Interaction for creative applications with the Kinect v2 device

Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) is a multidisciplinary field of research that designs, evaluates and implements interactive ways of communication between computer systems and people. The evolution of different technologies in the last decades has contributed to the expansion of HCI into other fields of study as computer vision, cognitive science, psychology, industrial design, and also into interactive art. The present document contains a case of HCI in the context of interactive art. In a first step we analyse what kind of interaction can be achieved with the available equipment: a range imaging camera, a computer and a video projector. Then, three range imaging techniques capable of fulfilling our objective are studied and some devices available for purchasing and based on these techniques are compared. Thereafter, we study and compare the two acquired range imaging devices: the Kinect for Windows v1 and the Kinect for Windows v2. In a later step we build our interaction system with the Kinect for Windows v2 and we test it. We use Processing as a programming environment in order to apply creative coding and to try the different types of interaction that this device allows. Finally, with the experience gained in the previous studies and in these test, we present three final interactive programs

Computer vision based techniques for fall detection with application towards assisted living

In this thesis, new computer vision based techniques are proposed to detect falls of an elderly person living alone. This is an important problem in assisted living. Different types of information extracted from video recordings are exploited for fall detection using both analytical and machine learning techniques. Initially, a particle filter is used to extract a 2D cue, head velocity, to determine a likely fall event. The human body region is then extracted with a modern background subtraction algorithm. Ellipse fitting is used to represent this shape and its orientation angle is employed for fall detection. An analytical method is used by setting proper thresholds against which the head velocity and orientation angle are compared for fall discrimination. Movement amplitude is then integrated into the fall detector to reduce false alarms. Since 2D features can generate false alarms and are not invariant to different directions, more robust 3D features are next extracted from a 3D person representation formed from video measurements from multiple calibrated cameras. Instead of using thresholds, different data fitting methods are applied to construct models corresponding to fall activities. These are then used to distinguish falls and non-falls. In the final works, two practical fall detection schemes which use only one un-calibrated camera are tested in a real home environment. These approaches are based on 2D features which describe human body posture. These extracted features are then applied to construct either a supervised method for posture classification or an unsupervised method for abnormal posture detection. Certain rules which are set according to the characteristics of fall activities are lastly used to build robust fall detection methods. Extensive evaluation studies are included to confirm the efficiency of the schemes

Educational measurement: Assessment Resource Kit.

Educational measurement is the process of estimating students\u27 locations (abilities) on a measurement variable from their responses to a set of items. Educational measurement is one in a series of magazines in the ACER Assessment Resource Kit (ARK). It contains five chapters: 1. What is \u27measurement\u27?; 2. Aspiring to measure; 3. A model for measuring; 4. Mapping variables; 5. Reporting measures.https://research.acer.edu.au/ark/1001/thumbnail.jp

Incorporation of privacy elements in space station design

Privacy exists to the extent that individuals can control the degree of social contact that they have with one another. The opportunity to withdraw from other people serves a number of important psychological and social functions, and is in the interests of safety, high performance, and high quality of human life. Privacy requirements for Space Station crew members are reviewed, and architectual and other guidelines for helping astronauts achieve desired levels of privacy are suggested. In turn, four dimensions of privacy are discussed: the separation of activities by areas within the Space Station, controlling the extent to which astronauts have visual contact with one another, controlling the extent to which astronauts have auditory contact with one another, and odor control. Each section presents a statement of the problem, a review of general solutions, and specific recommendations. The report is concluded with a brief consideration of how selection, training, and other procedures can also help Space Station occupants achieve satisfactory levels of seclusion

Long Span Bridges: Enhanced data fusion of GPS displacement and deck accelerations

