MAISON - Multimodal AI-based Sensor platform for Older Individuals

There is a global aging population requiring the need for the right tools that can enable older adults' greater independence and the ability to age at home, as well as assist healthcare workers. It is feasible to achieve this objective by building predictive models that assist healthcare workers in monitoring and analyzing older adults' behavioral, functional, and psychological data. To develop such models, a large amount of multimodal sensor data is typically required. In this paper, we propose MAISON, a scalable cloud-based platform of commercially available smart devices capable of collecting desired multimodal sensor data from older adults and patients living in their own homes. The MAISON platform is novel due to its ability to collect a greater variety of data modalities than the existing platforms, as well as its new features that result in seamless data collection and ease of use for older adults who may not be digitally literate. We demonstrated the feasibility of the MAISON platform with two older adults discharged home from a large rehabilitation center. The results indicate that the MAISON platform was able to collect and store sensor data in a cloud without functional glitches or performance degradation. This paper will also discuss the challenges faced during the development of the platform and data collection in the homes of the older adults. MAISON is a novel platform designed to collect multimodal data and facilitate the development of predictive models for detecting key health indicators, including social isolation, depression, and functional decline, and is feasible to use with older adults in the community.