Within any ecosystem, information needs are shared to be fulfilled and to support the ecosystem in a way or another. They are vital for designing appropriate information systems that will provide those needs. In this thesis, the gravel road ecosystem is studied, where efficient information sharing is not enabled due to the lack of appropriate information systems. Thus,when focusing on the gravel roads ecosystem, information plays a crucial role regarding the maintenance acts upon these roads. Moreover, not enough literature investigates theinformation needs of gravel roads stakeholders with the aim to improve the maintenance ofthese roads.

Therefore, this thesis intends to elicit information needs of gravel road stakeholders by performing an exploratory case study. The case study forms a part of an ongoing project with the goal to build a cloud-based information system for a sustainable gravel road maintenance. Data were collected through telephone- and online-based interviews with several key stakeholders in Sweden and were thereafter structured through template analysis. The major findings were a set of information needs and several needed sensors within the pre-mentioned information system. This thesis concluded that the future cloud-based information system in the ongoing project is a useful system for sharing vital information among future gravel roads stakeholders, considering the variety of needed information that affects the maintenance of the gravel roads.

Within any ecosystem, information sharing is essential. In this paper, the Swedish gravel road ecosystem is studied, where information plays a crucial role for the effective management of operations and maintenance. However, efficient information sharing is not enabled due to the lack of appropriate information systems. For addressing this issue, this paper intends to elicit information needs of gravel road stakeholders to support the design of a cloud-based information system. The main purpose is to explore the information needs of stakeholders within the Swedish gravel road ecosystem. Data were collected through in-depth semi-structured interviews with 11 participants representing key stakeholders in the ecosystem. Template analysis was used for analyzing the interview results. The major findings were a set of information needs covering road identification and condition, weather conditions, accessibility and traffic, maintenance policy, and sensor data. The results form a comprehensive information model for the further development of a cloud-based gravel road management system that would contribute to increased traffic safety and comfort, lower maintenance and management costs, and better decision-making abilities.

Många webbgränssnitt idag misslyckas med att möta användarnas behov och blir därför bristfälliga gällande användarvänligheten. Detta leder till att användarna begår stora misstag och anstränger sig vid användningen av webbaserade system. Visuell design och struktur i ett gränssnitt spelar en stor roll i hur användarna förstår sig på och tolkar ett gränssnitt då de avser hur olika beteenden och information kommuniceras till användarna. I denna studie undersöks hur visuell design, struktur och användbarhet i ett gränssnitt underlättar användarnas kognitiva bearbetning av information vid utförande av komplexa uppgifter. Studien har utförts genom ett uppdrag för Ahltorpmedia AB, som skapar lösningar för bl.a. webbplatser, webbaserade system och e-handel. Uppdraget har varit att förbättra en av deras egen utvecklade tjänst Nuhet som är bristfällig gällande områdena ovan.

Först har en heuristisk utvärdering av Nuhets befintliga gränssnitt samt sju intervjuer med tjänstens befintliga- och potentiella användare inom huvudområdena visuell design, struktur och kognitiv bearbetning av information gjorts. Resultaten från intervjuerna och utvärderingen har använts för att bilda en persona varefter fokusområden för prototyparbetet har skapats. Sedan har en prototyp på Nuhets nya utseende och en ny funktionalitet skapats. Designprinciper för användbarhet samt gestaltlagar har nyttjats i skapandet av Nuhets nya gränssnitt.

Utifrån de metoder som har genomförts i detta examensarbete har det framkommit att det beror på flera faktorer gällande hur användarnas kognitiva bearbetning av information underlättas med hjälp av visuell design, struktur och användarvänlighet. Dessa är då en bra struktur, gruppering och organisering av innehåll i ett gränssnitt. Dessutom är det tydliga kontraster, bra färgval och standardisering som underlättar den. 

Abstract

Information and communication technology is used in healthcare in Sweden to improve health quality. Electronic Health Records are one of the technologies in healthcare which can increase a patient’s involvement in his/her healthcare and decision-making related to it. The patient can discuss the treatments, analyses and medical information stored in Electronic Health Records. The aim in this study is to investigate how the Electronics Health Records can be improved to motivate refugees in Sweden who cannot speak Swedish. This research is a qualitative interpretive case study. The methods used in this study are observation and interviews. Thematic analysis was used for data analysis. The findings show that refugees don’t receive information or instructions about how to use electronic health records properly. The language is the biggest hurdle to use electronic health records for refugee patients without knowing Swedish language. The findings further show that the electronic health records can be improved by adding sound or translated medical information in the diagnosis part of the electronic health record. This research might contribute to the healthcare process of any country in the world which has refugees and they use electronic health records.

Smart Grid is one of the increasingly used critical infrastruc- ture that is essential for the functioning of a country. This coupled with Internet of Things (IoT) has huge potentials in several areas such as re- mote monitoring and managing of electricity distribution, traffic signs, traffic congestion, parking spaces, road warnings and even early detection of power influxes as a result of natural disasters, safety failures, equip- ment failures or carelessness. Despite the advantages of Smart Grids, there are security threats, privacy concerns and still open challenges re- lated to these issues in Smart Grids. This chapter seeks to provide a review of the security and privacy perspectives inherent in IoT enabled Smart Grids. Firstly the chapter explores the functionalities of Smart Grids as opposed to a traditional grid. Next the chapter provides an overview of Smart Grid architectures followed by positioning IoT con- cept into Smart Grid with a focus on architectures. Then, the proposed approach for identifying threats and attacks in IoT enabled Smart Grid, namely the security pyramid is presented. Lastly, we work on identifying the possible threats and attacks in the digital substation use case.

Numerous studies have shown that mobile devices like smartphones play a significant role in education these days, and it's clear that the influence and benefits of these devices regarding the potential for pedagogical perspectives are obvious. Mobile learning allows for flexibility by eliminating the need for learning to happen at a particular time and place. Moreover, mobile devices that can support Augmented Reality (AR) are becoming more powerful, less expensive and quite useful in the education process. In this paper, we conduct a study where mobile AR application alongside project-based learning is utilized in a classroom setting, where interviews are administered to understand the K-12 students' attitude towards the educational model based on mobile AR for enhancing the twenty-first century skills in chemistry education. The interviews are conducted with thirty students and their teacher who teaches them chemistry course. Four skills are investigated and discussed, i.e., innovation and creativity, critical skills and problem solving, communication and collaboration, and information culture. Based on the research findings, some recommendations are provided. Furthermore, in the scope of Agenda 2030 for Palestine, we believe these findings could serve as a basis for developing practical policy interventions attributed to enhancing the educational system with emerging technologies.

