An interactive content service for photo frames in the home

Abstract

In this paper, we describe an approach for enabling digital photo frames to become generic interaction devices for the home. Their off-the-shelf nature and the simplicity of their interaction model can make photo frames a key element in the AAL eco-system. The motivat- ing hypothesis for this work is that an externally managed image feed can be used to display information associated with AAL services. We have conceived and evaluated a content delivery service for off-the-shelf wireless photo frames that enables interaction with remote content using only the standard photo frame controls. Evaluation results have shown that the proposed approach is able to support multiple interaction modes, but they have also highlighted technical challenges associated with cache management in some photo frame models. This work represents a con- tribution towards enabling photo frames to become building blocks for interactive services in AAL scenarios