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Collaborative Knowledge Building by Smart Sensors

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BT Technology Journal

Abstract

In this paper we explore decentralised approaches for gathering knowledge from sensing devices. We contrast these with centralised processes like data mining, which assume that sensors, devices, or even people contributing information to a pool, do not have a sense of the 'whole picture' or the goal of the data collection. Thus it is necessary for a centralised mining process to create value by sorting, coordinating, and distilling the raw information. We consider instead a situation in which the contributors are given a goal, and are given the ability to co-ordinate among themselves in such a way that each can maximise its contribution to the pool. We discuss advantages of this new approach such as scalability and communication efficiency, and explore how it may change the design of devices, communication infrastructures, and algorithms, using several projects from the Media Laboratory as illustrations.

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Authors
  1. V M Bove Jr.
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  2. J Mallett
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Bove, V.M., Mallett, J. Collaborative Knowledge Building by Smart Sensors. BT Technology Journal 22, 45–51 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1023/B:BTTJ.0000047582.30576.7e

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/B:BTTJ.0000047582.30576.7e

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