Assemblies of Heterogeneous Technologies at the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit

Ambient Intelligence, pervasive and unobtrusive computing research is introducing new perspectives in a wide range of applications. The Neonatal Intensive Care Unit represents a complex and multi-output context aimed at monitoring and controlling biological signals and parameters in premature newborn. This paper details some methodological and design options for developing technologies that allow end-user composition and control. These options enhance consistent user experiences in environments where different devices, services and processes co-exist. In particular we describe the notion of assemblies of monitoring devices, interpreted as the combination of sensors, tools and services in a distributed and unobtrusive computational and monitoring environment. We report on the importance of flexibility and usercontrol in the use of such technological assemblies in a neonatal intensive care unit, describing an early prototype of such monitoring system.