Det saknades teori kring vilka aspekter som var viktiga för potentiella kunder att väga in i ett beslut om övergång till molnbaserade affärssystem. I undersökningen har vi samlat tidigare forskning kring molntjänster generellt och sedan jämfört den med empiri från respondenter med erfarenhet av molnbaserade affärssystem. På så sätt har vi försökt koppla tidigare forskning och undersökt huruvida den är applicerbar på vår studie. Vi kom fram till att det framförallt är aspekter rörande säkerhet, ekonomi och affärsstrategi som kunder bör vara medvetna om när de planerar en övergång till molnbaserade affärssystem. Rörande säkerhet fann vi att det är viktigt att tänka på hur den fysiska lagringen sker och säkerhetsrutiner kring vem som handhar data och hur den säkerhetskopieras samt vem som äger datan. Ekonomiskt kan beslutet om en övergång påverkas av molntjänsters olika prismodeller, hur kostnader skiljer sig mot lokalt installerade system samt potentiellt dolda kostnader. Slutligen kan det affärsstrategiskt finnas avgörande aspekter i hur system interagerar med varandra, hur anpassad en tjänst är till mobila enheter samt att molntjänster enkelt kan skalas upp i storlek vid behov.

Purpose: This study explores both library users’ and librarians’ experiences, benefits, and challenges depending on the implementation of digital technologies in academic libraries. The research has been taken place in two Greek academic libraries; In the Panteion University Library and in the Central Library of T.E.I. of Athens.Approach: Two research questions were developed for this research to be conducted and a sample size of 55 respondents (39 library users and 16 librarians) of the Panteion University Library and Central Library of T.E.I. of Athens, was evaluated.Findings: From the findings of the study, it was concluded that the general perception of both library users and librarians towards digital material and E-resources and services of the Panteion University Library and Central Library of T.E.I. of Athens, is satisfactory. Library users were satisfied with the convenience of digital material, the availability of E-resources provided by both academic libraries such as World Wide Web, WIFI, and online databases. They were not satisfied with library technology (i.e., computers) and library staff. Besides, results showed that services such as e-mail and Open Public Access Catalogue were used more often. Librarians were less satisfied with the digital library system, the limited personnel, and the financial funds for academic libraries in general.Implication: The results of this research have implications in the stakeholders of an academic library including the institutional management, the library administration, the librarians, the library users, the researchers, the community at large, and others.Value: This paper identifies critical issues related to the utilization of digital technologies and digital material; their benefits and challenges faced by librarians and library users as well as their effective operation from academic libraries in this information age.

Communication is an important function within organizations and the ways of communicating have developed rapidly due to technological development, which can make it difficult to know which communication channel that is best to use in different situations. This report is based on a case study were the perceived communication efficiency tended to vary depending on which communication channel that was used. Previous research shows how the choice of communication channels can affect the communication efficiency, however, it does not show this from the perspective of news as an information type. Therefore, it was considered interesting to study how different communication channels affect the communication efficiency in terms of news distribution.

The aim of this study was to illustrate and describe how communication channels affect the perceived communication efficiency when the information that is transferred consists of news. To achieve this, the following research question would be answered:

• What advantages and disadvantages do employees experience with communication channels regarding the communication efficiency for news distribution in a large national company?

Theories that have been applied in the study are Media Richness Theory and Osgood and Schramms circular communication model. Theories have been used to explain how news distribution takes place in the case company and to illustrate and possibly explain the problems that the company experience with news distribution.

Data was collected by applying a qualitative method in which semi-structured interviews have been used. The result shows that respondents experience both advantages and disadvantages with all the communication channels and that the perceived communication efficiency tended to vary depending on which kind of news. When the result was set against the research question and the theoretical framework, advantages and disadvantages that were experienced, turned out to be depending on if the news were routine or non-routine and how it was matched with a rich or poor communication channel, which Media Richness Theory also declare. 

The conclusion of this study shows that news distribution through face to face and telephone enables direct interaction and transmission of emotions, however, emotions are not transmitted as well through telephone as face to face. The many signals can also be experienced as overwhelmingly. E-mail, intranet and signboard are effective in terms of time and are not as depending on time and space. In addition, the possibility of direct interaction and transmission of feelings is limited. The result indicates that advantages and disadvantages with the communication channels seems to be linked to whether the channel is perceived as suitable to transfer different kinds of news. Rich communication channels are perceived to be effective for transmitting non-routine news and poor channels are perceived to be effective for transmitting routine news.

The Master thesis explores the knowledge sharing that takes place during the requirement engineering phase of globally distributed information systems development. In recent years, due to globalization, information systems development activities have become increasingly distributed across different geographical locations. Requirement engineering is an important and knowledge intensive phase in the development of information systems. Requirement engineering is the process of identifying, analyzing, documenting, validating and managing the requirements of a system. Effective and efficient knowledge sharing during the requirement engineering is vital for the successful development of information systems. However, the global distribution of the stakeholders has affected knowledge sharing during requirement engineering in various ways making it more challenging.

Drawing on the theories of knowledge sharing within the field of information systems, this interpretive research study aims at exploring stakeholders’ perceptions about the challenges met during the knowledge sharing in requirement engineering phase of globally distributed information systems development projects. More specifically, this Master thesis explores the perceived challenges and generates a list of suggestions to overcome the challenges by conducting qualitative semi-structured interviews among the key stakeholders, both customers and business analysts.

The findings indicate that the knowledge sharing is influenced by challenges such as cultural differences, language barriers, communication issues, coordination issues arising from multiple stakeholders, time difference and difficulty in sharing tacit knowledge in the globally distributed settings. Participants’ suggestions for overcoming these challenges include cultural trainings, kick off meetings, language trainings, use of translator, face-to-face communication and interaction, video conferencing, scheduling important meetings in the common suitable timings, identification of the main stakeholders, having a mediator and making close observations with face-to-face interactions.

Keywords:  Information Systems, Information Systems Development, Requirement Engineering, Knowledge Sharing, Global Distribution, Outsourcing

Cloud computing popularity has continued to be on the increase side, and it has been significant contributory factor to the of 24/7 365 days business culture of the digital 21st century where data and data centers are accessed via the internet through any connected device, anytime and from anywhere. Higher Education Institutions (HEI) or Tertiary Education Institution (TEI) are also among organisations, medium and large, that are tapping into this trend by gradually adopting this technology to reduce their high budgets in the prevailing face of financial shortage. This has particularly made the technology attractive to TEI in developing countries, and more of them are adopting the services being offered by cloud computing. The adoption of this technology however, affects the way and manner by which IT services are being delivered traditionally by the TEI IT or ICT departments. The objective of this study therefore, is to explore the adoption of this phenomenal technology and its impact on the role of traditional IT department in one of the tertiary education institution in the South Western part of Nigeria. The TOE framework adoption model was used to explore the adoption factors, and interviews conducted within the ICT department of the institution as part of the empirical findings process. In contrary to popular belief, no member of the IT staff has lost his or her job yet based on the adoption despite the impact on the skills and culture in service delivery of the department. IT staffs were encouraged to adapt to the change as quickly as possible with trainings given, and the ICT, thus the HEI have value added as most of the services are now available on a 24-hour basis to users, even while off campus and far remote, a dream very difficult and near impossible in the days of full traditional IT services delivery.

