information whilst driving, to control his/her environment,(elevator, things, public terminals, etc.), to electronically book and/or pay for services, to get medical support while travelling and to control assistive devices, work and learn.

Session B2: Usability issues for the mobile user

This session presents innovative approaches towards user interfaces for mobility impaired users (including motor impaired, blind, deaf, elderly, illiterate etc) to control their environment whilst on the move and get infomobility services. It will focus on user interfaces for mobile devices (PDAs, intelligent phones, in-vehicle terminals) and moreover on the concept of self-adaptive interfaces according to user needs and/or context of use.

Session C1: Ambient Intelligence in the services of accessibility

This session focuses on Ambient Intelligence frameworks: The use of Intelligent Agents technology to personalise services and interfaces to static (i.e. age, disability, gender), semi-dynamic (i.e. travelling as tourist, commuter, or businessman) and dynamic (i.e. type of restaurant or hotel preferred, maximum walking distance) user preferences and context of use (i.e. while driving, at home, on the move, in the airport, etc.).

Session C2: Accessibility initiatives in European sites

This session identifies initiatives in European cities, regions or other areas to enhance the electronic (information) and physical accessibility for all types of mobility impaired users (including wheelchair users, blind, deaf, elderly, illiterate, dyslectic, etc.). Local initiatives, as well as country-wide or multi-national ones are welcomed, with emphasis on serving the mobile user (citizen or tourist).

Session D: World experiences

This session identifies international (non-European) initiatives to enhance the electronic (information) and physical accessibility for all types of mobility impaired users (including wheelchair users, blind, deaf, elderly, illiterate, dyslexic, etc.). Local initiatives, as well as country-wide or multi-national ones are welcomed, with emphasis on serving the mobile user (citizen or tourist).

Scientific Committee

All abstracts submitted will be reviewed by the Scientific Committee made up of a panel of experts:

Dr. Evangelos Bekiaris (Centre for Research and Technology Hellas/Hellenic Institute for Transport), Dr Constantine Stephanidis (Foundation for Research and Technology Hellas) Dr. Jan Ekberg (National Research and Development Centre for Welfare and Health), Dr Karel Brookhuis (Technical University Delft), Prof. Phil Blythe (University of Newcastle upon Tyne) Dr Alex Bullinger (Centre of Applied Technologies in neuroscience).

Prize Awards

The ASK-IT project will award two prizes, one for the best student paper received and one for the best paper from developing countries. Each prize will consist of a financial grant of 1.000 € plus reimbursement of the travel costs of the awarded person to the ASK-IT International Conference. If you wish to apply for this award, please indicate this with your abstract submission.

How to submit an abstract?

The deadline for submissions is 31 May; abstracts should not be longer than two pages. Submissions will be reviewed by the Scientific Committee and you will be notified of the outcome in June. You can submit an abstract online via the ASK-IT website: http://www.ask-it.org/conference/login.php

For more information contact: POLIS, Karen Vancluysen, Rue du Trône 98, 1050 Brussels, Belgium, Tel: +32 2 500 56 75, Fax: +32 2 500 56 80 or visit http://www.ask-it.org

# # #