ECEAAS

Cognitive Environments for Healthy, Autonomous and Active Ageing

Project Reference: PID2024-158490OB-C31

Project Vision

ECEAAS is a coordinated research project that aims to create a new generation of cognitive environments to support healthy, autonomous, and active ageing (H3A). It integrates artificial intelligence, IoT, advanced wireless communications, and ethical-by-design data management to transform how older adults receive care and maintain independence.

The project envisions intelligent systems capable of understanding people and their environments in real time, predicting needs, and providing personalised, proactive assistance while ensuring privacy, security, and ethical compliance.

What Are Cognitive Environments?

Beyond Smart Systems

Cognitive environments go beyond traditional smart homes or ambient intelligence. They combine real-time and historical data, advanced AI, and human feedback to create systems that can reason, learn, and adapt continuously.

Human-Centred AI

Decisions are explainable, transparent, and designed to keep humans in the loop, ensuring trust and acceptance in healthcare and assisted living contexts.

Secure and Ethical

Data protection, fairness, and compliance with GDPR and the EU AI Act are built into the system architecture from the very beginning.

How ECEAAS Works

1. Sensing & Connectivity

Wearables, environmental sensors, and advanced wireless networks (including 5G, 6G, and integrated communication and sensing) capture health, activity, and environmental data.

2. Data & AI

Multimodal data is processed locally and securely using machine learning, deep learning, and large language models to detect patterns, risks, and needs.

3. Cognitive Intelligence

Intelligent agents combine knowledge, context, and user feedback to generate recommendations, alerts, and personalised support.

Subprojects

ECEAAS-COG — Cognitive Integration of Contextual and Intelligent Systems for Active Ageing

Focuses on cognitive system architecture, ethics, privacy, security, and the integration of AI and large language models into healthcare environments.

Coordinated by: Universitat Rovira i Virgili (URV)

ECEAAS-ISAC — Communication and Sensing Capabilities for Active Ageing Cognitive Environments

Develops advanced communication and sensing technologies, including 6G, wireless modelling, and joint communication–sensing for health monitoring.

Coordinated by: Universidad Pública de Navarra (UPNA)

ECEAAS-DATA — IoT Framework for Data Acquisition and Analysis using Artificial Intelligence

Builds scalable IoT and data infrastructures, enabling AI-driven analytics and real-time decision support for healthcare professionals and caregivers.

Coordinated by: Universidad de Deusto (UD)

Real-World Impact

Personalised Care

Adaptive plans, virtual companions, and continuous health monitoring.

Medical Decision Support

AI-powered insights for faster and more accurate clinical decisions.

Privacy-Preserving Technology

Local data processing, anonymisation, and strict ethical control.

Pilots and Validation

ECEAAS will be validated in real settings including nursing homes, assisted living facilities, and private homes, ensuring that the technology works in realistic healthcare and ageing scenarios.