Personal Health Interface Design & Development
(Fall 2014 focus: Health Innovation with Google Glass and Smartwatches)
HINF 5300
College of Computer and
Information Science &
Bouve College of Health Sciences
Fall 2014
Class Location: Behrakis Health Sciences Cntr 030
Credit Hours: 4 SH
Class Times: Wednesdays 6-9 PM
(Additional meetings to be scheduled for PhD students)
Message Board: Piazza: https://piazza.com/class#fall2014/hinf5300
Instructor of record: Stephen Intille, Ph.D.
Office: 450 WVH
Office Hours: Tue 8:30-9:30 or by appointment
Phone: (617) 373-3711
Email: ...@neu.edu
Overview
This project-based seminar course explores the design of innovative personal health human-computer interface technologies. Examples include assistive technologies that aid persons with disabilities, consumer wellness promotion applications, patient education and counseling systems, interfaces for reviewing personal health records, and eldercare and social network systems that monitor health and support independent living. Working in transdisciplinary teams, students will design and build a prototype personal health interface system to solve a real problem using mobile phones and Google Glass head mounted interface systems or Android or Wear smartwatches.
Topics surveyed in the course during project design and development cycle include participatory design, iterative user interface design methods for advanced mobile systems, health interface development, innovative sensing for mobile systems, software architectures for iteratively testing prototype personal health interface technologies, human-computer interaction issues related to personal health technology, and technology transfer requirements to support future validation studies of technology.
Advanced (PhD) students will cover some topics in more depth, discussing case studies specific to doing health research with prototype health interfaces with transdiscipinary teams.
Students in this course will acquire practical experience working in a team to develop an innovative health technology concept from idea conception to fully functional prototype. Students will also practice public speaking, writing, and team skills critical for success in the workplace. Technical students will develop programming skills for Google Glass or Android Wear devices.
The best interface technologies developed by teams in this course will be field tested or used in personal health informatics experiments by students who take a follow-up course in Spring, 2015 (HINF 5301:Personal Health Technologies: Field Deployment and System Evaluation).
In Fall, 2013, the offering of this course was possibly the first in the country on the use of head-mounted computers for health. Projects from the Fall 2013 offering of the course were featured in the Northeastern News and in the Northeastern research blog.
Course Objectives:
By the conclusion of this course, all students will be able to:
PhD students will additionally be able to:
Classroom Format:
Most classes will consist of presentations by teams, seminar style discussion of assigned readings or presented material, and then interactive design and development/programming sessions and team work.
Students will be asked to make short presentations on the material to provoke discussion and tie the material together with their team’s project development. Some classes will be devoted to presentation of preliminary or final project ideas and receiving feedback from invited experts. Weekly readings consist of technical documentation, selected research papers and book chapters. For PhD students, some classes may consist of presentations from guest faculty describing case studies of needs assessment, development, evaluation, or dissemination of innovative health technologies used in research projects.
Individual-based coursework will consist of in-class presentations on assigned readings and design exercises and demonstrating effective group work using the shared, online tools. All teams will be responsible for creating a working prototype of a system that could be used in a follow-on experiment. PhD students will submit additional 4-page (CHI format) paper describing the motivation for and technical innovation supporting a novel personal health interface system and a final paper describing how the system their team has built could be used in a specific experiment.
Team-based coursework (where each team member has well-defined roles) will consist of development of a fully-functional personal health interface technology using Google Glass or Android Wear suitable for deployment in a pilot research study, documentation of that system sufficient for someone other than the developers to use it, and a video or slideshow documentary showing the evolution of the technology concept and development pitfalls and successes throughout the semester.
Required and Optional Texts:
This course has a moderate but steady reading load with an average of 4-6 research papers per week plus additional readings on Google Glass/Android Wear technical development. Readings will be available online. Those that are not will be distributed in class.
Additional Materials:
None required. One Google Glass device and Nexus 4
phone will be available to each team for use throughout the course. Additional
sensors/devices, such as smartwatches, will be provided as needed. Only 8 Google Glass devices are
available, which will limit the number and size of teams.
