A SmartSpace for automation

A SmartSpace is an integrated, intelligent, environment that facilitates new dimensions of human interaction with computing and physical environments by leveraging emerging trends in pervasive computing. The SmartSpace for automation (SSA) proposed here facilitates interactions between humans and an automation system. Current human‐computer interaction (HCI) approaches for automation are based on a state‐transition paradigm using splintered devices that are attached locally to controllers. Such approaches are unlikely to extend to future generations of automation systems because of the fundamental limitations they impose on the tasks that can be accomplished, the lack of support for holistic system‐wide decision‐making, and the lack of a systematic framework that can guide the adoption of emerging pervasive devices for HCI activities. The approach we describe for developing an SSA is based on a goal‐seeking paradigm and emphasizes the explicit representation and resolution of uncertainties.