mTag - Architecture for Discovering Location Specific Mobile Web Services Using RFID and Its Evaluation with Two Case Studies

This paper introduces mTag, a distributed event-driven architecture for discovering location specific mobile web services. Service discovery is initiated by touching a fixed RFID reader with a mobile passive RFID tag attached e.g. to a phone, which results in information of available services being pushed to user’s preferred device. We present a deployment proposal and prototype implementation, which is evaluated in form of two case studies in the true environment of use. The case studies show that mTag provides a promising approach for service discovery with mobile devices. 1

Super-distributed RFID Tag Infrastructures

With the emerging mass production of very small, cheap Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags, it is becoming feasible to deploy such tags on a large scale. In this paper, we advocate distribution schemes where passive RFID tags are deployed in vast quantities and in a highly redundant fashion over large areas or object surfaces. We show that such an approach opens up a whole spectrum of possibilities for creating novel RFID-based services and applications, including a new means of cooperation between mobile physical entities. We also discuss a number of challenges related to this approach, such as the density and structure of tag distributions, and tag typing and clustering. Finally, we outline two prototypical applications (a smart autonomous vacuum cleaner and a collaborative map-making system) and indicate future directions of research

Physical Selection in Ubiquitous Computing

Jokapaikan tietotekniikassa (ubiquitous computing) tietotekniset laitteet sulautuvat fyysiseen ympäristöön siten että niiden käyttäjät voivat olla yhtä aikaa vuorovaikutuksessa näiden laitteiden kanssa ja toimia fyysisessä ympäristössään. Laitteet ovat yhteydessä toisiinsa, ne ovat eri kokoisia ja niillä on erilaisia syöttö- ja tulostusmahdollisuuksia tarkoituksestaan riippuen. Nämä jokapaikan tietotekniikan ominaisuudet luovat tarpeen vuorovaikutustavoille, jotka eroavat huomattavasti tavanomaisten työpöytätietokoneiden vuorovaikutustavoista. Fyysinen valinta (physical selection) on jokapaikan tietotekniikan vuorovaikutustehtävä, jota käytetään kertomaan käyttäjän kannettavalle päätelaitteelle minkä fyysisen esineen kanssa käyttäjä haluaa olla vuorovaikutuksessa. Fyysinen valinta perustuu tunnisteisiin (tag), jotka yksilöivät fyysiset esineet tai sisältävät fyysisen hyperlinkin digitaalisessa muodossa olevaan tietoon, joka liittyy esineeseen, johon kyseinen tunniste on liitetty. Käyttäjä valitsee fyysisen hyperlinkin koskettamalla, osoittamalla tai skannaamalla tunnistetta sopivalla lukulaitteella varustetulla päätelaitteellaan. Fyysinen valinta voidaan toteuttaa erilaisilla teknologioilla, kuten sähköisesti luettavilla tunnisteilla ja niiden lukijoilla, infrapunalähettimillä sekä optisesti luettavilla tunnisteilla ja matkapuhelinten kameroilla. Tässä väitöskirjassa analysoidaan fyysistä valintaa vuorovaikutustehtävänä ja toteutusteknisestä näkökulmasta sekä esitellään eri valintatavat ­ kosketus, osoitus ja skannaus. Koskeusta ja osoitusta on tutkittu toteuttamalla prototyyppi ja tutkimalla sen avulla valintatapoja kokeellisesti. Tämän väitöskirjan tuloksiin kuuluu fyysisen valinnan analysointi jokapaikan tietotekniikan kontekstissa, ehdotuksia fyysisten hyperlinkkien visualisoinnista sekä fyysisessä ympäristössä että päätelaitteessa, ja käyttäjävaatimuksia fyysiselle valinnalle osana jokapaikan tietotekniikan arkkitehtuuria.In ubiquitous computing, the computing devices are embedded into the physical environment so that the users can interact with the devices at the same time as they interact with the physical environment. The various devices are connected to each other, and have various sizes and input and output capabilities depending on their purpose. These features of ubiquitous computing create a need for interaction methods that are radically different from the desktop computer interactions. Physical selection is an interaction task for ubiquitous computing and it is used to tell the user s mobile terminal which physical object the user wants to interact with. It is based on tags that identify physical objects or store a physical hyperlink to digital information related to the object the tag is attached to. The user selects the physical hyperlink by touching, pointing or scanning the tag with the mobile terminal that is equipped with an appropriate reader. Physical selection has been implemented with various technologies, such as radio-frequency tags and readers, infrared transceivers, and optically readable tags and mobile phone cameras. In this dissertation, physical selection is analysed as a user interaction task, and from the implementation viewpoint. Different selection methods ­ touching, pointing and scanning ­ are presented. Touching and pointing have been studied by implementing a prototype and conducting user experiments with it. The contributions of this dissertation include an analysis of physical selection in the ubiquitous computing context, suggestions for visualising the physical hyperlinks in both the physical environment and in the mobile terminal, and user requirements for physical selection as a part of an ambient intelligence architecture