Aim: To determine the impact of discharge letter content on unplanned hospital readmissions within 30 and 90 days, and to identify correlations between discharge letter content and quality of care transitions among patients with chronic illness.

Design: A convergent mixed methods design.

Methods: Discharge letters from 154 patients recruited to a randomised controlled trial were coded using an assessment matrix and deductive content analysis. The assessment matrix was based on a literature review performed to identify key elements in discharge letters that facilitate a safe care transition to home. The coded key elements were transformed into a quantitative variable of 'discharge letter score'. Bivariate correlations between discharge letter score and quality of care transition as well as unplanned readmissions within 30 and 90 days were calculated. Lastly, a multivariable Cox proportional hazards model was used to investigate associations between discharge letter score and time to readmission.

Results: All discharge letters contained at least five of eleven key elements. In less than four percent, all eleven key elements were present. Neither discharge letter score nor single key elements correlated with 30-day or 90-day readmission rate. Discharge letter score was not associated with time to readmission when adjusted for a range of patient characteristics and self-rated quality of care transitions.

Conclusion: Discharge letter score is not correlated with either 30-day or 90-day readmission rate or with time to readmission at 90 days, when patient characteristics are adjusted for.

Implications for the profession and patient care: Written discharge summaries are not enough to facilitate safe care transitions and self-management after discharge. A person-centred approach, providing written and verbal information to patients, encouraging patient involvement soon after discharge, may be needed to avoid readmission.

Aims/Objectives: The objectives of this thesis were to examine and discuss the existing information and communication technology (ICT) tools used in the healthcare sector for older adults with dementia, the benefits and challenges of using these ICT tools from the perspective of older adults with dementia and their health care providers. Research methods: Data was collected using semi-structured interviews with older adults with dementia and health care providers and managers at a nursing home in Nigeria. All interviews were audio recorded with the consent of the research participants and then transcribed verbatim. All interview transcripts were analyzed using qualitative content analysis using the deductive approach. The coding scheme used for data analysis was derived from an existing framework called the Human-Organization-Technology fit (HOT) Framework. In addition, existing literature were reviewed on the use of ICT tools by older adults with dementia, their caregivers and their health care providers. Empirical findings: A total of six participants were interviewed for this study: two older adults with dementia, two nurses and two managers (one senior manager and one manager from the medical team). One older adult was 72 years old and was diagnosed with dementia one year ago. The other older adult was 70 years old and was diagnosed with dementia two years ago. The nurses that I interviewed have been working at this nursing home for 3 and 4 years respectively. The mangers that I interviewed have also been working at this nursing home for 3 and 4 years respectively. Two ICT tools are currently being used at this nursing home: 1) a GPS tracker and 2) a device that assists older adults with their daily activities. Eight themes emerged from the interviews: system quality, service quality, user satisfaction (perceived usefulness), system use, user expectation, organization structure, organization environment and net benefits. Conclusion and Future research: This study demonstrated that older adults with dementia and their caregivers (i.e. nurses) perceived the GPS tracker and the ADL assistant as userfriendly and helpful for supporting the daily activities. Most of the existing research on ICT tools used for dementia care have been conducted in North America and Europe. Therefore, there is a need for more research in Africa.

This study gives a brief description of paper-based record and the adoption of ICT, which brought the introduction of Electronic Health Record System (EHRS) in Sweden, the challenges facing EHR in the health care sector around the world and what immigrants and newcomers who just arrived in Sweden knows about the privacy,  rights and the policies that protect their privacy and data system, these could cause them not having enough confidence in electronic health record system, they could also be worried about their information been exposed or disclosed by their healthcare providers, this call for the confidentiality, security and privacy of EHR System. The aim of this study is to explore immigrants and newcomers as users of electronic health record system by setting interview questions and focus group to help the researcher to understand their knowledge of what they know about the privacy of EHRS and what they know about the policies health care providers follow to protect patient’s privacy and data. It is very important for them to know their rights and the rights that protect their privacy and data from been shared or disclosed.

The study also talked about the existing implications facing EHRs, comparison of both systems was shown in table 1 of this study. The necessity for a proper protection of patient data was discussed and recommendation was made towards having a great and a working electronic health record system. 

In educational institutions, the use of technology has been used to compliment face to face learning or used alone to deliver the educational needs and learning process for distance education. Where used alone, it is said to be online learning and where it has complimented traditional learning it can be said to be hybrid or blended learning. Before the pandemic, the question of choice or the voluntary use of these technology was there, and the student determined what was best suited for their educational and learning needs. This study looks at the how the students related with technology during the pandemic. It looks at constructs like performance expectancy, fit for use, effort expectancy, fit for task and ends with investigating the student’s perception on intention for future use. Using a mixed approach, the perception of students was sampled. First by using a quantitative method, hinged on the novelty of the disruption to reveal areas that could be of potential interest and then a qualitative method followed. The purpose of using a mixed method approach was for completeness and complimentary reasons. The results of the qualitative data and quantitative data were bridged to form meta-inferences, and these were used to answer the research questions and discuss the findings.

The study revealed that technology was easy to use without little or no technical issues, it was fit for the task at hand, it aided the students to achieve their academic goals and needs, but intention to retain the use of technology for future academic activities was not welcomed. This was due to social factors like lack of motivation, feeling of isolation, lack of social interaction been missing but available in traditional classes. these are critical factors that affect the retention of technology for future use. In the presence of choice, they would rather go back to the traditional mode. They integration of technology with traditional mode of learning, i.e., blended mode of learning was highly welcomed.

This thesis aimed to study the everyday use of ICT-enabled memory aids in order to understand and to describe the technological mediations that are brought by them (i.e. how they shape/mediate experiences and actions of their users). To do this, a post-phenomenological approach was appropriated. Postphenomenology is a modified, hybrid phenomenology that tries to overcome the limitations of phenomenology. As for theoretical framework, ‘Technological Mediation’ was adopted to conduct the study. Technological Mediation as a theory provides concepts suitable for explorations of the phenomenon of human-technology relation.

