Ubiquitous Computing

Course Information

Course Number

HCI Undergraduate: 05-437
HCI Graduate: 05-837

Course Description

In this course, we will look at current research topics in ubiquitous computing by reading and discussing the recent literature drawn primarily from conferences such as Ubicomp, Pervasive, CHI, and UIST, as well as from magazines and journals such as IEEE Pervasive and Personal and Ubiquitous Computing. Students will be exposed to ubicomp applications, tools for building ubicomp systems, sensing systems, and issues with evaluating and using ubicomp systems. As this course is housed in the HCI Institute, there will be a particular emphasis on human-computer interaction issues. However, it will also cover topics in distributed systems, software engineering, and hardware design. There are no prerequistes for this class, and students from all backgrounds are invited to participate. Example topics to be covered include:

• Visions and challenges in ubiquitous computing
• The design and evaluation of different ubicomp applications, including
  • context-aware computing,
  • automated capture and access systems,
  • smart home, healthcare and assistive applications, 
  • energy monitoring and sustainability,
  • mobile social network software
• Location and activity sensing
• Input and output techniques
• Programmable/autonomous physical environments
• Deploying and evaluating of ubicomp systems
• Privacy and social concerns

Finally, a research-oriented group project and an oral presentation are also required.

Semester Offered and Units

Semester: Fall and Spring
Graduate: 12 units

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