Desenvolvimento de recursos educativos em dispositivos móveis - RealHiBook

Nos últimos anos têm existido bastantes pesquisas e um grande investimento quer na área da educação à distância quer ao nível das tecnologias móveis. A dada altura percebeu-se que cada vez mais poderiam ser utilizados dispositivos móveis no contexto da educação e de que estes já seriam capazes de responder às exigências necessárias para que fosse possível criar ou melhorar cenários com recursos educativos. Este trabalho tem como objetivo propor um modelo que facilite a aprendizagem em dispositivos móveis. Nesse sentido, decidiu-se que seria uma mais-valia adicionar a este projeto, a utilização da Realidade Aumentada como potenciador de melhorias no processo de aprendizagem. A Realidade Aumentada, a par do que acontece com a educação à distância e com as tecnologias móveis, é uma área alvo de constantes investigações e inovação. Apresenta como principal capacidade a interação do utilizador com vários modelos virtuais incluídos numa cena real. Esta capacidade proporciona experiências que podem contribuir para o aumento da motivação e da perceção por parte dos alunos. A forma como o utilizador interage com as aplicações móveis é vista com extrema importância, principalmente na área da educação. Aliar uma boa interação à utilização da Realidade Aumentada, é parte integrante deste trabalho. Foram estudados exemplos de interações e formas como o utilizador vive a experiência durante a utilização de aplicações que partilham o mesmo tipo de tecnologias utilizadas neste projeto. O objetivo final foca-se na criação de uma aplicação, capaz de fornecer uma experiência enriquecedora no âmbito do ensino, ligado ao tema história e que consiga fundamentar a criação de um modelo que facilite a aprendizagem utilizando plataformas móveis. Os objetivos são corroborados por um conjunto de testes efetuados à aplicação e pelos resultados obtidos através de um questionário feito a um grupo de pessoas que testaram o protótipo.In recent years there have been plenty of research and a great investment both in the area of distance education and at the level of mobile technologies. At one point it was realized that more and more mobile devices could be used in the context of education and that these would already be able to meet the requirements necessary so that they could to create or improve scenarios with educational resources. This work aims to propose a model that facilitates learning on mobile devices. Accordingly, it was decided that it would be an asset to add to this project, the use of augmented reality as a potentiator of improvements in the learning process. Augmented reality, aware of what happens to the distance education with mobile technologies is an area subject to constant research and innovation. Presents the main capability of the user interaction with multiple virtual models included in a real scene. This capability provides experiences that can contribute to increase the motivation and the perception from students. The way the user interacts with mobile applications is seen as extremely important, especially in education. Ally a good interaction with the use of augmented reality, is an integral part of this work. Have been studied interactions and examples of ways in which the user is experiencing during use applications sharing the same type of technology used in this project. The final objective focuses on creating an application, able to provide an enriching experience in teaching, about the theme story, that can support the creation of a model that facilitates learning using mobile platforms. The objectives are supported by a set of tests performed on the application and the results obtained through a questionnaire to a group of people who tested the prototype

Proximity-based systems: Incorporating mobility and scalability through proximity sensing