Course
Schedule/Outline: (tentative - this will be revised)
The class will meet once per week. PhD students in PHI 5300 will have a few additioanl meeting times, to be determined at the start of the semester.
|
Week |
Discussion topics |
Readings due |
Assignment due |
Recommended advanced readings |
|
Sep 3 |
Introduction to the course; introduction to personal health interfaces; next generation mobile interaction |
|
|
|
Tue Sep 9 (10 PM) |
Part 1 (“The Digital Landscape: Cultivating a Data-Driven, Participatory Culture”) from Topol, E. (2012). The Creative Destruction of Medicine: How the Digital Revolution Will Create Better Care. New York, NY: Basic Books. (On Blackboard or available via NEU library for online reading) | Brainstorming ideas + 1 minute presentations (individual) | ||
|
Sep 10 |
Lessons from last semester
Disrupting healthcare as we know it: one-minute brainstorming idea presentations
Low-fidelity prototyping (for head mounted interfaces); participatory design |
Introductory material on Google Glass
Rettig, M. "Prototyping for Tiny Fingers" Communications of the ACM 37 (4), April 1994.
|
|
|
|
Sep 17 |
Technology to measure health states and behavior; sensors and pattern recognition overview
Glass Mirror API
|
|
Project concept presentation (individual) (Presentation due by 4PM)
[Teams assigned later this week] |
Chapter 1 from Minkler, M. and Wallerstein, N. (2008). Community-Based Participatory Research for Health: From Process to Outcomes. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass. Available via the NEU library as an online book).
Selections from Topol, E. (2012) The Creative Destruction of Medicine: How the Digital Revolution Will Create Better Care. New York, NY: Basic Books. Remainder of Part 1 (“Setting the Foundation”) and Chapter 4 (“Physiology: Wireless Sensors”), Chapter 7 (“Electronic Health Records and Health Information Technology”), and Chapter 8 (“The Convergence of Human Data Capture”). |
|
Sep 24 |
Strategies and tools for collaborative research system development
Research on future mobile interaction |
Fogel, K. (2005). Producing Open Source Software: How to Run a Successful Free Software Project. http://producingoss.com/en/index.html
GIT Getting Started documentation
|
|
Mandl, K. D., Simons, W. W., Crawford, W. C., and Abbett, J. M. (2007) “Indivo: a personally controlled health record for health information exchange and communication”, BMC Med Inform Decis Mak 7; 25. [+ related documentation online]
Estrin, D. and Sim, I. (2010) “Open mHealth Architecture: An engine for health care innovation”, Science 330(6005), pp. 759-760. [+ related documentation online] |
|
Oct 1 |
Technology to analyze health states and behavior
Mirror API apps
PhD: Semi-supervised pattern recognition and HCI |
Read at least 3 of these papers that discuss microinteractions: Project Glass: An extension of self Pinwatch |
Collaborative tools setup
Demo app and presentation (team) (Presentation due by 4PM) |
Chapters 1-3 from Part I of Witten, I.H., Frank, E., and M.A. Hall (2011). Data Mining: Practical Machine Learning Tools and Techniques, Burlington, MA: Morgan Kauffman Publishers. (PDF in dropbox).
|
|
Oct 8 |
Preliminary project concept critique (panel of guest experts invited to provide feedback) |
None |
Team project concept presentation (team) (Presentation due by 4PM) |
|
|
Oct 15 |
Glass hacking
Glass Developer Kit
Software architectures for PHI research systems |
Glass readings TBD Bickmore, T. and Schulman, D. (2009). “A virtual laboratory for studying long-term relationships between humans and virtual agents”, Proceedings of Autonomous Agents and Multi-Agent Systems (AAMAS), Budapest, Hungary.
Cell Phone Intervention Trial for You Project Interface and discussion |
|
|
|
Oct 22 |
Influence of real-time feedback about behavior and physiology on behavior and habit formation
Glass nuggets
Glass hacking |
Heron, K.E. and Smyth, J.M. (2009) “Ecological momentary interventions: Incorporating mobile technology into psychosocial and health behaviour treatments”, Br J Health Psychol. Feb;15(Pt 1), pp. 1-39.
