At the GameDays 2014 conference at TU Darmstadt, Germany, Mario Drobics, Thematic Coordinator "Health Information Systems" at AIT Safety & Security Department, gave a keynote about game-based IT solutions for active & healthy aging. Game-based approaches can be used to support traditional intervention schemes which enable older adults in staying active & healthy for a longer time. These techniques are especially useful as they improve the motivation of the users and thus help to improve the effectiveness of the intervention. TV-based games are often oriented along traditional video games. External sensors like video cameras can be incorporated to provide direct feedback on the activities of the user. This information can also be utilized to reassess the status of the user and monitor his/her training progress. Mobile devices and the large range of available body worn sensors offer the opportunity to design games around daily and outdoor activities. By adding a social level to the games, competition and group efforts can be initiated, giving further motivation to reach a certain goal.

1. Game-based IT solutions
for active & healthy aging
Fostering Independent & Healthy Living
Dr. Mario Drobics
Thematic Coordinator
Safety & Security Department
AIT Austrian Institute of Technology GmbH
mario.drobics@ait.ac.at
+43 50 550 4810
http://www.ait.ac.at/ehealth

2. Overview
1. Who am I and why am I here?
2. Why do games for older adults matter?
3. How can games for older adults be designed?
4. Examples of recent game-based approaches at AIT
210.04.2014

3. 3
AIT Austrian Institute of Technology
 BMVIT 50,46%
 Industry 49,54%
 ~ 1000 Employees
 Budget 40:30:30
 Budget: 120 Mio€

4. Health
Areas of Application
410.04.2014
Prevention
• Lifestyle Management
• Health Prevention
Intervention
• Care Support
• Detection of Critical Situations
Therapy
• Therapy Support
Comfort Mobility
Smart
Homes
Mobility
Support
Mobility
Optimi-
zation
• Lifestyle Management
• Health Prevention

5. Data Analytics
Communication
Thematic Overview
5
Nutrition
Social
Interaction
Activity
Health
Safety
10.04.2014

6. Enabling independent and healthy aging
.. by promoting regular physical activity
 Reduce relative risk of death (20%-35%)
 Reduce risk / affects of chronic diseases
• cardiovascular diseases, diabetes mellitus, cancer,
osteoporosis, arthritis, etc.
 Reduce risk of physical decline
(accidents, falls, frailty, etc.)
 Reduce risk for decline in cognitive function, depression,
etc.
610.04.2014
Nutrition
Social
Interaction
Activity
Health
Safety

7. Challenges
 Good concepts and advanced technology are not sufficient
to ensure a high effectivety of the proposed interventions
 People tend to fall back to their previous (unhealthy)
behavior easily
 We need to ensure adherence over a long timeframe
710.04.2014
 We need to motivate the users to do the exercises and
maintain a healthy lifestyle

8. Motivational Strategies
 Intrinsic motivators
 Fun
 Excitement
 Curiosity
 Challenge
 Mastery
 Improvement
 Extrinsic motivators
 Social interaction
 Social status
(ranking, feedback, etc.)
 Achievements
 Progress
810.04.2014
Motivational
affordance
Psychological
outcomes
Behavioral
outcomes

9. Psychological model of self-regulation
1) Goals about what to accomplish
2) Self-monitoring of personal behavior and relation to goals
3) Feedback and information about progress
4) Self-evaluation about progress toward each goal
5) Corrective behavior to more effective movement towards
goals
910.04.2014

10. Support Strategies
 Serious Games
 games with a specific aim (education, training, etc.)
 Gamification
 application of game-based elements in non-game contexts
 Persuasion Strategies
 change attitudes or behaviors of the users through persuasion
and social influence
1010.04.2014

11. Challenges for ICT Applications for Health
 Keep user motivated over a long period
 Story-telling
 Integration in daily activities
 Shift focus
 Social networks / blended training
 Address a broad range of diverse users
 Self-adapting difficulty
 Provide a set of motivators and
adopt individually
 Provide feedback on execution
 Include people with limited or no
ICT experience
1110.04.2014

12. Common Preconceptions
 Older adults are just lacy.
 Older adults are afraid of computers.
 Older adults don‘t play (on the computer).
1210.04.2014
 Older adults are just lacy.
 Not more than you!
 Older adults are afraid of computers.
 Not if done right.
 Older adults don‘t play (on the computer).
 No, but different!