It was believed that this specific choice of approach and theoretical framework would provide a new way of exploring the use of concrete technologies in everyday life of human beings and the implications that this use might have on humans’ lives. The study was conducted in the city of Växjö, Sweden. Data was collected by conducting twelve face-to-face semi-structured interviews. Collected data was, then, analyzed by applying the concepts within the theoretical framework – Technological Mediation - to them.

The results of this study provided a list of ICT-enabled devices and services that participants were using in their everyday life in order to support their memory such as: calendars, alarms, notes, bookmarks, etc. Furthermore, this study resulted in a detailed description of how these devices and services shaped/mediated the experiences and the actions of their users. 

Education is a sector that has the potential to become a critical area of action for the full exploitation of ICT. Educational systems of developed and developing countries have an ever-increasing tendency to apply ICT to education, in an attempt to prepare their students for the future's society. This thesis attempted to explore what kind of ICT is used in the Greek Primary Schools and develop an understanding on the relationship between the ICT and the teachers. The philosophical background is post-phenomenology and the methods chosen for collecting data for this research are policy document analysis and interviews. The empirical findings show that various ICT are being used in the classrooms of the Greek Primary Schools,  others widely and others occasionally. The research compares the legal framework revolving around ICT in Primary Schools in Greece, with the teachers' own experiences and shows that the guidelines suggested by the Greek Ministry of Education cannot be followed easily, due to economical and pedagogical reasons. It also investigates the ICT's effects on the teachers and the students through the teachers' own words and perceptions. The effects are mostly positive, there are mentioned however, some negative ones to take into consideration. Finally, the research presents a number of sectors where the participant teachers suggested there is room for improvement. By comparing the legal framework with the situation in the Primary Schools, this research adds a new perspective to the previous literature. The findings show that the current situation can be improved and the teachers' statements may trigger further research.

A North American university is engaged in a large transformation project involving the wholeorganisation. Students, Lecturers, departments and additional questions from the shared leadership team are engaging in defining the services offered, in particular from the university library and its associated sub-services. It is an exciting time for the University as it seeks to not only define its services but also how these can be created and consumed.There are many aspects to this re-organisation and many items to be addressed. In this report,we look at the current situation at the University, as well as taking into account the aspirations of the stakeholders. We start by drawing out a Rich Picture, part of Soft System Methodology (SSM) (Checkland, 1981) which we use in order to spot opportunities that are available for further exploration. Much of the information that we use comes from material supplied by the University itself as well as interviews with the Head of Library services and Head of Library IT. We look indepth at how SSM assists in this process of evaluation through its focus on participation and how it may assist us to understand the many different perspectives collected in our research. SSM consequently assists in defining problems with solutions to any areas that have drawn our attention. Following the evaluation of collected data, discussions and our own observations, we identify that a digital wall that is being proposed for the redesigned library presents an opportunity to explore possibilities for exploitation of this technology. Further research on other digital walls such as Brisbane’s Cube (Abdi et al, 2014), and Auraria Library’s Discovery Wall(Burch, 2016) shows some of the uses that these walls have been put to and how the Institutions use them. We then use a number of models to evaluate the data that we collected on digital walls and from the North American University and analyse it in order to inform our thinking. These models can be used independently or collectively to evaluate data from different perspectives. As such we were able to look at problems and solutions from the perspective of many of the actors involved in shaping the future library services. These models and results are discussed in the report. Finally, we take our results and make a number of proposals for the North American University digital wall along with the relevant justifications at the end of this report.

Utbildning i samband med systemimplementering är enligt tidigare forskning ett viktigt men åsidosatt ämne som behöver studeras mer i detalj. Den här uppsatsen undersöker vilka faktorer som är väsentliga vid en utbildningssituation i samband med införandet av ett nytt system i en kommunal organisation. Studien belyser faktorer som uppkommit i insamlingen av empiri samt de faktorer som framkommit från tidigare forskning och teoretisk bakgrund. Idag finns det ingen standardiserad modell för hur en användarutbildning bör se ut. Således presenteras de viktigaste faktorerna som ger en indikation på hur en utbildning påverkar implementeringsresultat och hur en bra användarutbildning bör se ut.

The purpose of this study has been to investigate whether there is an interest in social interactions in video-slots and how that can be designed to give users a good user experience. Online casino is the form of gaming that has increased most in popularity in Sweden in recent years and the video-slots gametype are growing the most. Previous studies shows that there is a driving force to do things together and that strengthens and enriches experiences. Studies on social interactions in online games clearly shows that enjoyment is an important element for playing. The purpose is also to investigate if social interactions in video-slots can provide a healthier game for people who have gambling problems. 

Video-slots is a hedonic motivation system (HMS) and is used to give the user pleasure and joy in a system. The theory on which the study is based on is HMSAM, which is an HMS specific model that has been used to create an understanding of perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, joy, control and curiosity, which can affect internal motivation. Internal motivation is needed for users to be able to deepen and continue to use an HMS-system.

The study has a qualitative approach and qualitative semi-structured interviews have been used in the collection of empirical data. The focus has been on the users' experiences, their motivations, driving forces, control and desires regarding social interactions in the playing of video-slots.The questions in the interviews are based on HMSAM, but also on the basis of the Octalysis gamification framework. The results from the data collection were analyzed on the basis of the categories and patterns that were created. The analysis showed a great motivation to play video-slots online together and that it would enhance their gaming experience. Even though it had simplified their gaming sessions and higher community when the majority of the informants already played video-slots today together, but with their own constructed methods. The analysis also showed that the informants play primarily for the pleasure and excitement. Based on the data from the interviews, design proposals were made, in support of the gamification framework. The design proposals resulted in six graphical interface sketches with functions that were considered to create a good user experience.

In modern society, our interaction with services is continuous and offers opportunities for a richer everyday life. One example is that state agencies provide their services digitally to simplify and improve community services to citizens. At the same time, interaction with digital services poses a challenge for users. These challenges can be the reason why users of the Swedish Consumer Agency’s service Budgetkalkylen expressed opportunities for improvement. In this thesis, usefulness, usability and cognitive load is used to examine the interaction between users and the service Budgetkalkylen. This is to contribute with proposals for improvement concerning usefulness, usability and cognitive load. The theory describes how the cognitive load on our working memory affects the constituents of the usability of a system. Usability, which is important when interplay with a product is of concern, form together with utility the products usefulness. The usefulness of a system is the reason why a product is used to achieve goals. To investigate this, a study with a qualitative approach has been conducted containing interviews and user testing. The data collection was carried out with students who had no prior experience with the service. The result shows that parts of the interaction that constituted high cognitive load reduced the usability of the service. Splitting up the tasks and information in smaller steps, giving more clear instructions and adapting the instructional design to the users level of knowledge is considered to reduce the cognitive load. The utility was expressed as a means to create a holistic view of their finances. Some wanted more proactivity through being able to set up saving goals and some wanted to use it more reactively. Literature describing that cognitive load affects usability was supported by this study. The method of examining the cognitive load to find definices in the interaction was also supported. 

