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Researchers from Virginia Commonwealth University and Emory University tested HomePal, a home sensor system, in 70 independently living adults aged 65 and older over three months. The system collects activity, sleep and phone-use data; its AI model is still being developed and has not been shown to diagnose loneliness.
Researchers from Virginia Commonwealth University and Emory University deployed a home sensor system called HomePal in the homes of 70 adults aged 65 and older, collecting data for three months to investigate whether daily behavior may be associated with loneliness. The system is a research prototype, and the team has not established that it can diagnose loneliness or accurately flag it for caregivers.
HomePal combines commercially available and custom sensors to passively track movement, daily activities, sleep and phone use in participants’ homes. Its components include motion and door sensors, television smart plugs to estimate screen time, sleep sensors and smart speakers. The researchers also examine phone-call patterns as a possible indicator of social connectedness.
The research team plans to compare the sensor data with loneliness assessments conducted every two weeks. The VCU team is developing an AI model to identify which observed patterns are more closely associated with participants’ reported feelings. The study, published in the journal Assessment, describes the system’s development and data collection; the supplied report does not provide performance results showing how accurately it identifies loneliness.
Lead author Mohamed Kamel, a computer science Ph.D. student at VCU, said the goal is to see whether everyday behavior at home can offer early signs of loneliness or social withdrawal. The researchers say any concerning pattern would be a reason for follow-up, not a diagnosis.
A Possible Signal Between Visits
Loneliness can be difficult for health professionals to identify during a clinic appointment, particularly when an older person does not raise the issue. If future testing shows that routine changes at home are meaningfully associated with reported loneliness, a system such as HomePal could give a care team or family member another reason to check in.
The potential value is in tracking changes over time, rather than treating a single behavior—such as more television viewing or altered sleep—as proof of loneliness. Those patterns can have many causes. The researchers’ plan to compare sensor readings with participants’ own assessments is intended to test whether the measurements correspond to how people say they feel.
A daily score or trend is a proposed future use, not a feature validated by the current report. No evidence in the supplied material establishes that HomePal improves health outcomes or that its alerts would lead to effective intervention.
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How HomePal Collects Data
The prototype uses sensors installed in participants’ homes to gather information without requiring them to record each activity manually. Motion and door sensors can register movement; smart plugs estimate television use; sleep sensors track rest patterns; and phone records can provide information about call frequency. Smart speakers are also part of the current setup.
The study brings together sensor readings and repeated self-reports: participants’ loneliness assessments are conducted biweekly, and the team compares those reports with patterns in the collected data. The project involves researchers from VCU and Emory, with nursing and computer science expertise contributing to the work.
The researchers have described a longer-term ambition to develop a product that could be installed like a home security system and provide a loneliness score or trend. That remains a goal. The team says it is still analyzing data, building and checking its models, and adjusting the sensor setup.
“The main idea is to see whether everyday behavior at home can give early signs that an older adult may be experiencing loneliness or social withdrawal.”
— Mohamed Kamel, study lead author and VCU computer science Ph.D. student
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Accuracy, Privacy and Limits
How accurate the system is remains unknown. The report does not give sensitivity, false-alarm rates, or other results showing whether HomePal can reliably distinguish loneliness-related changes from ordinary variation in daily life. The AI model is still under development and is to be compared with survey responses.
It is also not clear which sensor combinations would be needed for a useful model, how a potential score would be interpreted, or how caregivers should respond to a flag. The study’s reported sample covers 70 independently living adults in metro Atlanta, so the material does not establish how well results would apply to other populations or living arrangements.
Privacy is another open issue. Researchers said HomePal could be modified to use sensors that process and store data on local networks, and that data sharing could be limited. The current report does not specify a final product’s data-retention rules, access controls, consent process or commercial availability.
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Model Testing and System Changes
The researchers plan to continue analyzing the collected data, developing AI models and comparing model outputs with participants’ biweekly loneliness assessments. They also expect to adjust HomePal’s sensors as they learn which information is useful. The next meaningful evidence will be whether the model’s results align consistently with participants’ reported experiences and how often it raises flags that do not match those reports.
The researchers have discussed a future system that could share a daily score or trend with an older adult, family member or caregiver, but the report gives no release date or confirmed plan to market the prototype. Until accuracy and privacy protections are established, the system should be understood as a research tool rather than a proven monitoring service.
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Key Questions
What is HomePal?
HomePal is a research prototype that uses sensors in a person’s home to collect information about movement, activities, sleep, television use and phone patterns. Researchers are studying whether some patterns are associated with loneliness.
Has HomePal been shown to diagnose loneliness?
No. The researchers say they are looking for behavioral patterns that may warrant follow-up, not diagnosing loneliness. The AI model is still being developed and checked against assessment responses.
Who took part in the study?
The prototype was deployed for three months in the homes of 70 independently living adults aged 65 and older in metro Atlanta. The team plans to compare sensor data with assessments conducted every two weeks.
When will HomePal be available to the public?
The report does not give a launch date or confirm that a commercial product will be released. The researchers describe a home-security-system-style product as a longer-term goal while they continue analyzing data and testing models.
How will the system protect participants’ privacy?
Researchers said the system could be adapted to use sensors that store data locally and to limit what is shared with caregivers. Final privacy and data-access rules have not been reported for a future product.
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