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Once again, the i2CAT Foundation was at the IoT Solutions World Congress fair to show how innovative IoT research, especially when combined with other technologies, such as artificial intelligence, can be transferred to the market to offer tailor-made solutions that positively impact society.
The Catalan research centre specialises in IoT and, within its IoT area, are advanced technological solutions adapted to sensing spaces that respond to new social, economic, and environmental challenges.
i2CAT had its own space in the Generalitat de Catalunya pavilion (Hall 1, D80, stand 9) and participated in various activities during the IoT Solutions World Congress and the Barcelona Cybersecurity Congress.
Ambient intelligence: better security and privacy in the new connected environments
At the research level, one of the main axes of the area focuses on the so-called “ambient intelligence”, aimed at achieving communication between small devices located in a certain environment, such as the interior space of a home or an urban space.
This technology allows these spaces to become intelligent and thus provide answers to current challenges such as, for example, the ageing of society or mobility and security problems in cities. These small devices, which are becoming increasingly evolved, will allow people to predict their needs or behaviours in a smart space without needing an external device (such as a smartphone) and always within a space of private connectivity. This will avoid sending data outside, meaning better privacy and security.
Along these lines, i2CAT participates in the Custodes European research project to develop a platform to ensure the security of equipment and devices based on IoT technology. Within the project, the research staff will develop a cyber security inspection and certification system that is easily configurable and cost-effective for application at the European level.
Another European project with which i2CAT collaborates is COGNIFOG. It is focused on developing a software solution that analyses data flows to optimise their processing and move towards new intelligent applications based on IoT.
i2CAT and Showee: cutting-edge technology to improve people’s lives
In this edition of the international congress, i2CAT shared a booth space with the Catalan start-up Showee, a member of the Digital Catalonia Alliance (DCA). Showee’s product is the first accessible and eco-intelligent shower that automates and personalises the process of rinsing, soaping and drying. It is designed to improve the autonomy and privacy of people with special needs while supporting their carers, and it also saves more than 50% of water.
The i2CAT Foundation accompanied Showee to help it make a qualitative leap to the company’s base technology in an emerging field, such as voice assistants applied to the IoT. People who visited the i2CAT booth at IoTSWC, where a reproduction of the smart shower was displayed, were able to participate in the voice collection (only in Spanish) that will be used to create the databases necessary for a proof of concept aimed at improving the system’s voice control.
From these databases, i2CAT will train a command recognition model with artificial intelligence, specifically deep learning. This model can later be integrated into the Showee shower. Additionally, i2CAT will analyse Showee’s current fall detection system, including hardware and software, to increase its accuracy and effectiveness during showering.
The collaboration with Showee is articulated through the Digital Innovation Hub de Catalunya (DIH4CAT) project and the PADIH programme (Programa de Apoyo a Digital Innovation Hubs), financed by the European Union-Next Generation EU and the Recovery, Transformation, and Resiliency Plan. The Ministry of Industry and Tourism and the School of Industrial Organization support it.
Protection against high interaction cyber attacks
During the Barcelona Cybersecurity Congress, i2CAT demonstrated the Infohound attack detection tool. This tool has two purposes: the offensive, which searches and checks if there is data available for an attack, and the defensive, which uncovers potential exposure of private data so people can protect themselves.
People who visited the Hacking Village on May 21st and 22nd, from 10 am to 5 pm, tested the tool and discussed with the centre’s professionals how attackers could use private information to create high-interaction attacks.
