MERCURY: User Centric Device and Service Processing

Abstract

In this paper, we present MERCURY, a platform for simple, user-centric integration and management of heterogeneous devices and services via a web-based interface. In contrast to existing approaches, MERCURY is geared towards non-IT-savvy end users. It enables these end users to easily interconnect devices, which can act as sensors or actuators, to model rules that trigger actions. Sets of rules allow users to model entire, often reoccurring, scenarios. Also, these must be user-centric and context adaptive. It shall thus enable users to take full advantage of the potential for support in everyday life such integration offers. Technically, our solution is based on Portal technology. We describe a tangible scenario to portray the steps a user will need to take to achieve the desired functionality.