The Internet of things and its collaborative technologies such as 5G, cloud, artificial intelligence, analytics, and automation will allow people and objects/devices to communicate not only with each other but with anything at any time and anywhere using the internet. Nowadays, people interact with different smart devices daily. Keeping in mind technology’s evolution, it is estimated that each of us will own roughly 15 linked devices by 2030. Therefore, we cannot neglect the impact of this technology on virtually everything and the various risks associated with such emerging technologies.

The goal of this thesis was to better understand the phenomenon of the Internet of Things and more importantly, what security, privacy, and trust threats are associated with it. And how these threats can be overcomed. Moreover, how IoT devices are perceived in terms of privacy and security by people and what factors they must keep in mind while buying, using, and disposing of such devices. Literature review and interviews were made to better understand the issues of privacy and security in IoT devices and people’s understanding of them. A general inductive method proposed by the grounded theory was used to analyze the obtained data, and answers were grouped into categories to identify different themes within the data. The results of the interviews and data showed that people’s top priorities with smart home IoT devices were interest in technology, comfort, a better lifestyle, energy savings, and cost savings. People were unaware of the gravity of security and privacy issues by and large, and they had no idea how to counteract them.

Common uses of smart devices include virtual assistants, smart heating, listening to music, getting weather and traffic updates, smart lighting, smart lock systems, and fitness gadgets. The results can be seen in the empirical findings and discussion chapters. These results will also be published on relevant Facebook groups and in the local newspaper, Valbyavisen. Data showed IoT understanding and use of technology were directly proportional to the age factor. Young people were more aware and excited as compared to older ones. Finally, some suggestions were presented on how to buy, use, and discard IoT devices. Future research directions were also presented to conclude the thesis report.

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to explore the role of IT specialists in systems integration during M&A processes including the issues faced during the process and provide suggestions based on experience from top management staff and IT specialists about improving the merger-IT integration process.

Methods: In-depth interviews with open-ended questions were conducted on ten individuals belonging to the senior management of the companies under the study. The collected data were transcribed and analyzed and coded using qualitative thematic analysis to derive categories and themes.

Results: The analysis resulted in 5 themes and 14 categories from a total of 39 codes. The analysis revealed the implications of "Underestimating the importance of IT" and analyzed the "Preferred IT integration approach" methods followed by the participants. The coded data also revealed the "Perception of management toward including IT and IT experts" and the “Issues faced in the M&A process due to the delay/non-involvement of IT experts". The results of the analysis conclude with the "Perceptions of managers toward the timing of IT integration" and suggestions from the participants based on their experiences.

Conclusion: The five themes obtained from the qualitative thematic analysis from the interviews of ten participants suggest that IT and IT specialists were a necessary and core function of the M&A process. The analysis also recommends senior management responsible for the merger or acquisition engage IT, specialists, during the early stages of the process to enable better IT integration and follow a centralized approach towards merging the IT systems.

Wrist pathologies, particularly fractures common among children and adolescents, present a critical diagnostic challenge. While X-ray imaging remains a prevalent diagnostic tool, the increasing misinterpretation rates highlight the need for more accurate analysis, especially considering the lack of specialized training among many surgeons and physicians. Recent advancements in deep convolutional neural networks offer promise in automating pathology detection in trauma X-rays. However, distinguishing subtle variations between pediatric wrist pathologies in X-rays remains challenging. Traditional manual annotation, though effective, is laborious, costly, and requires specialized expertise. In this paper, we address the challenge of pediatric wrist pathology recognition with a fine-grained approach, aimed at automatically identifying discriminative regions in X-rays without manual intervention. We refine our fine-grained architecture through ablation analysis and the integration of LION. Leveraging Grad-CAM, an explainable AI technique, we highlight these regions. Despite using limited data, reflective of real-world medical study constraints, our method consistently outperforms state-of-the-art image recognition models on both augmented and original (challenging) test sets. Our proposed refined architecture achieves an increase in accuracy of 1.06% and 1.25% compared to the baseline method, resulting in accuracies of 86% and 84%, respectively. Moreover, our approach demonstrates the highest fracture sensitivity of 97%, highlighting its potential to enhance wrist pathology recognition.

Diagnosing and treating abnormalities in the wrist, specifically distal radius, and ulna fractures, is a crucial concern among children, adolescents, and young adults, with a higher incidence rate during puberty. However, the scarcity of radiologists and the lack of specialized training among medical professionals pose a significant risk to patient care. This problem is further exacerbated by the rising number of imaging studies and limited access to specialist reporting in certain regions. This highlights the need for innovative solutions to improve the diagnosis and treatment of wrist abnormalities. Automated wrist fracture detection using object detection has shown potential, but current studies mainly use two-stage detection methods with limited evidence for single-stage effectiveness. This study employs state-of-the-art single-stage deep neural network-based detection models YOLOv5, YOLOv6, YOLOv7, and YOLOv8 to detect wrist abnormalities. Through extensive experimentation, we found that these YOLO models outperform the commonly used two-stage detection algorithm, Faster R-CNN, in fracture detection. Additionally, compound-scaled variants of each YOLO model were compared, with YOLOv8 m demonstrating a highest fracture detection sensitivity of 0.92 and mean average precision (mAP) of 0.95. On the other hand, YOLOv6 m achieved the highest sensitivity across all classes at 0.83. Meanwhile, YOLOv8x recorded the highest mAP of 0.77 for all classes on the GRAZPEDWRI-DX pediatric wrist dataset, highlighting the potential of single-stage models for enhancing pediatric wrist imaging.

Nowadays, the growth of mobile apps is so fast and viral; they have the potential of transforming our everyday lives by creating huge opportunities to individuals and businesses. This translates into a growing demand for developing such apps, which need to be easy to learn and use. In this paper, we conduct an evaluation of an android mobile app, which we designed and developed to find and register power outlets in public spaces. Our evaluation of the prototype consisted of two stages. First, we provided the users with two tasks, with an additional option to indicate their perception of how easy it was to complete these tasks. Second, upon completing both tasks and offering their comments, participants were asked to take the SUS (System Usability Scores) questionnaire. The results of the evaluation indicate that the app usability and learnability is acceptable despite being a prototype. The findings and participants’ comments give us a direction on how this app can be improved in the future.

