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MUST Lab
- Multimedia Ubiquitous Smart Things Laboratory -

Current Research Interests

 

Visions on Future Computing

We have seen an exponential number increase of computers in the last decades. Such exponential increase is going on with higher and higher computer performance as predicted by Moorefs law. At the same time, the size of computers becomes smaller and smaller. They can be attached/embedded/blended to other machines, devices, human cloths/bodies and even ordinary objects, for instances, a cup, a toolbox and a key. They are so small to be unobtrusive or invisible as if they had disappeared. NEC has developed a chip just in 0.4mm2.

We are stepping into a post-PC era, in which a great number and variety of computers with different sizes and functions will be everywhere, so ubiquitous around us and pervasive in our environment. Such vision was first depicted by Mark Weiser, and associated technologies and applications were called ubiquitous computing (Ubicomp) by him around 1990 and later called pervasive computing (Percomp) by IBM in 1999. Although many new terms of computing, e.g., invisible computing, disappearing computing, wearable computing, proactive computing, autonomic computing, everyday computing, sentient computing, amorphous computing, ambient intelligence, palpable computing and so on, have appeared since 2000, they can be regarded as something stimulated by ubicomp visions with some special emphases on or extensions of some aspects in the broad ubiquitous f frontier.

Cyberworld brings us to the computerized virtual world, basically via mapping or converting things on the real world into some kinds of virtual counterparts (e-things) on the cyberworld so that many conventional activities can be moved to the digital world and done with e-ways. Ubicomp, in contrast, brings computers to the physical real-world including everyday objects, environments and ourselves. The power of ubicomp lies at seamless integrations and mutual actions of the real and virtual worlds. What will happen when thousands of computers/devices share one user, trillions of ubiquitous computers/devices spread the whole world, and all of them are universally interconnected by ubiquitous networks with ubiquitous services? Under our feet is a road towards ubiquitous intelligence (UI) or intelligence pervasion and smart world (SW), the graceful integration of the physical world and the cyberworld, in which ambient environments including objects attached/embedded/blended with small or tiny networked computers can greet us, remind us, advise us, and help us performing many jobs automatically, precisely, promptly, reliably, comfortably, trustworthily and politely with knowing and adapting to rich dynamic contexts of human, society, physical environment and digital world as well.

In the ubicomp/percomp era, more ubiquitous computation/information/service would be the fundamental driving forces, and the corresponding essential elements would be the various smart/intelligent ubiquitous things or u-things (p-things or i-things or smatifacts) fallen into three categories:

It is our long term goals to study all of the above smart elements and their integrations for creating smart worlds towards ubiquitous intelligence.

More about my ideas and visions, please refer the following: