A minor taxonomy proposal for the ambient intelligent environment (AmIE) design space

Abstract

This research aims to create a minor taxonomy of the domain of Ambient Intelligent Environments (AmIE), sometimes simply called Ambient Intelligence (AmI). These refer to ‘smart-,’ ‘intelligent-,’ or ‘assistive-’ built environments including homes, schools, offices, museums, hospitals, libraries, stores, labs, prisons, warehouses, transport hubs, airports, parks, cities, etc. AmIE are often confused with (or described interchangeably as) ‘ubiquitous-,’ ‘pervasive computing,’ ‘mobile computing,’ or ‘spatial computing;’ as well as the Internet of Things (IoT) and building automation including HVAC automation. While AmIE comprise the aforementioned technologies, they specifically describe the paradigm in which these and other technologies (namely sensors, actuators, and processors) are outfitted in the built environment so that those places become sensitive and responsive to the presence, needs, wants, and preferences of their inhabitants. Given that AmIEs require an array of computing technologies to function, they are necessarily complex design-engineering systems that rely on some level of algorithmic taxonification and, as such, are vulnerable to perpetuating harm in so far as biases have been codified therein. This research engages this complexity and risk of harm perpetuation by utilizing Minor Theory (also ‘minor theory’) as a theoretical lens through which to begin to move towards values aligned taxonification of the vast AmIE design space. Through a series of sequential literature reviews, this work offers a jumping off point for the continued taxonification of the AmIE design space by 1) introducing and applying minor theory as a method for data analysis and by 2) proposing three thematic vectors to consider in codifying an AmIE a design space: attunement, embodiment, and anti-fragility.