This thesis was submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and awarded by Brunel University.This thesis argues that the concept of spatial proximity offers a viable and practical option for the development of context-aware systems for highly mobile and dynamic environments. Such systems would overcome the shortcomings experienced by today’s location-based and infrastructure dependent systems whose ability to deliver context-awareness is prescribed by their infrastructure. The proposed architecture will also allow for scalable interaction as against the single level of interaction in existing systems which limits services to a particular sized area. The thesis examines the concept of spatial proximity and demonstrates how this concept can be exploited to take advantage of technological convergence to offer mobility and scalability to systems. It discusses the design of a proximity-based system that can deliver scalable context-aware services in highly mobile and dynamic environments. It explores the practical application of this novel design in a proximity-sensitive messaging application by creating a proof-of-concept prototype. The proof-of-concept prototype is used to evaluate the design as well as to elicit user views and expectations about a proximity-based approach. Together these provide a valuable insight into the applicability of the proximity-based approach for designing context-aware systems. The design and development work discussed in the thesis presents a Proximity-Sensitive System Architecture that can be adapted for a variety of proximity-sensitive services. This is illustrated by means of examples, including a variety of context-aware messaging applications. The thesis also raises issues for information delivery, resource sharing, and human-computer interaction. While the technological solution (proximity-based messaging) offered is only one among several that can be developed using this architecture, it offers the opportunity to stimulate ideas in the relatively new field of proximity and technological convergence research, and contributes to a better understanding of their potential role in offering context-aware services

Physical Selection in Ubiquitous Computing

Jokapaikan tietotekniikassa (ubiquitous computing) tietotekniset laitteet sulautuvat fyysiseen ympäristöön siten että niiden käyttäjät voivat olla yhtä aikaa vuorovaikutuksessa näiden laitteiden kanssa ja toimia fyysisessä ympäristössään. Laitteet ovat yhteydessä toisiinsa, ne ovat eri kokoisia ja niillä on erilaisia syöttö- ja tulostusmahdollisuuksia tarkoituksestaan riippuen. Nämä jokapaikan tietotekniikan ominaisuudet luovat tarpeen vuorovaikutustavoille, jotka eroavat huomattavasti tavanomaisten työpöytätietokoneiden vuorovaikutustavoista. Fyysinen valinta (physical selection) on jokapaikan tietotekniikan vuorovaikutustehtävä, jota käytetään kertomaan käyttäjän kannettavalle päätelaitteelle minkä fyysisen esineen kanssa käyttäjä haluaa olla vuorovaikutuksessa. Fyysinen valinta perustuu tunnisteisiin (tag), jotka yksilöivät fyysiset esineet tai sisältävät fyysisen hyperlinkin digitaalisessa muodossa olevaan tietoon, joka liittyy esineeseen, johon kyseinen tunniste on liitetty. Käyttäjä valitsee fyysisen hyperlinkin koskettamalla, osoittamalla tai skannaamalla tunnistetta sopivalla lukulaitteella varustetulla päätelaitteellaan. Fyysinen valinta voidaan toteuttaa erilaisilla teknologioilla, kuten sähköisesti luettavilla tunnisteilla ja niiden lukijoilla, infrapunalähettimillä sekä optisesti luettavilla tunnisteilla ja matkapuhelinten kameroilla. Tässä väitöskirjassa analysoidaan fyysistä valintaa vuorovaikutustehtävänä ja toteutusteknisestä näkökulmasta sekä esitellään eri valintatavat ­ kosketus, osoitus ja skannaus. Koskeusta ja osoitusta on tutkittu toteuttamalla prototyyppi ja tutkimalla sen avulla valintatapoja kokeellisesti. Tämän väitöskirjan tuloksiin kuuluu fyysisen valinnan analysointi jokapaikan tietotekniikan kontekstissa, ehdotuksia fyysisten hyperlinkkien visualisoinnista sekä fyysisessä ympäristössä että päätelaitteessa, ja käyttäjävaatimuksia fyysiselle valinnalle osana jokapaikan tietotekniikan arkkitehtuuria.In ubiquitous computing, the computing devices are embedded into the physical environment so that the users can interact with the devices at the same time as they interact with the physical environment. The various devices are connected to each other, and have various sizes and input and output capabilities depending on their purpose. These features of ubiquitous computing create a need for interaction methods that are radically different from the desktop computer interactions. Physical selection is an interaction task for ubiquitous computing and it is used to tell the user s mobile terminal which physical object the user wants to interact with. It is based on tags that identify physical objects or store a physical hyperlink to digital information related to the object the tag is attached to. The user selects the physical hyperlink by touching, pointing or scanning the tag with the mobile terminal that is equipped with an appropriate reader. Physical selection has been implemented with various technologies, such as radio-frequency tags and readers, infrared transceivers, and optically readable tags and mobile phone cameras. In this dissertation, physical selection is analysed as a user interaction task, and from the implementation viewpoint. Different selection methods ­ touching, pointing and scanning ­ are presented. Touching and pointing have been studied by implementing a prototype and conducting user experiments with it. The contributions of this dissertation include an analysis of physical selection in the ubiquitous computing context, suggestions for visualising the physical hyperlinks in both the physical environment and in the mobile terminal, and user requirements for physical selection as a part of an ambient intelligence architecture

