V2ME

Overcome Loneliness

V2me combines real life and virtual social network elements to prevent and overcome loneliness in Europe’s ageing populations. It supports active ageing by increased integration in the society through the provision of advanced social connectedness and social network services.

Social Innovation

The V2me system will allow the elderly user to communicate and engage in social activities with friends, family and caregivers via easy-to-use devices with specifically designed user interfaces. Giving the user the ability to appear to the outside world in the way he desires.

User-Centred Design

The V2me system will be tested in three different pilot sites in three different countries, evaluating usability, user experience and acceptance of core functionality. Additionally a long term evaluation will be performed in Amsterdam, Netherlands that will assess the effects on the system on the perceived loneliness of elderly persons. It is planned to perform this study on 180 subjects.

Objectives

V2me aims at integrating elderly people in pleasant social networks and meaningful activities, enhances physical and mental fitness, empowers reciprocal assistance and help, and thus reduces societal challenges through increased health costs and care expenditures. The easy-to-use V2me solution gives senior citizens not only pleasure, but also quick access to existing and new social contacts with maximized control and protection.

The V2me Virtual Coach, actively initiates and mediates social relationships with friends and partners as well as professional contacts through social networks.

Expected results and impact

The end result of V2me will be a platform based on intuitive user interfaces and innovative virtual character usage in the domain of AAL. This platform will be thoroughly evaluated with end-users and care service professionals in three different countries. Furthermore the effects of the system on a user’s quality-of-life will have been evaluated in a long-term study.

We expect the system to be a viable option for fighting loneliness in Europe’s ageing population, providing an improved social integration, as well as a virtual friend that helps the user to create meaningful relationships and expand his social network.

Partners

Partners involved in the V2me project

Organization	Type	Country	Website
Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft e.V.	R&D	Germany	www.fraunhofer.de
Diakonie Neuendettelsau	End User	Germany	www.diakonieneuendettelsau.de
Hospital IT AS	SME	Norway	www.hospitality.no
Mawell Ltd.	SME	Finland	www.mawell.com
Graz University of Technology	R&D	Austria	www.tugraz.at
User Interface Design GmbH	SME	Germany	www.uid.com
Université de Luxembourg	R&D	Luxembourg	www.uni.lu
VTT Technical Research Center of Finland	R&D	Finland	www.vtt.fi
VU University Amsterdam/Dept. CAMeRA	R&D	Netherlands	www.vu.nl

Project name: Virtual coach reaches out “to me” V2me
Website: www.v2me.org
Coordinator: Fraunhofer, Germany
Duration: 36 Months
Starting Date: 01.05.2010
Total budget: € 3.600.000
Public contribution: € 2.600.000

Contact

Dr. Reiner Wichert

E.: reiner.wichert@igd.fraunhofer.de

T.: +49-6155-155-574