How smart devices make homes more accessible

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By Kayla Matthews
Many smart devices, such as those with built-in virtual assistants, are becoming more and more popular to have at home, and older adults have found that the devices can help them live safer and more independent lives. We caught up with one Houzz reader and his wife, who has multiple sclerosis, to learn about how home tech has changed the way they operate around the house.
Plus, learn about other smart device uses around the house and discover tech on the market and in development aimed at helping us as we age.

How One Couple Uses Their Smart Technology
Houzzer Tony Lisy got an Amazon Echo from his wife, Beth, as a gift. It was intended to be just a fun gadget to have around the house, but the couple in their 60s quickly realized it could do more than entertain.
After Tony set up the device, he enabled the “Ask My Buddy” skill. This feature, when voice-activated, can alert contacts for the user. This has allowed Beth to easily reach Tony or a local friend for assistance.
Beth was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis 10 years ago. “She has problems walking, periodic tremors in her hands, arms and legs and very poor balance,” Tony says. “She requires a walker to get around in the house and a wheelchair when going anywhere else.”
Because of her condition, Beth sleeps in a hospital bed in a room separate from Tony. Thankfully, Tony says, the Amazon Echo is always close by in case she needs help. For example, if Beth needs assistance in the middle of the night, she can say, “Echo, Ask My Buddy to alert Tony.” Then, Tony’s phone rings and it appears as “Beth Needs Help.” Initially Ask My Buddy was free, but now there is a small fee for more than 10 calls per month.
As a backup, Tony has also enabled the skill Call My Lost Phone. So if Ask My Buddy ever fails, Beth simply says “Echo, Call My Lost Phone” instead. “Both work within a few seconds,” Tony says, to alert him.
According to Tony, both alert options are quite reliable. He says the Ask My Buddy skill works flawlessly about 99 percent of the time and the Call My Lost Phone works about 90 percent of the time.

Since they originally set up their Echo, the couple has purchased an Echo Dot for the living room.

These smart devices can also be connected to other home features, such as lights. Tony purchased two smart plugs for less than $30 and installed one in Beth’s room. “When entering a room, Beth says, ‘Echo, turn on light.’ When leaving she can ask to have the light turned off,” Tony says.
“The setup is fairly straightforward,” says Tony, noting that he does have a background in computer systems. If you encounter a problem during setup, the app will simply redirect you to the beginning of the setup process. If that fails, you can always call the company’s support number and they will walk you through the process. “Beth’s 87-year-old mom got [an Echo] and I was able to walk her through the setup over the phone in less than 15 minutes,” Tony says.
Tony and Beth also check the weekly email they get from Amazon to see what new features are available.
“Next on the list is to set up hands-free calling, since tremors make it difficult at times for Beth to use her cellphone,” Tony says. “We can’t imagine going back to life without our Echos.”

Smart Speakers Help With More Everyday Tasks
The Lisys use an Echo, but there are other smart speakers on the market from companies such as Google, Sonos, Apple and Lenovo. While each has its own features, here are some examples of how older adults have been using their smart devices for everyday tasks.
Lists. Add items to your virtual shopping list by saying them out loud. This action replaces having to pick up a pen and paper, which can be useful for someone with declining motor skills.
Questions. Directly ask your device a question, such as what president was in office in 1962 or how old a specific actor is. Although this question-and-answer sequence has some limitations, the use of this function might jog the memory of someone with dementia.
Locations. Ask for a local business’s hours, get directions, call a business or place an order. You can also request public transit pickups or find the local bus times.
News. Instead of hunting around for news, you can get news briefs from your favorite sources delivered to you on demand.
Home functions. The speakers can interact with home features such as the lights, as Tony explained. You can also set it up to work with appliances and home security systems.

Smart Homes Increase Safety

A study by researchers from the Texas A&M School of Public Health found that artificial intelligence offers numerous benefits for aging people, with increased safety among the top of its features.
The Fujitsu brand has begun marketing intelligent monitors to Japanese citizens that collect sound, movement and temperature data within a room. The device then uses an algorithm to examine the info and checks for abnormalities in it.
If the monitor doesn’t detect movement from a person for 24 hours or notices a loud noise, those events trigger safety checks. It can even pick up coughing and irregular breathing, both of which could be caused by health problems. Such issues then get relayed to a call center staffed by nurses.

More Home Tech on the Horizon for Older Adults
As you’ve read, smart speakers can be useful and entertaining for older adults. A new device called ElliQ (shown above) takes that concept even further. It was built specifically to help older adults remember to do tasks, encourages specific behaviors and makes it easier to interact with people via video.
Researchers designed it to work in the background and serve as a hassle-free companion for people who aren’t familiar with tech. The gadget pays attention to what a person does throughout the day and provides alternatives. For example, if a person has sat in front of the TV for hours, ElliQ might bring up the idea of going for a walk around the neighborhood instead.
ElliQ isn’t a replacement for face-to-face interactions with people, but it could be a worthwhile substitute to look into. That’s especially true if an individual gets limited help from a caregiver — a home health nurse who stops by in the mornings, for example — but has to stay independently entertained the rest of the day.
It’s clear from these examples that smart homes are very promising for today’s older generations.
The technologies directly benefit people who use them, plus give valuable peace of mind to off-site caregivers and loved ones.

Original source: Houzz
Read original article here.