SMART Product Enables Industry-leading Research on Intelligent Kiosks
Share:
FedEx Institute of Technology and University of Memphis use Actalyst interactive overlay to study human-computer interaction for growing interactive kiosk market
CALGARY, Alberta --- May 17, 2006 --- SMART Technologies Inc. announces its participation in cutting edge research being conducted at the FedEx Institute of Technology at the University of Memphis in Tennessee for the interactive kiosk and digital signage markets. The Memphis Intelligent Kiosk Initiative (MIKI) is a research project designed to investigate the preferred and most efficient forms of human interaction with information kiosks. The Actalyst(TM) interactive overlay, from SMART, fastens securely over a large flat-panel display to create a durable, touch-enabled kiosk. Using the recordings from this kiosk, researchers are studying how visitors to the FedEx Institute access information. The three-year project is the first of its kind for the institute and will help to define objective benchmarks for the emerging interactive kiosk market.
The intelligent kiosk allows visitors to find the location of more than 80 rooms within the institute as well as information on events at the institute, the history of the university, the MIKI project and the institute's various research groups. Researchers are attempting to determine if people prefer interacting with an animated on-screen character or just a computer-generated voice. They are also examining what methods of providing directions are most effective. The kiosk uses a camera to identify when people approach the kiosk and a speech-recognition system then begins to interact with them. These features allow people to find information by touching the digital display with a finger or speaking to the kiosk. Once a topic of interest has been identified, the kiosk can reply in a variety of ways, including verbally or with 3-D animations, video presentations, images or additional sound signals and music. The entire interaction is recorded so researchers can collect this valuable data and determine how it may be applied for the emerging interactive kiosk and digital signage markets.
"With the addition of the Actalyst interactive overlay and the unstructured speech interaction, MIKI has become more than a fancy display. It has become a personality with which visitors enjoy interacting and treat as they would a human receptionist," says Lee McCauley, assistant professor, Department of Computer Science, University of Memphis. "In numerous places where a static display or no assistance has been available before, an intelligent kiosk application, like MIKI, can be installed to enhance both marketing initiatives and efficiency. For retail locations in particular, an intelligent kiosk would be like a Google for 'bricks-and-mortar,' providing the information people want and creating targeted marketing for the retailer."
"SMART is taking a leading role in the emerging interactive kiosk market by participating in this kind of research project," says Nancy Knowlton, SMART's president and co-CEO. "The Memphis Interactive Kiosk Initiative will provide facility designers, building planners, retailers and numerous others with concrete evidence of why they should consider interactive digital signage over more traditional static displays."
About Actalyst interactive digital signage
Actalyst interactive digital signage attaches easily and securely to virtually any large plasma or LCD panel and transforms it into an interactive display, retaining its original brightness and clarity. Users can simply touch the display surface to access and control any multimedia content, computer application, website, CD-ROM or DVD. Actalyst interactive digital signage is ideal for interactive information stations in retail stores, office buildings, real-estate developments, museums, hotels and shopping malls. Actalyst interactive digital signage includes proprietary technology developed by SMART that is protected by several issued patents. SMART offers interactive digital signage for 15 popular brands of flat-panel displays, in sizes ranging from 32" (81 cm) to 65" (165 cm). For more information, visit www.smarttech.com/actalyst.
About the Memphis Intelligent Kiosk Initiative (MIKI)
The Memphis Intelligent Kiosk Initiative (MIKI) was created by an interdisciplinary group at the University of Memphis, using specialists from the Department of Computer Science, graphic artists from the Center for Multimedia Arts and communication specialists from the Department of English. MIKI initiates a number of research programs in the area of human-computer interaction and provides a test bed for innovative methods of multimodal interaction. Researchers believe possible applications for this advanced technology range from retail environments (e.g., shopping centers) to hospitals, to large corporate office buildings.
About the FedEx Institute of Technology, University of Memphis
The FedEx Institute of Technology is the nexus for advanced research in the southern United States, where Fortune 500 companies and many others are allocating expertise, technical resources and research dollars to solve modern-day challenges with interdisciplinary research teams. The Institute also boasts state-of-the-art education facilities where students at the University of Memphis can realize their full potential with the aid of a variety of technologically enhanced learning tools. Created by the vision of FedEx Corporation and the University of Memphis, the Institute continues to attract new partners, both academic and corporate, that provide vitality to interdisciplinary research. The nation's top researchers and students converge at the Institute, benefiting the United States and the world at large with new ideas, products and processes.
About SMART
SMART Technologies Inc. is both the industry pioneer and global market segment leader in easy-to-use interactive whiteboards and other group collaboration tools. SMART products include the family of award-winning SMART Board(TM) interactive whiteboards, as well as interactive pen displays, interactive digital signage, wireless slates and software. SMART has been issued and maintains a broad portfolio of patents with numerous other U.S., Canadian and foreign patents pending. SMART customers include NASA, Texas Instruments, BMW, Toyota Motors, DaimlerChrysler, Boeing, Lucent Technologies, NTT, the Los Angeles Lakers, Novartis, the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, Accenture, Procter & Gamble, British Telecom, Disney Imagineering and Harvard University.
SMART is a private company founded in 1987. Employing more than 800 people, SMART is headquartered in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, with assembly facilities in Ottawa, and offices in Bonn, Tokyo, New York City and Washington DC. In 1992, SMART formed a strategic alliance with Intel® Corporation that resulted in joint product development and marketing efforts, and Intel's equity ownership in the company. SMART products are sold through dealers across North America and distributors worldwide. For more information, visit www.smarttech.com
For more information:
Geoff Green
Public Relations Specialist
SMART Technologies Inc.
1207 - 11th Avenue SW, Suite 300
Calgary, AB T3C 0M5
CANADA
Phone +1.403.802.3337
Fax +1.403.228.2500
ggreen@smarttech.com
www.smarttech.com
