Challenges of the Internet of Things

3 Study and Development of a Smart Cup for Monitoring Post-stroke Patientsʼ Activities at Home

3.1. Introduction

A total of 15 million people worldwide are affected by strokes each year and experience various cognitive and motor deficits [KIM 92]. Of them, 5 million people die and 5 million remain disabled. Post-stroke disabilities are diverse and vary depending on the area of the brain affected. Motor deficits such as spasmodic paralysis or muscle weakness and ocular disorders are often experienced [KIM 92, DET 93]. Post-stroke rehabilitation is expensive in terms of infrastructure and medical staff. Yet, follow-ups at home can be valuable to evaluate the evolution of patientsʼ health status. In general, progress is assessed by a therapist before each rehabilitation session by empirical measurements based on visual estimations [PAN 14].

Several research groups have proposed new technological approaches, such as serious games, to provide new tools for stroke rehabilitation [FRI 15, VOG 14]. These tools provide playful environments that include a series of suitable tasks and specific exercises for rehabilitation. However, these applications are expensive in terms of equipment and rather constraining. Indeed, they require being in front of screens, which limits the frequency and duration of physical exercise.

To overcome the limitations of existing platforms and post-stroke follow-up approaches for rehabilitation, we imagined an ecosystem of smart objects interacting with each ...