Remote control mobile applications for operating Internet of Things (IoT) devices using smartphones are commonly based on a touch user interface. The effort of using such apps is often disproportionate to the simplicity of carrying out the actions manually. For example, turning a light on or off via menus and forms of a standard remote app might not be very convenient. A voice user interface, while easier to use, gives rise to other issues, including user privacy and distracting others nearby. This paper proposes a new type of universal IoT remote control applications for smartphones: phone-pointing remote apps. Using a phone-pointing remote app, users can physically point their smartphones at IoT devices to select them, and operate them via movement gestures, without needing to turn on the phone screen or talk, and with no need for any additional hardware. This new approach provides a unique combination of advantages. It is simple, intuitive, fast, and voiceless. Instead of using the touchscreen or the microphone as the input source, phone-pointing remote apps will use a combination of standard smartphone sensors, including the GNSS sensor, Wi-Fi scanner, Bluetooth receiver, camera, barometer, magnetometer, g-force meter, accelerometer, and gyroscope. An analysis of the proposed model in light of relevant results from related studies provides positive preliminary indications regarding the feasibility of this novel approach.    «

Remote control mobile applications for operating Internet of Things (IoT) devices using smartphones are commonly based on a touch user interface. The effort of using such apps is often disproportionate to the simplicity of carrying out the actions manually. For example, turning a light on or off via menus and forms of a standard remote app might not be very convenient. A voice user interface, while easier to use, gives rise to other issues, including user privacy and distracting others nearby. T...    »