Proximity-based systems : incorporating mobility and scalability through proximity sensing

This thesis argues that the concept of spatial proximity offers a viable and practical option for the development of context-aware systems for highly mobile and dynamic environments. Such systems would overcome the shortcomings experienced by today’s location-based and infrastructure dependent systems whose ability to deliver context-awareness is prescribed by their infrastructure. The proposed architecture will also allow for scalable interaction as against the single level of interaction in existing systems which limits services to a particular sized area. The thesis examines the concept of spatial proximity and demonstrates how this concept can be exploited to take advantage of technological convergence to offer mobility and scalability to systems. It discusses the design of a proximity-based system that can deliver scalable context-aware services in highly mobile and dynamic environments. It explores the practical application of this novel design in a proximity-sensitive messaging application by creating a proof-of-concept prototype. The proof-of-concept prototype is used to evaluate the design as well as to elicit user views and expectations about a proximity-based approach. Together these provide a valuable insight into the applicability of the proximity-based approach for designing context-aware systems. The design and development work discussed in the thesis presents a Proximity-Sensitive System Architecture that can be adapted for a variety of proximity-sensitive services. This is illustrated by means of examples, including a variety of context-aware messaging applications. The thesis also raises issues for information delivery, resource sharing, and human-computer interaction. While the technological solution (proximity-based messaging) offered is only one among several that can be developed using this architecture, it offers the opportunity to stimulate ideas in the relatively new field of proximity and technological convergence research, and contributes to a better understanding of their potential role in offering context-aware services.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo

Proximity-based systems : incorporating mobility and scalability through proximity sensing

This thesis argues that the concept of spatial proximity offers a viable and practical option for the development of context-aware systems for highly mobile and dynamic environments. Such systems would overcome the shortcomings experienced by today’s location-based and infrastructure dependent systems whose ability to deliver context-awareness is prescribed by their infrastructure. The proposed architecture will also allow for scalable interaction as against the single level of interaction in existing systems which limits services to a particular sized area. The thesis examines the concept of spatial proximity and demonstrates how this concept can be exploited to take advantage of technological convergence to offer mobility and scalability to systems. It discusses the design of a proximity-based system that can deliver scalable context-aware services in highly mobile and dynamic environments. It explores the practical application of this novel design in a proximity-sensitive messaging application by creating a proof-of-concept prototype. The proof-of-concept prototype is used to evaluate the design as well as to elicit user views and expectations about a proximity-based approach. Together these provide a valuable insight into the applicability of the proximity-based approach for designing context-aware systems. The design and development work discussed in the thesis presents a Proximity-Sensitive System Architecture that can be adapted for a variety of proximity-sensitive services. This is illustrated by means of examples, including a variety of context-aware messaging applications. The thesis also raises issues for information delivery, resource sharing, and human-computer interaction. While the technological solution (proximity-based messaging) offered is only one among several that can be developed using this architecture, it offers the opportunity to stimulate ideas in the relatively new field of proximity and technological convergence research, and contributes to a better understanding of their potential role in offering context-aware services.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo