Two professors at WSU, a psychologist and a computer scientist, have taken note of the ever-aging U.S. population and are working toward increased independence for seniors.

In an attempt to keep the elderly population away from nursing homes, they have developed a “smart home” laboratory to assess how such individuals, specifically those with memory problems such as dementia, could live in their homes with the aid of technology.

The smart home laboratory essentially an apartment is full of motion sensors that detect daily activities throughout the home and how often they are capable of performing the tasks without forgetting to complete them.

“A lot of people want to stay in their homes,” said Maureen Schmitter-Edgecombe, a psychology professor involved in the project. “With the aging of America, we’re probably not going to have the resources to support all of these people in nursing homes. And the cost of nursing homes is extremely high.” To conduct the research, the state’s Life Sciences Discovery Fund provided a grant of $800,000.

Diane Cook, professor of computer science, and a researcher in the project, said the grant will fund equipment to assess activities and memory performance.

“It’s a start,” Schmitter-Edgecombe said. “We’re actively seeking additional support and have submitted additional grant proposals. I consider this a long-term project.” She said the funds will also be used for mechanisms to cue participants to complete a task upon forgetting to do so.

The smart home apartment laboratory monitors participants with the aid of motion sensors and pressure detectors of how well and regularly participants can perform simple tasks such as cooking, sweeping and turning off appliances, Schmitter-Edgecombe said.

“What we’re focusing on is trying to look at people performing daily activities and assessing and looking at how they perform those activities to assess their memory performance,” Cook said.

Carolyn Parsey, a senior psychology major and a research assistant in the project, said participants will be provided with eight simple tasks and then monitored based on the errors they make. She said the motion sensors will help determine confusion in the participants, a common symptom in people with dementia.

The laboratory, located in Chinook Village apartments, is designed to look like a regular home for realistic purposes.

“We have a living room, a dining room, kitchen and multiple closets,” Parsey said. “The motion sensors are all wired on the ceiling. It’s trying to have as little invasion as possible.” The researchers hope to one day bring such technologies to the homes of elderly people. It would ultimately give them the opportunity to live in the comfort of their own home rather than a nursing home.

“What I’m interested in doing is trying to find ways for people to better maintain their independence. If we’re successful, it could have significant benefits if this technology could keep people in their homes.” Schmitter-Edgecombe said. “We’re still in the early stages of this work.” To successfully conduct this research, the two WSU professors are seeking aid from volunteers for the study. The researchers seek 100 people who are not experiencing cognitive or mental difficulties, 50 people who are, and 50 who have a history of a progressive memory disorder such as Alzheimer’s disease.

The requirements ask for volunteers of 50 years of age or older who are fluent in English and have no history of a significant brain injury, such as stroke or disease, with the exception of dementia.