Characterizing the Effects of Local Latency on Aim Performance in First Person Shooters

Real-time games such as first-person shooters (FPS) are sensitive to even small amounts of lag. The effects of network latency have been studied, but less is known about local latency -- that is, the lag caused by local sources such as input devices, displays, and the application. While local latency is important to gamers, we do not know how it affects aiming performance and whether we can reduce its negative effects. To explore these issues, we tested local latency in a variety of real-world gaming systems and carried out a controlled study focusing on targeting and tracking activities in an FPS game with varying degrees of local latency. In addition, we tested the ability of a lag compensation technique (based on aim assistance) to mitigate the negative effects. To motivate the need for these studies, we also examined how aim in FPS differs from pointing in standard 2D tasks, showing significant differences in performance metrics. Our studies found local latencies in the real-world range from 23 to 243~ms that cause significant and substantial degradation in performance (even for latencies as low as 41~ms). The studies also showed that our compensation technique worked well, reducing the problems caused by lag in the case of targeting, and removing the problem altogether in the case of tracking. Our work shows that local latency is a real and substantial problem -- but game developers can mitigate the problem with appropriate compensation methods

Compansion system for a pictogram-based AAC application in Catalan

Dissertação de mest., Processamento da Linguagem Natural e Tecnologia da Linguagem Humana, Faculdade de Ciências Humanas e Sociais, Univ. do Algarve, 2012In this project we have built a compansion (compression-expansion) system that expands telegraphic language (utterances with only uninflected content words) into natural language sentences in Catalan, in the context of an Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) software. The system has been designed to improve the communication of AAC users, who usually have severe speech or motor impairments and use pictogram-based communication methods in their daily life. However, it can also be seen as a potential tool to support Catalan literacy for these users and to help in the field of language rehabilitation. The compansion system has two main components: a syntactic-semantic dependency parser and a generator that constructs the final sentence. A simile of an input system has been built to allow the use of an existing AAC vocabulary (CACE). This vocabulary has been enriched by syntactic and semantic information in view of the parser and the generator. From the user’s input, the parser extracts sentence patterns, based on a constraint grammar and a controlled vocabulary, taking into account input words and their modifiers. It then assigns the remaining words to the structural slots of those patterns, which correspond to the semantic roles of the predicative elements and of other words’ complements. Then, the generator builds the natural language sentence, from the resulting parse tree, reordering and inflecting words and adding articles, prepositions and other necessary particles. The system has been evaluated and results are most promising: 98,7% of the sentences generated by the compansion system were considered correct by three independent annotators.Este projecto consiste na construção de um sistema de compressão-expansão (em inglês: compansion) que expande frases em linguagem telegráfica, isto é, frases formadas apenas por palavras plenamente significativas e sem informação de flexão, em frases em língua natural (Catalão), no contexto de uma aplicação em Comunicação Suplementar e Alternativa (CSA). O sistema foi projectado para melhorar a comunicação dos utilizadores de CSA, que normalmente apresentam graves perturbações motoras ou de fala e que usam métodos comunicativos baseados em pictogramas para as suas actividades quotidianas. Contudo, o sistema pode igualmente ser considerado como uma potencial ferramenta para apoiar a literacia em Catalão destes utilizadores e para ajudar na reabilitação da linguagem. O sistema de compansion tem duas componentes principais: um analisador sintáctico-semântico (parser) e um gerador, que constrói a frase de saída. Um simile de sistema de input foi construído de forma a permitir a utilização de um vocabulário de CSA já existente (o CACE). Este vocabulário foi enriquecido com informação sintáctica e semântica para poder servir tanto ao módulo de análise como de geração. A partir do input, o parser extrai os padrões frásicos, baseados numa gramática e vocabulários controlados, e com base na informação associada às palavras e seus modificadores. Em seguida, atribui as palavras remanescentes às diversas posições estruturais desses padrões frásicos, que correspondem aos papeis semânticos associados aos diversos elementos predicativos e aos complementos de outras palavras. Em seguida, o sistema gera a frase de saída a partir da árvore de análise resultante, reordenando e flexionando as diversas palavras, acrescentando artigos, preposições e outros elementos necessários a uma expressão adequada em língua natural. O sistema foi avaliado e os resultados são muito promissores: 98,7% das frases geradas pelo sistema foram consideradas correctas por três anotadores independente

