The Innovation

SAAM is a complex and ambitious multi-disciplinary project, advancing the state of the art in the fields of machine learning, user profiling and interfaces, affective computing, multi-modal coaching, sensors and data synthesis, and many others. All of the project’s research tasks will progress the field beyond the state of the art, and unify disparate components into a single system in a manner never before attempted. There are three core innovations, however, that we feel exemplify the project’s originality:

• A fully ambient data collection mode that does not require user interaction.
• The use of common hardware for sensing so as to allow widespread adoption and use (the base mode).
• The use of social circles as part of a multi-modal coaching system.

The core system, which is designed to be as unobtrusive as possible, is complemented with a set of optional specialized components targeting users with specific needs that are meant to significantly increase independence and quality of life for these specific subgroups of users.