The iToilet project targeted the needs of older persons who are living independently at home when using a toilet. The project aimed at developing an ICT enhanced toilet system, which is able to empower older persons to live more independently and with increased dignity. iToilet also aimed at reducing the workload of the care persons when providing personal assistance on the toilet.
The utilization of a plane toilet represents difficulties for many mobility reduced persons. Often they aren’t able at all to use the on board toilet, especially within short distance or medium-haul flights. Depending on mobility restrictions various requirements for accessible on-board toilets exist which cannot be implemented because of technical limitations of the plane or because of economical conditions of the airlines.
The basis of assistive products such as “iToilet” with integrated nursing documentation could be expanded sensibly and innovatively by further methods of data analysis in the daily use of toilets.
By intelligently assessing body water levels across the toilet seat, but also through usage statistics and other parameters, the safety of autonomously living elderly users alone could be improved by early detection of the trend towards dehydration and deviant behavior, or by remembering the toilet visit. Together with users and supervisors, the project aimed to identify practical requirements and assess the risk and market prospects of a product or a necessary implementing R & D project through laboratory simulation of appropriate technologies.
The T4ME2 project addresses older people and the needs they have when using a toilet outside home in semi-public environments (e.g. toilets located in community centres, shopping malls, museums, theatres, hotels).
The short previous Toilet4me project studied the development and provision of an ICT-enhanced toilet system which is able to adapt itself to the individual needs and preferences of the older person currently using the toilet similar to the iToilet project for home use.
The Toilet4me project addressed older people and the needs they have when using a toilet outside home in semi-public environments (e.g. toilets located in community centres, shopping malls, museums, theatres, hotels).
The vision of Toilet4me was to develop and provide an ICT-enhanced toilet system which is able to adapt itself to the individual needs and preferences of the older person currently using the toilet.
Based on project partners’ products “iToilet” and “fearless”, the feasibility of supporting cognitively impaired people while using the toilet will be explored.
By means of intelligent recognition of relevant usage actions (fearless, iToilet sensors) customized usage instructions are to be given via the dialog system of iToilet. This should promote the autonomy of the users in a taboo area and relieve the caregiver. The project aims to identify user / supervisor requirements from practice and risk assessment regarding an implementing R & D project and the market outlook through laboratory simulation of appropriate technologies.
The project was successfully completed. On June 29, 2020, the successful demonstration of a WCBuddy laboratory prototype took place at the day care center Lichtblick in Steyr. The prototype reacts to user behavior with configurable instructions as an image or video in combination with text and audio. A functional demonstrator has been set up in the laboratory of TUW. The technical, economic and ethical findings developed together with experts are documented in the final report.