Semi-automatic assessment of basic SQL statements

Learning and assessing the Structured Query Language (SQL) is an important step in developing students' database skills. However, due to the increasing numbers of students learning SQL, assessing and providing detailed feedback to students' work can be time consuming and prone to errors. The main purpose of this research is to reduce or remove as many of the repetitive tasks in any phase of the assessment process of SQL statements as possible to achieve the consistency of marking and feedback on SQL answers.This research examines existing SQL assessment tools and their limitations by testing them on SQL questions, where the results reveal that students must attaint essential skills to be able to formulate basic SQL queries. This is because formulating SQL statements requires practice and effort by students. In addition, the standard steps adopted in many SQL assessment tools were found to be insufficient in successfully assessing our sample of exam scripts. The analysis of the outcomes identified several ways of solving the same query and the categories of errors based on the common student mistakes in SQL statements. Based on this, this research proposes a semi-automated assessment approach as a solution to improve students’ SQL formulation process, ensure the consistency of SQL grading and the feedback generated during the marking process. The semi-automatic marking method utilities both the Case-Based Reasoning (CBR) system and Rule-Based Reasoning (RBR) system methodologies. The approach aims to reduce the workload of marking tasks by reducing or removing as many of the repetitive tasks in any phase of the marking process of SQL statements as possible. It also targets the improvement of feedback dimensions that can be given to students.In addition, the research implemented a prototype of the SQL assessment framework which supports the process of the semi-automated assessment approach. The prototype aims to enhance the SQL formulation process for students and minimise the required human effort for assessing and evaluating SQL statements. Furthermore, it aims to provide timely, individual and detailed feedback to the students. The new prototype tool allows students to formulate SQL statements using the point-and-click approach by using the SQL Formulation Editor (SQL-FE). It also aims to minimise the required human effort for assessing and evaluating SQL statements through the use of the SQL Marking Editor (SQL-ME). To ensure the effectiveness of the SQL-FE tool, the research conducted two studies which compared the newly implemented tool with the paper-based manual method in the first study (pilot study), and with the SQL Management Studio tool in the second study (full experiment). The results provided reasonable evidence that using SQL-FE can have a beneficial effect on formulating SQL statements and improve students’ SQL learning. The results also showed that students were able to solve and formulate the SQL query on time and their performance showed significant improvement. The research also carried out an experiment to examine the viability of the SQL Marking Editor by testing the SQL partial marking, grouping of identical SQL statements, and the resulting marking process after applying the generic marking rules. The experimental results presented demonstrated that the newly implemented editor was able to provide consistent marking and individual feedback for all SQL parts. This means that the main aim of this research has been fulfilled, since the workload of the lecturers has been reduced, and students’ performance in formulating SQL statements has been improved.</div

Development and control of an omnidirectional robot for competition purposes

Esta dissertação mergulha no mundo da robótica, com uma abordagem estruturada que se desenrola ao longo de vários capítulos. O primeiro capítulo estabelece o cenário, proporcionandouma visão geral. O segundo capítulo lança uma base sólida ao introduzirconceitos de robótica, várias categorias de robôs e suas características distintivas. Sublinha o impacto da robótica na educação e na investigação, enfatizando a sua conexão integral com as disciplinas de ciência, tecnologia, engenharia e matemática (STEM). Além disso,destaca a importância do RobotAtFactory (RAF) e apresenta a equipa da IPB. O terceiro capítulo é dedicado à seleção de componentes do robô. Isso envolve a análise minuciosa dos atuadores, sensores, unidades de controlo e fornecimento de energia do robô. Simultaneamente, a atenção volta-se para a modelagem 3D e o design do robô, assegurando a conformidade com as especificações da competição RAF. No quarto capítulo, exploramos a integração dos elementos e conceitos discutidos anteriormente. Salienta o papel crítico de ferramentas de software como o SolidWorks e o Simtwo na fase de design. Além disso, aprofunda os sistemas de controlo de baixo nível, com foco na gestão em tempo real dos sistemas de controlo e técnicas de controlo da velocidade dos motores. Por fim, o capítulo de conclusão fornece um resumo abrangente de todo o projeto. Esta dissertação oferece uma perspetiva holística da nossa jornada no domínio da robótica, culminando na nossa preparação para a competição RAF. Com um olhar voltado para futuras competições, as nossas experiências e descobertas estão posicionadas para ser valiosas contribuições para a evolução contínua deste campo dinâmico.This dissertation delves into the realm of robotics, with a structured approach spanning several chapters. The introductory chapter sets the stage, offering a general overview. The second chapter lays a solid foundation by introducing robotics concepts, various robot categories, and their defining characteristics. It underscores the impact of robotics on education and research, emphasizing its integral connection with science, technology, engineering, and mathematics Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) disciplines. Furthermore, it underscores the significance of RobotAtFactory (RAF) and introduces the Instituto Politécnico de Bragança (IPB) team. The third chapter is dedicated to the selection of robot components. This involves examination of the robot’s actuators, sensors, control units, and power supply. Simultaneously, attention is directed toward 3D modeling and robot design, ensuring compliance with RAF competition specifications. In the fourth chapter explores the integration of previously discussed elements and concepts. It underscores the critical role of software tools like SolidWorks and Simtwo in the design phase. In addition, it delves into low-level control systems, focusing on real-time management of control systems and motor speed control techniques. Lastly, the concluding chapter provides a comprehensive summary of the entire project. This dissertation offers a holistic perspective on our journey through the robotics domain, culminating in our readiness for the RAF competition. With an eye on future competitions, our experiences and findings are poised to be valuable contributors to the ongoing evolution of this dynamic field