The practice of using video conferencing systems for health care provider-patient meetings is becoming increasingly more important. Here, we reviewed literature on the subject, with the aim to provide a set of factors and perspective on what has been noted as important for the success/failure of the use of video in consultation meetings. Mostly, previous studies have focused on the outcomes, how well video works for the patient-care professional meeting, when it comes to affecting expected outcomes of the consultation. However, we focus on the contextual factors that have been noted in research on the topic and aim to gather these from a wide range of studies on video used in a home environment. We discuss the results of the study in the broader context of the implementation situation of video consultations systems, providing factors, barriers, and perspectives as well as a general context to use or non-use of the systems. Hence, we provide knowledge that can be taken into account by the designers and developers of such systems.

This paper presents the experiences of setting up a knowledge triangle project in the software development field as an approach to teaching in the area of information systems and information technologies. The case includes an international dimension of the IT industry as it interconnects several countries. The cooperation between company and university is a pedagogical tool for creating an educational situation which conveys motivation and broad perspectives to the student. However, this brings in a number of problems and a generally higher level of complexity. This paper explores a case that illustrates the complexities and presents a generic model of a setup for a knowledge-triangle-based educational situation. Its model adopts an increasingly important aspect of IT education, namely how to prepare students for the globalized nature of the IT industry. The final discussion focuses on issues concerning the use of knowledge triangle thinking, including complexity, measurements, pedagogy and organization.

The road towards a digital organization is partly technical but also about the skills and mindset of the personnel of thecompany. As the technological base for digitalization is fairly straightforward, the ways of supporting change in people are notevolving as rapidly. This paper suggests an approach to continue learning in an organization, based on concepts aroundpedagogical theory, learning patterns. This theoretical framework is transferred into a business setting, and the consequencesare discussed from the digitalization perspective.

While living longer at home is the preferred option for the elderly, disease, accidents or general health decline might make this hard. Fall accidents, which are among the chief causes of unforced injury leading to hospitalization, must be viewed as a strong factor working against the possibilities for the elderly of living longer at home. Although many fall prevention programs have been developed and applied, and checklists and advice abound, most of these originate in the professional care area or depend on care professionals. In this paper, we present a fall prevention concept directed towards elderly people living at home, with the intention of providing a safer environment ensuring more years of doing this in a healthy manner. There are several obstacles for a successful implementation of fall prevention, many pending on the attitudes and thought systems of the elderly user community, including low risk awareness, technological stigmata, refusal to be associated with health problems and a general “not for me” world view. The paper presents an AI/IoT-driven learning environment for fall prevention which facilitates living independently and improved self-understanding to provide for easier everyday living. The central design idea is to lead the user through a learning process including acquiring knowledge of fall prevention, personal characteristics, taking fall prevention action and understanding the outcomes of changed behaviors. The concluding outcome is a discussion of a set of design variables for the effective implementation of fall prevention systems, including a holistic view of fall prevention and aging, open platform technologies, a flexible and adaptable module approach, feedback-based learning, IoT/sensor-driven learning, personalization and goal orientation and the dual use of technology avoiding technology stigmas.

Development of support systems in the area of e-health have different set of conditions that makes it more difficult than in other context of IS/IT use. In this research we explore a development case and look at the development process and the outcomes in terms of solutions. The research concerns the area of heart failure and how patients could be more successful with self-care. The outcome from the project was the creation of a portfolio of solutions, which was a combination of technical and process solutions. The outcome draws the attention to the need of flexible solutions and cater to the diversity of the patients and their personal situations. In the concluding discussion a set of design dimensions are presenting, representing difficult trade-offs that needs to be handled during the design process. (C) 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V.

This paper presents a literature review of motivating factors for taking part in fall prevention activities among the elderly. The research aim is to improve the design and development of IT-based fall prevention programs for a deeper understanding of what motivates users to take part in such programs. Making fall prevention IT-based might improve the situation but might also become an obstacle in itself. To better ground this design process, a review is made of current efforts of fall prevention and of understanding motives for participation in fall prevention programs. As a result, we present a set of driving forces for the elderly to participate in fall prevention and discuss these in the context of technology acceptance theory, giving outlines for a model of motivating factors for them to use IT-based fall preventions systems. The results show a general direction of motivational efforts used in fall prevention to consist of some form of personalization strategy where, e.g., personal goals and conditions are used to adapt prevention measures to the individual.

Co-design, as a way of integrating users’perspectives and technical possibilities, has been subject to amultitude of interpretations. To facilitate the development ofpatient-empowerment services, co-design is a central approachneeded to ensure high acceptance among users. In thisresearch, we offer a flexible co-design approach by building onadaptive and continuous planning based on sets of co-designactions directed towards participants’ mutual learning. Theresearch is based on the experiences of a co-design processwithin the area of eHealth, specifically the fall prevention area,as a special case of self-training systems and self-managementsystems. The project team comprises a variety of membergroups, including the elderly, technical developers, businessdevelopers, methods experts and project management. The keysuccess factor was identified among the persons of the differentgroups as achieving possibilities for learning. To make learningprocesses requires adaptability and flexibility in interactingdifferent planning actions in order to balance both the need fortechnology development and the understanding of users’needs.

The purpose of this article is to provide a better understanding of an information systems development process from a learning theory perspective. The authors wish to investigate how learning concepts can improve the practice of developing such systems. They look closer at the activities and outcomes of a development project with the focus on the user side and how these can be understood using different theories from the field of learning. The purpose of the case project was to ensure that the intended users of the systems (in this case, heart failure patients) should be able to influence the choices made during the project so that the implemented system would benefit the whole group of patients. During this process, it became apparent that the users themselves developed and changed a great deal. In this research, the authors therefore wish to investigate the learning and change mechanism that came into play through the designed participative ISD process. As a result, they suggest that a learning mechanism should be planned for in any ISD process, regardless of what methodology is applied.

This paper investigates a learning model for its capabilities to improve the understanding of user learning during information systems design (ISD). We wish to explore the role of the ISD process as a learning process. Today, organizational design and development increasingly circulate around notions like ?organizational learning” and ?organizational knowledge creation” or is, in the general direction of organization, in a constant process of change. An information system could be the driver for new organizational routines or new produces, or the necessary component for realizing a new business strategy. The possible role of the information system might then be as a force for change or an obstacle, by the way it is used during its life time. Here we look at the development of the systems and how this process must reflect a high level of adaptation, learning and change in the user community. To add to the knowledge of ISD as a learning system we read a co-design-driven ISD case through the theory lens of Illeris (2007). We discuss the possibilities of designing an ISD process based on this learning theory and of creating users as well as an information system.

