## 3 Smart Home Technologies for Older People
These categories include physiological monitoring (measurements of pulse, respiration, blood pressure), functional monitoring (measurement of general activities, motion, meal intake), safety monitoring and assistance (automatic lighting, strip and fall reduction, hazard detection), security monitoring (intruder detection), social interaction monitoring and assistance (phone calls, video mediated communication, virtual participation in groups), and cognitive/sensory assistance (medication reminder, lost key locator). [PERSON] _et al._[14] use the term _health smart homes_ (HSH) for those that accommodate the use of tele-med information systems and communication technologies. In their view (p. 395), technology for home-based patients, most of whom are older people, need to be advanced and complex, requiring \"the use of a distributed approach and the combination of many hardware and software techniques\" [14]. The functions of smart homes could be largely extended to satisfy needs of older people, who seek to live as independently as they can in the comfort of their home. This is a manifestation of the multi-functionality of smart homes, which implies diversity as well as flexibility in functions. Numerous projects involving smart home technologies for older people have been launched worldwide, with a view to reducing the level of dependency and increasing the safety of older adults [13]. Some typical projects are the Welfare Techno-House project in Japan (1995), Assisted Interactive Dwelling House in the UK (1996), Aware Home in the US (1999), Tiger Place in the US (2003), Gator Tech Smart House in the US (2004), Health Integrated Smart Home Information System in France (2002), and ROBOCARE Domestic Environment in Italy (2007). Outcomes from these smart home projects have been reported to be positive in extending the length of community residence, enhancing physical and mental health status, delaying the onset of serious health problems and reducing the strain on family and care-givers [8]. With favourable findings on their effectiveness, smart home technologies have enabled of continuous monitoring, improved psycho-social benefits and enhanced the overall sense of well-being for older adult users [12, 15, 16, 17]. One typical smart home technology for older people and home-based patients is the smart sound system. It is of particular significance in distress situations as the smart sound system in real-time operation can detect and identify sound events. [PERSON], [PERSON], and [PERSON] [18] describe the system as a combination of two components: detection and classification. The former operates in real time to detect possible alarm sounds. The latter module distinguishes between speech and sound before launching either a speech recognition system or a sound classification between predefined classes. In this way, family and care providers can be readily informed of any changes that may warrant a response. Despite their potential to generate many benefits for older people, smart homes as a technologically assisted lifestyle innovation, come with risks and challenges. Reported concerns are often associated with: cost, intrusiveness, privacy, user accessibility and acceptability [12, 19, 20, 21].