Rothman, A. J., Sheeran, P., and Wood, W. (2009). “Reflective and automatic processes in the initiation and maintenance of food choices”, Annals of Behavioral Medicine, 28 (Suppl), pp. 4-17.
Klasnja, P. et al. (2009). “Using Mobile & Personal Sensing Technologies to Support Health Behavior Change in Everyday Life: Lessons Learned”, AMIA. |
|
|
|
Oct 29 |
Iterative technical design and development strategies
Project progress discussion
Glass hacking |
Rising, L. and Janoff, N.S. (2000). "The Scrum software development process for small teams", IEEE Software, vol.17, no.4, pp.26-32.
Moe, N.B.,Dingsoyr, T. and Dyba, T. (2009). "Overcoming Barriers to Self-Management in Software Teams", IEEE Software, 26(6), pp. 20-26.
Other readings TBD based on class input/interests |
|
|
|
Nov 5 |
Privacy/security considerations for next-generation mobile (health) systems
|
mHealth Evidence Workshop (http://obssr.od.nih.gov/scientific_areas/methodology/mhealth/mhealth-workshop.aspx)
Kelly, P. el al. (2013). “An ethical framework for automated, wearable cameras in health behavior research”, American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 44(3), pp. 314-319.
De Montjoye, Y-A. et al. (2013). “Unique in the crowd: The privacy bounds of human mobility”, Scientific Reports, 3(1376), March.
Isaacman, S. el al. (2012). “Human mobility modeling at metropolitan scales”, MobiSys, pp. 239-252.
Prasad, A. and Kotz, D.
(2010). “Can I access your data? Privacy management in mHealth”, USENIX
Workshop on Health Security (HealthSec), August. Intille and Intille, "New Challenges for Privacy Law: Wearable Computers that Create Electronic Digital Diaries," 2003. |
|
|
|
Nov 12 |
Presentations |
Readings not listed above found on the presentation reading list. |
PhD only: Concept paper due (individual) |
|
|
Nov 19 |
Technology transfer to deployment with research team; code testing and documentation |
Readings not listed above found on the presentation reading list. |
|
|
|
Nov 26 |
No class – Thanksgiving holiday |
|
|
|
|
Dec 3 |
Final project presentations (for panel of invited experts) |
None |
Final prototype,
documentation, and video documentary due (team) |
|
Course subject content is tentative and will change based upon class interest and composition.
Grading Procedures and Criteria:
Prior experience with project-based courses such as this suggests that work in this course will generally fall into one of these categories:
· Superior, striking, or unexpected pieces of work with excellent effort demonstrating a mastery of the subject matter and a thoughtful use of concepts discussed in class; work that shows imagination, clarity of presentation, originality, creativity, and effort.
· Good work demonstrating a capacity to use the subject matter, with adequate preparation and clear presentation.
· Work that is adequate but that would benefit from increased effort or preparation.
· Work that is inadequate but demonstrates understanding of some material.
· Work that does not demonstrate understanding of the core concepts in the course.
Course work falling into these categories correspond roughly to A, B, C, D, and F grades.
The final grade for the course will be computed by weighting the results from each assignment according to the following formula:
|
|
Non PhD students |
PhD students |
|
5% |
5% |
|
|
Individual class reading presentation(s) |
10% |
10% |
| Individual concept sketch | 10% | 10% |
|
N/A |
10% |
|
|
10% |
5% |
|
|
10% |
5% |
|
|
10% |
5% |
|
|
45% |
35% |
|
|
N/A |
15% |
Class reading presentations
Students will prepare 6-minute “provocation” presentations on readings in the class or specific technical concepts related to Google Glass. These presentations will be designed to stimulate discussion, connect the readings to project ideas and other course content, and teach other members of the class important concepts or how to use development or project management tools. Students will be provided with a template for the presentations and will be expected to have practiced the presentation in advance. Presentations will be graded on adherence to the format and overall presentation clarity, as well as demonstration by the student of a thorough understanding of the topic being discussed. All students will present at least once and likely more, depending on class size.
Teams:
Some work in this course will be done independently, but for the most part this course requires transdisciplinary teamwork. Teams will be assembled by the instructors to ensure that teams are balanced in various areas of expertise required for the course project. Whenever possible, students with different backgrounds and skillsets will be paired.