Bare nothingness: Situated subjects in embodied artists' systems

This chapter examines the current state of digital artworks, arguing that they have not yet made a groundbreaking impact on the cultural landscape of the 21st century and suggesting that a reason for this lack of notoriety is the obsolete model of agency deployed by many digital artists. As an alternative to what is framed as out-of-date forms of interactivity, the chapter highlights evolving research into interactive systems, artists' tools, applications, and techniques that will provide readers with an insightful and up-to-date examination of emerging multimedia technology trends. In particular, the chapter looks at situated computing and embodied systems, in which context-aware models of human subjects can be combined with sensor technology to expand the agencies at play in interactive works. The chapter connects these technologies to Big Data, Crowdsourcing and other techniques from artificial intelligence that expand our understanding of interaction and participation

Enhancing the E-Commerce Experience through Haptic Feedback Interaction

The sense of touch is important in our everyday lives and its absence makes it difficult to explore and manipulate everyday objects. Existing online shopping practice lacks the opportunity for physical evaluation, that people often use and value when making product choices. However, with recent advances in haptic research and technology, it is possible to simulate various physical properties such as heaviness, softness, deformation, and temperature. The research described here investigates the use of haptic feedback interaction to enhance e-commerce product evaluation, particularly haptic weight and texture evaluation. While other properties are equally important, besides being fundamental to the shopping experience of many online products, weight and texture can be simulated using cost-effective devices. Two initial psychophysical experiments were conducted using free motion haptic exploration in order to more closely resemble conventional shopping. One experiment was to measure weight force thresholds and another to measure texture force thresholds. The measurements can provide better understanding of haptic device limitation for online shopping in terms of the availability of different stimuli to represent physical products. The outcomes of the initial psychophysical experimental studies were then used to produce various absolute stimuli that were used in a comparative experimental study to evaluate user experience of haptic product evaluation. Although free haptic exploration was exercised on both psychophysical experiments, results were relatively consistent with previous work on haptic discrimination. The threshold for weight force discrimination represented as downward forces was 10 percent. The threshold for texture force discrimination represented as friction forces was 14.1 percent, when using dynamic coefficient of friction at any level of static coefficient of friction. On the other hand, the comparative experimental study to evaluate user experience of haptic product information indicated that haptic product evaluation does not change user performance significantly. However, although there was an increase in the time taken to complete the task, the number of button click actions tended to decrease. The results showed that haptic product evaluation could significantly increase the confidence of shopping decision. Nevertheless, the availability of haptic product evaluation does not necessarily impose different product choices but it complements other selection criteria such as price and appearance. The research findings from this work are a first step towards exploring haptic-based environments in e-commerce environments. The findings not only lay the foundation for designing online haptic shopping but also provide empirical support to research in this direction

