TecOs aim is to bring together basic and application oriented research. Therefore TecO drives research projects looking into fundamental questions. Together with our industrial partners TecO applies mature developments in this area leading to full running set-ups, prototypes, demonstrators and joint patents.
TecOs research focuses on how to enable everyday mundane artefacts to provide tasks pro-actively using computing, communication and sensor technology. Such digital artefacts will be embedded into the world without being explicit noticed and may appear either as replacements of existing "dumb" artefacts, introduced as new type of devices or by being embedded into the environment. Artefacts will have an active type of character and are self-dependent enabling them to protect and help themselves to fulfill their task. Complex tasks are solved by spontaneous collaborating in an ecology of artefacts.
Living in a ecology of artefacts, artefacts can benefit from other artefacts by collaborating with them and by building up ecologies of artefacts. This way artefacts are able to solve complex tasks and
Humans can profit from such artefacts either traditionally by requesting services using artefact-bound interfaces and new type of personal computing devices. But most profit will not come from explicitly accessing these services but from implicitly being serviced by such a collection of smart, small and calm artefacts.
Perception
of the surrounding environment and own status
Sensor and RFID Technology, context and location awareness
Collaboration
with other artefacts
Communication, Collaboration, Networks and Middleware
Digital
Artefacts
System Design and Engeneering in Pervasive Computing
Human
Computer Interface
Human-Computer Interaction, Personal Devices, PDAs, Handheld and
Wearable Computing
TecOs conducts fundamental research in the area of Ubiquitous, Pervasive, Mobile, Handheld Computing and beyond. In 1994 TecO invented the first Web-Browser for a PDA, the PocketWeb on a Apple Newton. With the MediaCup TecO showed in 1998 how to integrated computing, sensing and communication technology in previously "dump" everyday objects and continues this work in a larger and more general setting with the 2001 started project Smart-Its. In 1999 TecO started the HUC/Ubicomp conference series. The Point & Click human-computer interaction paradigm presented at this conference is now widely used to control devices in pervasive computing environments. In the context of the project 1998-2000 running project TEA a method for context fusion and classification was introduced
TecOs researches in application of Ubiquitous Computing as well. TecO showed with AwareGoods - a system running in a sensitive production environment since 2000 - that Ubicomp technology is now ready to be applied. The results of the research project TEA are now gaining influence in current mobile phone developments. New usage potential for RFID systems where shown with the SmartShelf and Wearable Packet Reader industry demonstrations.