TIAX and MIT collaborated to create PlaceLab, a fully functional apartment that is also a highly flexible, multi-disciplinary research facility, to study the way people interact with new technologies in the home. This unique facility provides quantitative consumer insights to help accelerate the introduction of new products and product systems. It is the only research facility of its kind.
The two-bedroom apartment in Cambridge, Mass. is occupied by volunteers for periods ranging from a few days to a few months. Its component infrastructure houses an integrated portfolio of discrete, reconfigurable sensor systems that measure everything from humidity and light, to water flow and motion. The wireless infrastructure allows sensors to be attached to moveable objects and products, as well as to the volunteers themselves. The sensor data is integrated with select audio and video for facilitated in-depth analyses.
Initial areas of study include:
- Proactive health care and just-in-time information
- Activities of daily living
- Biometric monitoring
- Indoor air quality
- Energy and efficiency