Working in teams can be both rewarding and challenging, and one goal of this course is to give students experience working with a team of students who have complementary strengths and weaknesses. Students who have concerns about their team’s ability to work together or individual team members should talk with the instructor as soon as any problems are identified.
Students will be asked at the end of the course to evaluate the team as a whole and to independently describe their responsibilities and contributions to the team effort, as well as those of each of their teammates. These evaluations will factor into grade assignment.
Classroom Policies:
Students are expected to demonstrate qualities of academic integrity: a commitment, even in the face of adversity, to five fundamental values: honesty, trust, fairness, respect and responsibility.
Actively engaging in verbal exchanges of ideas and concepts
will be a major component of learning in this course. This will be stimulated
by readings, class discussions and case problem solving. Therefore everyone
will be expected to actively and positively listen to others and to communicate
their ideas during class. Some students are less comfortable speaking in class
than others, but open discussion of ideas and even disagreement is essential.
Therefore, all students are expected to read course materials prior to class
and will be called upon at times even if they do not raise their hands.
Participation does not result from talking a lot, but as a result of critical
thinking and articulation of ideas.
University policy dictates that students must seek the instructor’s permission to tape record class lectures.
To facilitate discussion and learning, electronic devices must be turned off in class, including laptops and mobile phones. Slides shown in class will be available on the course website within a few days after each class.
Please do not eat during the class unless you plan to provide food for everyone.
Writing/Presentation Policies:
Assignments that involve writing and presentation will be judged on clarity of presentation as well as content. Students who are having difficulty with writing will be referred to the Northeastern University Writing Center (http://www.northeastern.edu/english/writing-center/).
Late Policy:
Prior to an assignment due date, a student may request an extension with a reasonable explanation. It is the discretion of the instructor to permit late assignments. Unexcused late assignments will be subject to a reduction in grade of approximately one half letter grade per day late.
Academic Honesty:
All students are expected and encouraged to discuss the topics raised by this course with each other. Ideas incorporated from an outside source or another student must be documented appropriately in write-ups or presentations. Students must abide by the NU Code of Student Conduct (http://www.northeastern.edu/osccr/codeofconduct/index.html) and Academic Integrity Policy (http://www.northeastern.edu/osccr/academicintegrity/index.html). Acts of academic dishonesty will be referred to the Office of Student Conduct and Conflict Resolution.
Academic honesty is fundamental to the learning process. As a reminder,
Any
student found cheating on assignments or with software code that raises
concerns about potential cheating will receive a zero on that assignment. A
second offense will result in a failing grade for the course and reporting the
student(s) to the administration.
Students with questions about what is acceptable or unacceptable collaboration on assignments should ask the instructor.
Intellectual Property:
Intellectual property created in this course will be subject to the same rules as for any other course. More information on IP rights and regulations at Northeastern can be found here: http://www.northeastern.edu/governmentrelations/public_policy/intellectual_property_info.html.
Students must agree to allow another team of students to test the technology created in a subsequent semester, and so students should not propose ideas if they would not be comfortable with this arrangement.
Accommodation:
Students who have a disability are encouraged to seek accommodations though the University Disability Resource Center. Please speak privately with the instructor about your needs for accommodations and strategies to support your success. This information will be kept confidential.
Course Evaluations:
The instructor will distribute optional mid-term and final course evaluations, to be returned anonymously. Responses to the questions help to improve this course during the current semester and for future students.
All students are also strongly encouraged to use the TRACE (Teacher Rating and Course Evaluation) system near the end of the course to evaluate this course. A reminder about TRACE should arrive via email about two weeks before the end of the course.
Google Glass devices:
This special offering of the course using Google Glass devices was made possible by a gift from Google, Inc. The gift was received because Prof. Intille proposed to use the Google Glass devices for research on personal health interface technology; one component of that work is teaching this class. The limited number of Glass devices must be treated with extraordinary care. Teams will need to time-share the use of the devices, checking them out from a lab in WVH and working with them while in the vicinity of the 4th floor of WVH. They are not to be loaned out or used by students who are not either in the class or authorized by Prof. Intille.