Ehealth solutions are in great need in the community of elderly in general, as patients or home carers, however a design approach that delivers this is illusive. In this research we present the experiences from a set of design processes targeting elderly’s needs of support or home care, based on a co-design approach. The purpose is to present guiding principles for how to work with elderly in a co-design process, to be used as basis for future set up of co-design processes.

The Internet of Things (IoT) plays a vital role in today’s medicine (Islam et al, 2015). In 2020, 40% of IoT-related technologies will be assigned to the health domain, which makes up around a 117 $ billion in the global market (Bauer, Patel & Veira, 2016). Adding to this the demographic changes will further set a significant challenge in Europe (Steinführer & Haase, 2007). Innovative techniques for supporting health systems and independent life for the aging population is therefore essential, not at least in relation to fall prevention and technology for promoting a good life throughout the lifespan. Further, participation from patients is a goal for healthcare worldwide (Lundgren, Sunesson & Tunved, 2014). For example according to the Health and Medical care act in Sweden (1982:763) it is described that the goal for health care “is good health and care on equal terms for the entire population”. In line with this challenge of integrated care the patient itself will be the most important resource for promotion of health, why Co Design is needed as a method for innovation in healthcare sector. It is important for the users ‘experiences and insights to contribution in improvements but not at least because it has been shown that increased involvement with the user in care reduces the number of hospital visits (Simpsons, 2007).

The quest for user friendly systems that fit into an organizational reality and yet stay competitive on a very crowded marketplace is a challenge. This report covers the setup of an eHealth project that faces challenges in all these areas, not least in the intersections between them. We discuss these challenges in the context of a research and development project, FRONT-VL, which is in its start-up phase, giving samples of problems and opportunities. The purpose of the paper is to problematize eHealth development and to provide initial insight into the planning and conduct of such projects.

Self-care is important for heart failure patients. However, what are the views of patients on their situation when it comes to realizing self-care? The aim of the paper is to investigate the self-care needs of HF patients, by understanding the issues they embrace in their self-care processes. In this paper we make a review of 17 interviews and make a classification of what the needs are for possible information technology support systems. Based on the analysis of these interviews, we identify the diversity of needs in support of activities related to different background conditions and the dynamics of change of learning and changes in the heart failure condition. The contribution of the paper is a framework for understanding the diversity of needs and the specific situations of this group of patients.

The paper deals with the planning of eHealth systems in the area of chronic care from a patient-centred perspective. The particular area is heart failure (HF) and systems that support patients’ possibilities to be active learners during the care processes. A better understanding of this process is hoped to create a basis for the development of appropriate information systems or information technology (IS/IT) support of learning processes. The objective of this paper is the development of a better understanding of the challenges of chronic illness with special focus on HF. The results are presented as a planning framework that guides the choice and design of ICT-based support systems.

In this paper the nature of user involvement in a co-design process will be explored. The outlines of a research project aiming at developing support systems for self-care inpatients suffering from chronic heart failure will be presented. The project is planned to perform a co-design effort where users (patients and healthcare professionals) will be given the opportunity to influence the development of support systems. We will discuss a number of possibilities and challenges that lie in the design of this kind of project and also some findings from its early stages. This report presents the experiences of users’ input, which are discussed in the context of previous research on benefits of user contributions in systems development.

ICT projects, development and/or research driven, are sources of new innovative eHealth solutions. However, the rate of continued use is low and gaining sustainable benefits in daily operations is difficult (Warth et al.). This research looks at the barriers for the organizational implementation based on research driven projects. 

Three eHealth projects have been analyzed for aspects on the phenomenon, to gain a deeper understanding of the problem. Results are based on discussions between project participants, (professionals, decision makers, patients), and analysis of the project set ups and purposes. 

ResultsFactors that could be seen as important for lack of continued use includes: pure research setup of projects, lack of financial resources in the post projects time , lack of organizational competences for adoption of solutions, no organizational champion or CEO support, lack of fit to organizational processes or scheduling, professional resistance to change, among others. 

DiscussionProject set ups and working methods of the project might hamper the possibilities of effective knowledge transfer and organizational adoption. Experiences from mentioned projects show that a 360-degree co-design approach, which includes major stakeholder (for example, professionals, patients, researchers, patients, decisions makers) should be included. There is a need to prepare for knowledge transfer processes in post project phases, including competence development strategies for professionals and organizational change plans. 

Conclusions A holistic understanding of conditions and challenges is needed for paving the way for health organization to reap benefits from research projects. 

Lessons learned Projects need to include processes for engaging the stakeholders through 360 co-design, knowledge transfer plans and competence development strategies. 

Limitations The research is exploratory and based on analysis of past and ongoing eHealth projects. 

Suggestions for future researchBetter understanding for how to integrating competence development and organizational change as a part of eHealth project are needed. An investigation on digital competence among patients and healthcare personnel is planned, with the purpose of defining competence development strategies and requirements for IT-enabled cooperation and co-production.

IT solutions for rehab are seen as an opportunity to provide effective support for patients’ recovery process in their in-home environment, based on instructions from health care professionals. However, what factors in the context affect the usefulness of such systems lie beyond the training process as such. In this research, we followed a co-design process, where the design of a support packaged for home rehab is based on standard products. Through group interviews with teams of home rehab staff, a broader view of the subject was sought. Group discussions involving the initial demonstration and testing of technology provided a wide spectrum of factors that the staff considered important for success, related to issues on both the organizational and the patient levels. These findings were analyzed for success factors in an attempt to reach an understanding of the rehab process context which will have an effect on the usefulness of the support system. As a result, a checklist of aspects on the process that need to be taken into account in the design of a rehab support system is presented and discussed. The results could be used both in the design of solutions and in the selection and implementation of support systems regarding how to improve the actual use of the systems.

There are many benefits to Robotic Process Automation (RPA). Despite the benefits, many organizations are hesitant to implement the technology. Even those who implement it, do not always attain the expected outcomes, or in some cases have failed the project altogether (Wewerka & Reichert 2021). It can be difficult to identify processes suitable for RPA automation. Implementing process automation in municipal activities is not only challenging in day-to-day operations but the very idea of process automation is considered to be the savior of the system welfare should be considered with caution (Toll et al. 2021).

Many Swedish municipalities are facing foremost challenges, such as increased expenses and reduced income, let alone the lack of human resources. Consequently, more and more municipalities are exploring the possibility of an RPA robot taking over administrative tasksto meet impending challenges. This study outlines and describes the opportunities and challenges that arose during RPA implementation in Swedish municipalities.

