Design and implementation of a pervasive occupancy displaying system in an academic environment

This paper describes the design of a system providing room occupancy information in a university campus. The system and its possible influence on the human environment are designed to enhance the work environment through pervasive information delivery. The work is motivated by recent advances in the domain of ubiquitous computing. The authors describe a case study of delivering a solution to university students informing them where they can find free spaces in rooms designated for quiet study. The data is available on the web and through ambient displays. The proof-of-concept study presents the methodology applied, discusses the design issues that were encountered by the project team and reflects on the devices and techniques used in the implementation. An application of standard image processing techniques to provide a contextualized, pervasive user-centered service is also depicted.