PERSONALISED AMBIENT INTELLIGENCE IN BUILDINGS VIA CONTEXT-AWARE AGENTS

One of the concepts of intelligent buildings is to maximise occupant comfort. Optimising the environment for a single occupant is a simple procedure but for a shared environment presents a difficult challenge. This paper proposes the use of context-aware agents that utilises the Hawthorne Effect theory for providing and resolving the conflicting preferences in a multi-tenant building environment. This is an ongoing research and the solution consists of a multi-agent framework for interacting with the environment and learning the occupant's preferences through a user-interface. The agents will learn the occupant's preference using a simple heuristic question and answer method and perception through networked sensors. The Hawthorne Effect solution attempts to resolve the conflicting requirements by fluctuating the heating and lighting during the course of the day to meet all occupants preferences.