The European Union User Information Society Programme has agreed to co-fund a three year project to provide e-services at home for elderly people.
The OLDES project will work to implement an easy to use, low cost technological platform to aid people to live more independently in their home.
The programme is being supported by Bologna Town Council and aims to create an infrastructure of channels including entertainment and companionship, clinical monitoring and domestic monitoring.
The project will provide an easy-to-use plug and play system with different costing levels according to the level of service required to live independently.
It will provide a base level platform that will be available to all users, which will include the communication and tele-company and will be based on a low cost PC with a price of around €100.
In addition there will be an intermediate level with the addition of simple sensors, for example, to measure the ambient temperature, and an upper and tailored level with an addition of health monitoring sensors depending on the health profile of the user.
The platform will be piloted on more than100 elderly people in Italy, ten of who are affected by heart disease and a sample of diabetic patients in Prague.
The project will cost €3.6m, €2.5m of which will be covered by EU funds.