The study's question has been answered using a qualitative method where semi-structured interviews have been used for data collection. A conceptual model developed by Santos et al. (2020) has been used as a scheme to carry out and analyze the implementation of RPA in Swedish municipalities.

To sum up, it can be stated that RPA enables the efficiency of the process as long as clear goals can be developed with RPA. By having an RPA robot perform certain tasks the designated human resources will be freed up. However, the municipalities lack strategies on how to best utilize the freed resources and the time gained, which is a challenge that needs to be prioritized.

The study concluded that the process mapping has been a challenge for the municipalities, a factor that at the same time is considered crucial for a successful implementation of RPA. Furthermore, it has been identified that unclear duties and responsibilities in the project can lead to project failure. Two main roles have been identified as vital for a project team to succeed with RPA implementation: a business analyst and an RPA developer. 

RPA is not considered the best solution for automation, and this is why other more stable technologies are backed whenever possible. The following criteria have been used to assess which processes are best suited to automation: (1) the process needs to be rule-based, (2) standardized, (3) digital, (3) have an adapted login method for robots, (4) avoid updates/procurements in a near future, and (5) have a large volume.

Preliminary work is often required to improve the process before automation. The RPA project as such should run as an iterative process, and that requires the involvement of the business in the entire implementation process. This means that businesses have a better understanding of RPA development and can come up with more suggestions for the automation of certain processes.

Medical image analysis has undergone significant advancements with the integration of machine learning techniques, particularly in the realm of bone anomaly detection. The availability of recent datasets and the lack of benchmarking and explainability components provide numerous opportunities in this domain. This study proposes a benchmarking approach to a recently published FracAtlas dataset utilizing state-of-the-art deep-learning models coupled with explainable artificial intelligence (XAI) having two distinct modules. The first module involves the binary classification of fractures in different body parts and explains the decision-making process of the best-performing model using an XAI technique known as EigenCAM. EigenCAM generates heatmaps on every layer of the YOLOv8m model to explain how the model reached a conclusion and localizes the fracture using a heatmap. To verify the heatmap, we also detected fractures using the YOLOv8m detection model, which achieved a mAP@O.5 of 59.5%, outperforming the baseline results on this dataset. The second module involves a multi-class classification task to categorize images into one of the five anatomical regions. The best-performing model for binary classification is the YOLOv8m model, with an accuracy of 83.1%, whereas the best-performing model for multi-class classification is the YOLOv8s, achieving an accuracy of 96.2%.

The goal of this thesis was to investigate the factors that influence the adoption of big data analytics by public sector employees based on the adapted Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) model. A mixed method of survey and interviews were used to collect data from employees of a Canadian provincial government ministry. The results show that performance expectancy and facilitating conditions have significant positive effects on the adoption intention of big data analytics, while effort expectancy has a significant negative effect on the adoption intention of big data analytics. The result shows that social influence does not have a significant effect on adoption intention. In terms of moderating variables, the results show that gender moderates the effects of effort expectancy, social influence and facilitating condition; data experience moderates the effects of performance expectancy, effort expectancy and facilitating condition; and leadership moderates the effect of social influence. The moderation effects of age on performance expectancy, effort expectancy is significant for only employees in the 40 to 49 age group while the moderation effects of age on social influence is significant for employees that are 40 years and more. Based on the results, implications for public sector organizations planning to implement big data analytics were discussed and suggestions for further research were made. This research contributes to existing studies on the user adoption of big data analytics. 

The development and interest in Industry 4.0 together with rapid development of Cyber Physical Systems has created magnificent opportunities to develop maintenance to a totally new level. The Maintenance 4.0 vision considers massive exploitation of information regarding factories and machines to improve maintenance efficiency and efficacy, for example by facilitating logistics of spare parts, but on the other hand this creates other logistics issues on the data itself, which only exacerbate data management issues that emerge when distributed maintenance platforms scale up. In fact, factories can be delocalized with respect to the data centers, where data has to be transferred to be processed. Moreover, any transaction needs communication, be it related to purchase of spare parts, sales contract, and decisions making in general, and it has to be verified by remote parties. Keeping in mind the current average level of Overall Equipment Efficiency (50%) i.e. there is a hidden factory behind every factory, the potential is huge. It is expected that most of this potential can be realised based on the use of the above named technologies, and relying on a new approach called blockchain technology, the latter aimed at facilitating data and transactions management. Blockchain supports logistics by a distributed ledger to record transactions in a verifiable and permanent way, thus removing the need for multiple remote parties to verify and store every transaction made, in agreement with the first “r” of maintenance (reduce, repair, reuse, recycle). Keeping in mind the total industrial influence on the consumption of natural resources, such as energy, the new technology advancements can allow for dramatic savings, and can deliver important contributions to the green economy that Europe aims for. The paper introduces the novel technologies that can support sustainability of manufacturing and industry at large, and proposes an architecture to bind together said technologies to realise the vision of Maintenance 4.0.

The popularity of Internet of Things (IoT) devices is something that has recentlyincreased. These devices refer to smart devices connected to the Internet that are usedby both private individuals and companies. One area of use for these smart devices iswithin the home, which aims to provide more convenience to users and make everydaylife easier. Despite the technology's advantages, it has entailed a large number of risksand disadvantages in terms of safety, which will be discussed in this study. The purposeof this study is to investigate the awareness surrounding the security of these smartdevices in general and in a connected home. The experience in the study has beencollected through a qualitative survey where semi-structured interviews were conductedwith seven different informants with different experiences and relationships to smartdevices.The results of the study contribute to an increased understanding of the subject andvalidate the results from previous research. Furthermore, the empirical evidence wasanalyzed and resulted in a number of factors being identified regarding the smartdevices from a security perspective. Respondents were asked to answer questionsregarding their awareness of these smart devices and awareness of the security risksassociated with these devices.The collected data was analyzed through a thematic analysis which gave four themes:the security of the products, security awareness, laws in IoT and the protection of data.The different informants had different experiences and motivations for their ability toinfluence the unit's safety and the measures they chose to implement. The informants'experiences and ability to influence their units were linked to literature. In summary, theinformants' abilities to influence their units are limited to the basic security measures.The results of the study show that users cannot influence their devices very much toincrease the security of their devices, which in turn leads to devices that have securityholes leading to users falling prey to attacks more easily.This study contributes to broadening the understanding and filling the knowledge gapsregarding security risks of smart devices among users. By examining these issues, onecan work towards an improvement in security thinking and awareness to reduce therisks that these connected devices bring, both for individual users and companies