13. Do we need „elderly“ games?
 No, but it helps!
1310.04.2014

14. Special Issues when Designing Games for Older Adults
 Motivation
 Users might be frustrated more quickly and stop playing
 Provide targeted feedback (reward/punishment) schedules
 Accessibility
 Provide enough time for interaction
 Adjust cognitive and physical load / demands according your
target group (learning, memory, movements, etc.)
 Provide the possibility to access a lower level again
 Risk prevention
 Prevent users from any foreseeable risk (falls, exhaustion)
1410.04.2014

15. Taxonomy of Games for Health
Physical Cognitive Social & Emotional
Health Health Health
1510.04.2014
Personal
Professional practice
Research
Public health
Preventive
Therapeutic
Assessment
Educational
Informatics

16. Opportunities of IT-based approaches
 Provide tailored behavioral strategies
 Combination of different intervention strategies
 Individual feedback on execution of exercises & progress made
 Integrate ubiquitous measurements to induce lifestyle changes
 Provide a virtual social network
 Provide a path from rehabilitation to independent lifestyle
1610.04.2014

17. SilverGame
Ernährung
Soziale
Interaktion
Aktivität
Gesundheit
Sicherheit

18. Goals
 Support social contact and interaction
 Stimulate human senses (cognition & emotion)
 Address common hobbies and passions
 Support stimulating game-based applications
 Build communities (interaction and communication)
 Integrate internet-based information and services
 Reduce isolation and bleakness
1810.04.2014

19. Module A:
Driving-
Simulator
Module B:
Virtual Chorus
find
new
friends
stimulate
senses
explore
new
interests
build
new
contacts
web-based content & services;
Chats, Blogs etc.
Audio- and Video-
Communication
Module C:
Dance-
& Fitness
Training
Multimedia
application
management
platform
19
Overview

20. FoSIBLE –
Fostering Social Interaction for a Better Life of Elderly
Nutrition
Social
Interaction
Activity
Health
Safety

21. Overview
 Goals
 Fostering social interaction
 Simplified access to new media
 Approach
 Smart-TV as central information hub
 Intelligent living-environment
 Multi-modal user-interface

22. Integration of Social- and Game Elements
2210.04.2014
Screenshots kindly provided by Kaasa Solutions

23. KIT-Aktiv – Active Lifestyle Management for Elderly
Ernährung
Soziale
Interaktion
Aktivität
Gesundheit
Sicherheit

24. Motivation
 Provide a service for activity support with very low costs per
user
 Brings together all age groups
 Establish a visible infrastructure in a community
 Provide a virtual platform for different activity groups
2410.04.2014

25. Approach
2510.04.2014

26. Grafenwörth
 6 cadastral subdivision
 Approx. 50km west of Vienna (Austria)
 Approx. 3000 inhabitant
 (Senior-) Citizen-Center SeneCura
2610.04.2014

27.  17 tracks from 1 – 21km
 8 fitness-poles
Fitness-Trails
2710.04.2014

28. Technical Concept
 RFID wristbands are used to register at each pole
 Information and data entry terminals at three semi-public
places
 View and print information about tracks, events, own
activities, etc.
 Enter health related data or measure body weight
 Read out external sensors (e.g. pedometer)
 Web-Interface for users, physician, care personal
 Integration of users using individual text messages (eMail,
SMS)
2810.04.2014

29. iStoppFalls – ICT-based System to Predict & Prevent Falls
Nutrition
Social
Interaction
Activity
Health
Safety

30. Motivation
 30% older than 65 fall at least once a year
 600 million people worldwide over 65
 2 billion people in 2050 (WHO)
 Costs 9 billion dollars annually in the US (Davis et al. 2010)
Falls are common
Remain important
4/10/2014 30

31. Fall Risk
Assessment
Strength Exercises
Exergames
Feedback
Fall Prevention

32. System Overview
KINECT
(motion sensing)
Senior Mobility
Monitor
(activity tracking)
PC
(Training, Games)
Set-Top Box
(Social Network,
Information))
Tablet
(Second Screen)

33. Balance Games
 Balance ability decline with aging
 Poor balance is associated with falls
 120 min./ week of balance training for fall prevention
(Sherrington et al. 2011)
iStoppFalls balance games aim to improve stability and train
muscle coordination by
(1) weight shifting
(2) knee bending and
(3) stepping

34. Skiing
344/10/2014

35. Skiing
 Task: Ski downhill through the gates
 Avatar’s movement controlled by
1. Leaning (left and right)
2. Knee bending
 Progression
 Increasing speed
 Including movements of arms (e.g. reaching)
 Adding a cognitive component (Dual-task)
354/10/2014

36. Skiing – Dual Task
 Player has to
 Memorize items
 Identify and recognize items
 Solve arithmetic challenges
364/10/2014

37. Bistro
374/10/2014

38. Bumblebee
384/10/2014

39. Strength Exercises
 Strength loss associated with falls
 Strength training recommended for fall prevention
(Sherrington et al. 2011)
iStoppFalls exercises aim to improve lower limb
muscle and ankle strength based on the Otago
Exercise program

40. Strength Exercises
1. Front knee strengthening
2. Back knee strengthening
3. Side hip strengthening
4. Calf raises
5. Toe raises
404/10/2014

41. Social Media Platform
 Connect to other participants
 Exchange messages
 Share results
 Form groups

42. Your Ingenious Partner!
Dr. Mario Drobics
Thematic Coordinator
Safety & Security Department
AIT Austrian Institute of Technology GmbH
mario.drobics@ait.ac.at
+43 50 550 4810
http://www.ait.ac.at/ehealth