User expectations in intelligent environments

Abstract

The definition of intelligent environments (IEs) (Augusto et al. in Hum Comput Inf Sci 3(1):12, 2013) has always been focused around their users, aiming at helping them in a smart and transparent way, and avoiding bothering them or acting against their will. The complexity of IEs, whose technologies range from sensors to machine learning, from distributed architectures to tangible interfaces, from communication protocols to data analysis, challenges researchers from various fields to contribute innovative and effective solutions. In this quest for technical solutions to the myriad requirements of an IEs, user expectations are often left behind, and while researchers tend to focus on niche technical aspects, they risk of losing the big picture of an IE “helping users in their daily life”. This paper analyzes the recent literature of the IEs’ research community, aiming at highlighting to which extent users are taken into account, or are involved, into the reported research works. Evidence shows that, while most papers refer to users in their description, only a small minority actually involve them in the design, testing or experimentation phases.