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Prototyping a Context-Aware Framework for Pervasive Entertainment Applications
Mixed Reality Architecture: a dynamic architectural topology
Architecture can be shown to structure patterns of co-presence and in turn to be
structured itself by the rules and norms of the society present within it. This two-way
relationship exists in a surprisingly stable framework, as fundamental changes to
buildings are slow and costly. At the same time, change within organisations is
increasingly rapid and buildings are used to accommodate some of that change. This
adaptation can be supported by the use of telecommunication technologies, overcoming
the need for co-presence during social interaction. However, often this results in a loss
of accountability or âcivic legibilityâ, as the link between physical location and social
activity is broken. In response to these considerations, Mixed Reality Architecture
(MRA) was developed. MRA links multiple physical spaces across a shared 3D virtual
world. We report on the design of MRA, including the key concept of the Mixed Reality
Architectural Cell, a novel architectural interface between architectural spaces that are
remote to each other. An in-depth study lasting one year and involving six office-based
MRACells, used video recordings, the analysis of event logs, diaries and an interview
survey. This produced a series of ethnographic vignettes describing social interaction
within MRA in detail. In this paper we concentrate on the topological properties of MRA.
It can be shown that the dynamic topology of MRA and social interaction taking place
within it are fundamentally intertwined. We discuss how topological adjacencies across
virtual space change the integration of the architectural spaces that MRA is installed in.
We further reflect on how the placement of MRA technology in different parts of an
office space (deep or shallow) impacts on the nature of that particular space. Both the
above can be shown to influence movement through the building and social interaction
taking place within it. These findings are directly relevant to new buildings that need to
be designed to accommodate organisational change in future but also to existing
building stock that might be very hard to adapt. We are currently expanding the system
to new sites and are planning changes to the infrastructure of MRA as well as its
interactional interface
MOSDEN: A Scalable Mobile Collaborative Platform for Opportunistic Sensing Applications
Mobile smartphones along with embedded sensors have become an efficient
enabler for various mobile applications including opportunistic sensing. The
hi-tech advances in smartphones are opening up a world of possibilities. This
paper proposes a mobile collaborative platform called MOSDEN that enables and
supports opportunistic sensing at run time. MOSDEN captures and shares sensor
data across multiple apps, smartphones and users. MOSDEN supports the emerging
trend of separating sensors from application-specific processing, storing and
sharing. MOSDEN promotes reuse and re-purposing of sensor data hence reducing
the efforts in developing novel opportunistic sensing applications. MOSDEN has
been implemented on Android-based smartphones and tablets. Experimental
evaluations validate the scalability and energy efficiency of MOSDEN and its
suitability towards real world applications. The results of evaluation and
lessons learned are presented and discussed in this paper.Comment: Accepted to be published in Transactions on Collaborative Computing,
2014. arXiv admin note: substantial text overlap with arXiv:1310.405
Efficient Opportunistic Sensing using Mobile Collaborative Platform MOSDEN
Mobile devices are rapidly becoming the primary computing device in people's
lives. Application delivery platforms like Google Play, Apple App Store have
transformed mobile phones into intelligent computing devices by the means of
applications that can be downloaded and installed instantly. Many of these
applications take advantage of the plethora of sensors installed on the mobile
device to deliver enhanced user experience. The sensors on the smartphone
provide the opportunity to develop innovative mobile opportunistic sensing
applications in many sectors including healthcare, environmental monitoring and
transportation. In this paper, we present a collaborative mobile sensing
framework namely Mobile Sensor Data EngiNe (MOSDEN) that can operate on
smartphones capturing and sharing sensed data between multiple distributed
applications and users. MOSDEN follows a component-based design philosophy
promoting reuse for easy and quick opportunistic sensing application
deployments. MOSDEN separates the application-specific processing from the
sensing, storing and sharing. MOSDEN is scalable and requires minimal
development effort from the application developer. We have implemented our
framework on Android-based mobile platforms and evaluate its performance to
validate the feasibility and efficiency of MOSDEN to operate collaboratively in
mobile opportunistic sensing applications. Experimental outcomes and lessons
learnt conclude the paper
Wearable learning tools
In life people must learn whenever and wherever they experience something new. Until recently computing technology could not support such a notion, the constraints of size, power and cost kept computers under the classroom table, in the office or in the home. Recent advances in miniaturization have led to a growing field of research in âwearableâ computing. This paper looks at how such technologies can enhance computerâmediated communications, with a focus upon collaborative working for learning. An experimental system, MetaPark, is discussed, which explores communications, data retrieval and recording, and navigation techniques within and across real and virtual environments. In order to realize the MetaPark concept, an underlying network architecture is described that supports the required communication model between static and mobile users. This infrastructure, the MUON framework, is offered as a solution to provide a seamless service that tracks user location, interfaces to contextual awareness agents, and provides transparent network service switching
Virtuality in human supervisory control: Assessing the effects of psychological and social remoteness
Virtuality would seem to offer certain advantages for human supervisory control. First, it could provide a physical analogue of the 'real world' environment. Second, it does not require control room engineers to be in the same place as each other. In order to investigate these issues, a low-fidelity simulation of an energy distribution network was developed. The main aims of the research were to assess some of the psychological concerns associated with virtual environments. First, it may result in the social isolation of the people, and it may have dramatic effects upon the nature of the work. Second, a direct physical correspondence with the 'real world' may not best support human supervisory control activities. Experimental teams were asked to control an energy distribution network. Measures of team performance, group identity and core job characteristics were taken. In general terms, the results showed that teams working in the same location performed better than team who were remote from one another
Virtual teams: A literature review
In the competitive market, virtual teams represent a growing response to the need for fasting time-to-market, low-cost and rapid solutions to complex organizational problems. Virtual teams enable organizations to pool the talents and expertise of employees and non-employees by eliminating time and space barriers. Nowadays, companies are heavily investing in virtual team to enhance their performance and competitiveness. Despite virtual teams growing prevalence, relatively little is known about this new form of team. Hence the study offers an extensive literature review with definitions of virtual teams and a structured analysis of the present body of knowledge of virtual teams. First, we distinguish virtual teams from conventional teams, different types of virtual teams to identify where current knowledge applies. Second, we distinguish what is needed for effective virtual team considering the people, process and technology point of view and underlying characteristics of virtual teams and challenges they entail. Finally, we have identified and extended 12 key factors that need to be considered, and describes a methodology focused on supporting virtual team working, with a new approach that has not been specifically addressed in the existing literature and some guide line for future research extracted.Virtual team, Literature review, Effective virtual team,
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