This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Elsevier via the DOI in this record.Displacement data under operational loads are an important aid for the estimation of structural performance, but accurate measurement of structural displacement remains as a challenging task, especially for long-span bridges. The global positioning system (GPS) is the common choice for long-span bridge displacement monitoring but the measurement accuracy is not satisfactory. The purpose of this study is to improve the GPS accuracy using a practical data fusion method. Although the main algorithms of data fusion method based on multi-rate Kalman filter are already reported, the detail about how to select the noise parameters required for Kalman filter is not provided. This paper demonstrates that maximum likelihood estimation (MLE) can be used to determine the necessary noise parameters. The proposed approach was validated on numerical and field data, the latter from a single-day displacement monitoring campaign on the Humber Bridge in the UK. The direct measurement by GPS was merged with the collocated acceleration data and the resulting displacement signal was evaluated by comparing it to the displacement signal from an independent vision-based system. Through the comparison, it is shown that MLE enhanced data fusion is practical to improve the GPS measurement accuracy and to widen the frequency bandwidth. The MLE provides an estimation about the GPS noise (assumed as zero-mean Gaussian process) with the standard deviation varying from 6 mm to 16 mm in the test day. The normalised root mean square deviation of GPS measurement compared with the vision-based measurement was decreased from 3.17% to 2.37% after applying the data fusion.The field test was possible via permission of Humber Bridge Board and was assisted by James Bassitt from University of Exeter and Mungo Morgan from Imetrum Ltd. The Humber Bridge monitoring system was installed using funding from EPSRC grant EP/F035403/1. Finally the authors would like to thank the three anonymous reviewers for their constructive comments

Firefighters occupational exposure assessment: a systematic literature review

Over the years, the evolution of forest fires has occurred as a result of the evolution of the human species. However, forest fires are still a major challenge for society, placing firefighters with greater occupational exposure. The present study has as main objective to carry out a systematic review of the literature on the main techniques and variables for assessing the occupational exposure of firefighters, during the fight against forest fires.Methodology: The systematic review utilised The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses: The PRISMA Statementmethodology. This methodology was applied in the Scopus, Web of Science, Pubmed and Academic Search Complete databases with different keywords. The review will include articles written in English only. Results: In the present study, 34 articles were included, in which it was found that exposure to smoking is the most studied variable, and it was in 2019 that a greater evolution of studies in this area of research was observed. Regarding the variables, the studies were organised in groups. Here it is possible to check the different variables selected by the authors and the methods and equipment applied.Discussion: The fact that firefighters carry out their tasks in diverse scenarios and extreme conditions has hindered the application of innovative equipment. It is necessary to combine different variables and equipment for the assessment of occupational exposure. However, it is not always possible to develop this type of equipment in order to be inserted from the user's perspective, from the perspective of the environment, where it will be applied, and from an economic perspective, making it difficult to effectively apply it in the field. Conclusion: As future perspectives, it is recommended that new variables are introduced together, in order to improve the assessment of occupational exposure, namely, through the use of carbon monoxide (CO) and lactate assessmen

NASA Tech Briefs Index, 1977, volume 2, numbers 1-4

Announcements of new technology derived from the research and development activities of NASA are presented. Abstracts, and indexes for subject, personal author, originating center, and Tech Brief number are presented for 1977

Comparison of Various Devices Used in the Evaluation of Vertical Jump Height

This study aimed to compare force plate, motion analysis, and mobile application methods for calculating vertical jump height. Twenty-nine male college students (age: 22.4 ± 1.0 years; height: 178.1 ± 6.2cm; body weight: 71.2 ± 8.0 kg) voluntarily participated in the study. Two countermovement jumps (CMJ) with 1-minute intervals on a force platform (BERTEC 4060-10) were performed. The countermovement jump performances were captured using an iPhone 11 (Apple Inc., USA). The experimental setup involved using three high-speed cameras, specifically the My Jump 2 and SIMI Motion 7.5. Obtained results from hip displacement (HD) data with motion analysis system showed that participants had significantly lower vertical jump height calculated from motion capture (p = 0.01; -8.3 ± 3.86, 95%CI; MyJump2-SIMI_HD = 1.24/3.30). It was also found that calculations from left and right foot displacement were higher than My Jump 2 results (95%CI; MyJump2-SIMI_RF = 0.66/2.93) and 95%CI (MyJump2-SIMI_LF) = (-0.63/2.65). In contrast, force plate calculations, known as the gold standard in the literature, were very similar to My Jump (95%CI; MyJumpII-FP) = (2.38/4.01). The findings indicate that the My Jump 2, used for assessing vertical jump height, may be a reliable alternative for determining vertical jump height instead of setting up gold standard methods. Individuals' athletic performance abilities and birth, gender, and sports preferences should be considered. Finally, when coaches or sports scientists intend to measure CMJ, My Jump 2 application can be recommended as a laboratory application as well as a practical and valid measurement method, especially for field applications