Videos in Context for Telecommunication and Spatial Browsing

The research presented in this thesis explores the use of videos embedded in panoramic imagery to transmit spatial and temporal information describing remote environments and their dynamics. Virtual environments (VEs) through which users can explore remote locations are rapidly emerging as a popular medium of presence and remote collaboration. However, capturing visual representation of locations to be used in VEs is usually a tedious process that requires either manual modelling of environments or the employment of specific hardware. Capturing environment dynamics is not straightforward either, and it is usually performed through specific tracking hardware. Similarly, browsing large unstructured video-collections with available tools is difficult, as the abundance of spatial and temporal information makes them hard to comprehend. At the same time, on a spectrum between 3D VEs and 2D images, panoramas lie in between, as they offer the same 2D images accessibility while preserving 3D virtual environments surrounding representation. For this reason, panoramas are an attractive basis for videoconferencing and browsing tools as they can relate several videos temporally and spatially. This research explores methods to acquire, fuse, render and stream data coming from heterogeneous cameras, with the help of panoramic imagery. Three distinct but interrelated questions are addressed. First, the thesis considers how spatially localised video can be used to increase the spatial information transmitted during video mediated communication, and if this improves quality of communication. Second, the research asks whether videos in panoramic context can be used to convey spatial and temporal information of a remote place and the dynamics within, and if this improves users' performance in tasks that require spatio-temporal thinking. Finally, the thesis considers whether there is an impact of display type on reasoning about events within videos in panoramic context. These research questions were investigated over three experiments, covering scenarios common to computer-supported cooperative work and video browsing. To support the investigation, two distinct video+context systems were developed. The first telecommunication experiment compared our videos in context interface with fully-panoramic video and conventional webcam video conferencing in an object placement scenario. The second experiment investigated the impact of videos in panoramic context on quality of spatio-temporal thinking during localization tasks. To support the experiment, a novel interface to video-collection in panoramic context was developed and compared with common video-browsing tools. The final experimental study investigated the impact of display type on reasoning about events. The study explored three adaptations of our video-collection interface to three display types. The overall conclusion is that videos in panoramic context offer a valid solution to spatio-temporal exploration of remote locations. Our approach presents a richer visual representation in terms of space and time than standard tools, showing that providing panoramic contexts to video collections makes spatio-temporal tasks easier. To this end, videos in context are suitable alternative to more difficult, and often expensive solutions. These findings are beneficial to many applications, including teleconferencing, virtual tourism and remote assistance

Intelligent Tutoring System for Teaching "Introduction to Computer Science" in Al-Azhar University, Gaza

ITS (Intelligent Tutoring System) is a computer software that supplies direct and adaptive training or response to students without, or with little human teacher interfering. The main target of ITS is smoothing the learning-teaching process using the ultimate technology in computer science. The proposed system will be implemented using the “ITSB” Authoring tool. The book "Introduction To Computer Science" is taught in Al-Azhar University in Gaza as a compulsory subject for students who study at humanities faculties. In this thesis, the researcher demonstrates an intelligent tutoring system for teaching the above mentioned subject. The system was assessed by a group of teachers and students and the results were promising

Migrating characters: effective user guidance in instrumented environments

The work at hand deals with the conceptual design as well as with the realization of virtual characters, which, unlike previous works in this research area, are not limited to a use in virtual worlds. The presented Migrating Character approach on the contrary allows virtual characters to act and interact with the physical world. Different technical solutions allowing a Migrating Character to move throughout physical space, either completely autonomously or in conjunction with a user, are introduced and discussed as well as resulting implications for the characters behavior. While traditional virtual characters are acting in a well defined virtual world, Migrating Characters need to adapt to changing environmental setups in a very flexible way. A Migrating Character must be capable of determining these environmental changes by means of sensors. Furthermore, based on this data, an adequate adaptation of the characters behavior has to be realized. Apart from a theoretical discussion of the necessary enhancements of a virtual character when taking the step from virtual to real worlds, different exemplary Migrating Character implementations are introduced in the course of the work.Die vorliegende Arbeit beschäftigt sich mit dem konzeptuellen Entwurf und der technischen Realisierung von virtuellen Charakteren, die im Gegensatz zu bisherigen Arbeiten auf diesem Gebiet nicht auf den Einsatz in virtuellen Welten beschränkt sind. Der vorgestellte Migrating Character Ansatz erlaubt virtuellen Charakteren vielmehr in der physikalischen Welt zu agieren und zu interagieren. Verschiedene technische Lösungen, welche es einem Migrating Character ermöglichen sich in der physikalischen Welt autonom bzw. in Abhängigkeit vom Benutzer zu bewegen, sind ebenso Gegenstand der Arbeit wie eine ausführliche Diskussion der daraus für das Verhalten des virtuellen Charakters resultierenden Implikationen. Während sich traditionelle virtuelle Charaktere in einer wohl definierten virtuellen Umgebung bewegen, muss ein Migrating Character flexibel auf sich ändernde Umgebungsbedingungen reagieren. Aus sensorischer Sicht benötigt ein Migrating Character also die Fähigkeit eine sich ändernde physikalische Situation zu erkennen. Basierend auf diesen Daten muss weiterhin eine adäquate Anpassung des Verhaltens des Migrating Characters geschehen. Neben einer theoretischen Diskussion der notwendigen Erweiterungen eines virtuellen Charakters beim übergang von virtueller zu realer Umgebung werden auch exemplarische Migrating Character Implementierungen vorgestellt