In this paper, we present the Physical Web Browser project for web applications depending on the environment. At this moment, many of users all over the world visit websites using their mobile devices only. Any mobile device (e.g., smartphone) has sensors to capture the environmental information. This information (context) could be analyzed and used within the web applications. There are, at least, two models for using this information. Firstly, we can use context information for data gathering requests in a web application. In this case, the output depends on the context. It is the classical model for context-aware data retrieval. In the second model, we can use context-aware data for improving user experience (for changing and tuning user interfaces). In other words, we present a way for the adaptation of web applications depending on the environment.

1. On Physical Web Browser
Dmitry Namiot, Manfred Sneps-Sneppe
Lomonosov Moscow State University, Ventspils University College
dnamiot@gmail.com, manfreds.sneps@gmail.com
FRUCT 2016

2. •The Physical Web Browser - project for web
applications depending on the environment.
• Target auditorium: mobile web
• Mobile device (e.g., smartphone) has sensors to
capture the environmental information.
• This information (context) could be analyzed and
used within the web applications.
• Context-aware data retrieval or ambient
intelligence.
• The adaptation of web applications depending on
the environment.
About

3. Contents
Introduction
Related works
Web sensing
Network proximity
Android custom WebView

4. Introduction
• Context-aware computing. In the original paper,
introduced the term ‘context-aware’, the author
described context as location, identities of
nearby people and objects, and changes to
those objects
• Ambient Intelligence (AMI). AMI is a paradigm
which it aims multidisciplinary development
physical environments where different electronic
objects intelligently respond to the presence of
people

5. Related works
• Smart agents. Also, it could be named as
triggers or proactive applications
• Use events or more general situations to
trigger the start (stop) of applications.
• Direct connection between the context and
the application that is executed.
• The typical actions are starting or stopping
some service or raising a warning.
• Example: push notifications

6. Related works
• Smart Spaces create comfortable
experiences for users and efficient
resource optimization solutions for
businesses by applying advanced digital
solutions to everyday working and living
environments.
• Also based on the data collected from the
physical environments

7. Wireless tags

8. External monitoring

9. Context-aware QR-code
• Context-aware QR-code scanner
• Based on the modified version of open
sourced scanner Zxing (Zebra Crossing).
• Replace encoded value
http://domain.com/ with
http://domain.com?list_of_parameters
• And this list of parameters will describe
our context.

10. PUSH vs. PULL
• At this moment, notifications (push) prevail
• Sometimes it could lead to the negative
user experience
• An intermediate mode: publish/subscribe
model
• Web browsing corresponds to PULL
model
• Web adaptation models

11. Web Sensing
• An ideal model: HTML5 geo-coding
• A function from browser’s interface
navigator.geolocation.getCurrentPosition()
Callback on web page
• Firefox OS
• Web Activities
• Web Intents

12. Web Sensing
• Nokia local web server
• Java Card Web Server
• WAP Gateway ideas: modify web page on
its way to the browser
• 5G – could it be helpful here?

13. Web Sensing: proprietary
• Google Eddystone
• Bluetooth Low Energy beacon profile
released by Google (2015)
• Types of frames: Eddystone-UID,
Eddystone-URL and Eddystone-TLM
• Eddystone-URL is used by the Physical
Web
• Eddystone URL could be obtained in
Chrome

14. Custom WebView
• On Android platform, it is possible to
access from JavaScript to Java code for a
web page, loaded into WebView control
• JavaScript code call Java code for sensing
• Sensing is asynchronous
• JavaScript code provides a callback
• Java code for sensing uses this callback
for passing data back to JavaScript