Intelligent Interactive Systems

Course manual 2025/2026

Course content

This course will give you insight into the various aspects that make up an intelligent interactive system. This spans the interaction with the system down to the computational backbone that makes such interaction with the system possible. Upon completion of the course, you will have:

• an awareness of current issues in intelligent interactive systems, as well as historical research landmarks and future directions
• the ability to critique, analyze, and critically reflect on peer-reviewed research articles that describe real-world systems, with respect to how well they complement human ability in daily life
• a well-nourished skepticism of design judgment, and an appreciation of the value of iterative (user- centred) design
• sufficient foresight to assess how interactive system design practice can work in the face of real-world constraints
• learn how to combine previous work to generate novel research ideas
• systematically carry out and present your own research project as a poster in a public forum
• some knowledge and experience for lo-fi interface prototyping and informal evaluation (optional)

The literature provided in the week sections of this course establish the basic required reading for this course. Please be aware that during lectures, suggestions for further reading are given. Each week description also contains the description of the weekly research project assignments you have to do, as well as guidelines for the intermediate literature presentation you have to give. 

This course provides a historical, technical and application overview on intelligent interactive information systems and related application domains, with an emphasis on systems and technologies in interaction with their human and social context. Topics to be addressed might be:

• Introduction to Systems, Intelligence,  and Knowledge representation
• Introduction to Interaction (HCI perspective)
• Sensory information processing (speech, vision, biometrics, biofeedback)
• Intelligent Search
• Intelligent Educational Systems
• Sensors and services in intelligent entertainment settings 
• Intelligent Systems in non-profit service context
• Systems and privacy
• Robotics
• IIS Ethics

Study materials

Other

• Digital resource of articles and excerpts on specific topics (through Canvas)

Objectives

• Gain knowledge of and insight into historical research landmarks, current issues, and future research directions in intelligent interactive systems (IIS).
• Analyze and distinguish conceptual, technical, and application principles of IIS.
• Differentiate and model the role of modalities in the context of IIS.
• Critique, analyze, and reflect on peer-reviewed research articles that describe real-world systems, with respect to how well they complement human ability in daily life.
• Assess how IIS design practice can work in the face of real-world constraints.
• Combine previous work to generate novel research ideas.
• Systematically carry out and present the own research project as a poster in a public forum and as a research report meeting academic standards.

Teaching methods

• Lecture
• Presentation/symposium
• Working independently on e.g. a project or thesis
• Supervision/feedback meeting
• Self-study

There will be 2 lectures per week where students will learn the fundamentals of the field as well as be introduced to current research directions. Students are expected to look at the material provided on Canvas before the lecture, as topics will be discussed in an interactive manner.

In addition, students are requested to design and critically assess a novel IIS that covers at least two of the topics addressed during the lectures. The work is performed in small groups of not more than 5 members. The supervision will be provided during the 2 practical sessions per week. Each group presents its work twice. The first time is end of September (Mid-Term presentation), covering the problem (literature) and the current development of the project (type of presentation: elevator pitch). The second presentation is a public poster presentation in the last week of the course..

Though the project is a group effort, each course participant has to provide an individual end report of the  project. Students have to provide individual reports of their project  of max 12 pages that describe the problem, the interaction and system design of the IIS, a critical discussion of the approach and achievements, a conclusion and potential future work. Supervision of the writing process will be provided for each student individually per week on parts of the document.

Learning activities

Attendance

In TER part B of this programme no requirements regarding attendance are mentioned.

Assessment

• Feedback will be given only on the assignment for the week. This means feedback will not be given on the Introduction & Motivation during the week of the Interaction Design I assignment. For your sake though, we strongly advise that you work systematically and incrementally build on each week's efforts. PLEASE indicate delays early as then there  might be the chance to arrange for extra time (i.e. in case of sickness).
• A 1-point grade will be deducted from your final report for each additional day that exceeds the deadline for submission.
• You must have a total course grade of 5.5 in order to pass this course.
• If you fail the course, you will get exactly 4 weeks to resubmit your paper, counting from the day the grades are communicated. However, please note that if you submit the second time, the evaluation criteria will be much stricter, raising the possibility for failing a second time. 
• If anyone is caught plagiarising another person's work, you will be immediately failed. As mentioned, you can borrow figures from each other, but the writing has to be completely your own. 
• For grading your final paper, the group supervisors will exchange evaluations and come to a unified grade so that biases can be reduced.

Assignments

Written report part per week

• Individual assignment that is receives individual feedback

Final report

• Individual Assignment 

Mid-term Project Pitch

• Group Assignment and group feedback

End Poster Presentation

• Group Assignment and group feedback

The grade is build out of 3 parts:

• Individual project report (75%),
• Mid-term Project Pitch (10%),
• poster (15%)    

Each student needs a 5.5 on average to pass the course.

Fraud and plagiarism

The 'Regulations governing fraud and plagiarism for UvA students' applies to this course. This will be monitored carefully. Upon suspicion of fraud or plagiarism the Examinations Board of the programme will be informed. For the 'Regulations governing fraud and plagiarism for UvA students' see: www.student.uva.nl

Course structure

Contact information

Coordinator

• dr. Frank Nack

Staff

• A.D. Fleck
• M.G. Kebede