Augmenting Materials to Build Cooperating Objects

The goal of pervasive computing systems and ambient intelligence (AmI) provides a driver to technology development that is likely to result in a vast integration of information systems into everyday objects. The current techniques for implementing such integration processes view the development of the system and object elements as very much separate; there is a significant inference load placed upon the systems to accommodate and augment the established affordances of the target object(s). This does not conflict with the ultimate vision of AmI, but it does limit the ability of systems platforms to migrate quickly and effectively across numerous varieties of object (in effect, creating a bespoke technology solution for a particular object). To begin the process of addressing this challenge, this paper describes the proposed development of augmented materials. These are materials with fully embedded distributed information systems, designed to measure all relevant properties, and provide a full knowledge representation of the material; in effect, the material would “know” itself, and its current status. The basic premise is not new; many systems techniques have proposed and implemented versions of this idea. Advances in materials technology, system miniaturisation, and context-aware software have been harnessed to begin to prove the possibility of integrating systems directly into the fabric of artefacts (e.g. smart paper, etc). Where augmented materials would differ from current approaches is in its focus on integrating networks of element into materials and employing the actual material and object fabrication processes to programme them.