I-Corps: A Smartphone-Human Hybrid System to Measure Human Behavior and Well-Being

Project summary:

The broader impact/commercial potential of this I-Corps project centers on accurate and comprehensive collection of human behavioral and well-being data for improved policymaking and business operations. The proposed system provides a new way to collect human behavior and well-being data. It has the potential to help government agencies design more livable neighborhoods, cities, and regions for greater human well-being. The technology may also help companies demonstrate that their products and services improve behavioral and well-being outcomes. In addition, the increasing prevalence of smartphone ownership makes the proposed system widely accessible for large-scale deployment.

This I-Corps project features a smartphone-human hybrid intelligence system that incorporates advanced data mining and machine learning techniques and sophisticated user interface design to allow interactions between smartphone- and human-generated data. Specifically, smartphone sensor data are analyzed locally on the phone and in real time using data mining and machine learning algorithms to extract objective, spatiotemporal details of daily activities and trips. The extracted information reduces respondent burden and serves as an initial information basis to attach more detailed and accurate information on daily activities and trips. The information from the human user, in turn, optimizes the data mining and machine learning algorithms for analyzing smartphone sensor data and increases accuracy in smartphone-generated data over time. The result is a novel system in which smartphone sensing collaborates with human input to generate accurate and comprehensive data related to human behavior and well-being.