Development of a Television-Use Telemonitoring System for Elderly Daycare-Recipients Living Alone

摘要

We have developed a telemonitoring system to follow the activities of elderly daycare-recipients who live alone. After conducting a questionnaire on electrical appliances the elderly use daily as an index of activity, we chose television (TV) for monitoring. We then developed a telemonitoring system of TV use. A feasibility study conducted at the home of an 80-years-old female living alone demonstrated (1) the consistency of daily TV use rhythm and (2) different TV use patterns depending on the day of the week. The accumulation TV time in a day correlated inversely with activity evaluated from a pedometer output by the subject. TV use thus reflects daily activities of the elderly living alone and helps alert caretakers to possible problems those living alone may face.