A Comparison of Alphanumeric, Direct Manipulation Graphic, and Equivalent Interface Design for a Production Scheduling Task

Scheduling is an essential factor influencing the efficiency of any production system. The effectiveness of the scheduling system depends upon the interaction of the human and machine. Thus, to effectively design the interface between the human and the machine, the human factors professional must understand scheduling behavior and the information requirements of the scheduling task. The present study modeled human scheduling behavior and determined the information requirements of the scheduling task. The study also compared alphanumeric, direct manipulation graphic, and equivalent interfaces to determine which interface best supports scheduling. The results of the study show that schedulers monitor the current system state and preview to future system states to test scheduling options and make scheduling decisions. Thus, current state, goal state, future state, and discrepancy between goal state and future state information help schedulers. In addition, the analysis suggests that a mixed format interface design best supports the human in the scheduling system. Recommendations for interface design and future research are discussed

A Comparative Study of the Warrior Support Tool and the Agile Munitions Support Tool

The purpose of this research is to ascertain if the United States Air Force (USAF) is duplicating effort with the development of the two IT applications, the Warrior Support Tool (WST) and the Agile Munitions Support Tool (AMST), or if one will effectively meet requirements. Specifically, this thesis sought to answer four research questions addressing customer needs for a munitions IT application, identifying the capabilities of the two research IT applications, determining how well each application met the needs of the customer, and determining how supportable each application was in terms of information needs versus existing munitions systems. A mixed qualitative and quantitative paradigm was used to conduct a gap analysis and verification occurred through the use of surveys. Sixty-five munitions users participated in a surveying session to identify differences between the two systems as well as the relative merits of each. Overall, munitions users chose WST as the more favorable application. All but two construct measures supported the overall rating of the application. Munitions personnel liked the screen layout of AMST better than that of WST even though WST seemed to be the application that better used terminology familiar to munitions personnel. WST was also the easier of the two applications to manipulate although the AMST help features were identified as the better of the two. The Warrior Support Tool provided information in a timelier manner than did the Agile Munitions Support Tool

Latent Print Examination and Human Factors: Improving the Practice Through a Systems Approach: The Report of the Expert Working Group on Human Factors in Latent Print Analysis

Fingerprints have provided a valuable method of personal identification in forensic science and criminal investigations for more than 100 years. Fingerprints left at crime scenes generally are latent prints—unintentional reproductions of the arrangement of ridges on the skin made by the transfer of materials (such as amino acids, proteins, polypeptides, and salts) to a surface. Palms and the soles of feet also have friction ridge skin that can leave latent prints. The examination of a latent print consists of a series of steps involving a comparison of the latent print to a known (or exemplar) print. Courts have accepted latent print evidence for the past century. However, several high-profile cases in the United States and abroad have highlighted the fact that human errors can occur, and litigation and expressions of concern over the evidentiary reliability of latent print examinations and other forensic identification procedures has increased in the last decade. “Human factors” issues can arise in any experience- and judgment-based analytical process such as latent print examination. Inadequate training, extraneous knowledge about the suspects in the case or other matters, poor judgment, health problems, limitations of vision, complex technology, and stress are but a few factors that can contribute to errors. A lack of standards or quality control, poor management, insufficient resources, and substandard working conditions constitute other potentially contributing factors

A decision support methodology for rehabilitation management of concrete bridges

Managing the existing bridge infrastructure has become a major social and economic concern in North America. This is due to the critical conditions of the deteriorated bridges and the limited funds available to repair their deficiencies. Most transportation agencies make bridge investment decisions based on a combination of some form of quantitative data analysis and the subjective judgments of decision and policy makers. The subjective nature of the decision making process easily raises questions about whether the investment decisions are being developed in a fair, equitable and systematic manner. This dissertation presents a decision support methodology developed for the rehabilitation management of concrete bridges in general, and for bridge decks in particular. A probabilistic bridge condition assessment method is developed. This method is consistent with the current practice in bridge inspection and the Markovian approach to model deterioration. A means to rank bridge projects is presented, which makes use of a hierarchy structure to represent the problem and rank the different bridge projects using the Multi Attribute Utility Theory (MAUT). A method to evaluate the available rehabilitation strategies is discussed. This method uses a modified Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) and the Monte Carlo simulation technique to evaluate the weights for the different rehabilitation strategies available for each project. A decision making technique to select a recommended work program that maximizes benefits to the network and to the users is developed. The developed methodology has the potential to be extended to other bridge components and to be the foundation for a comprehensive bridge management system. The significant features of this methodology can be summarized as follows: (1) It is consistent with the current practice in bridge management condition assessment and deterioration modeling. (2) It employs a multiple-criteria decision making process; (3) it has the flexibility to allow engineers to utilize their experience and judgment in the decision making process; and (4) It combines the network and the project levels of the bridge management process and performs effectively within a limited budget

Advances in Human-Robot Interaction

Rapid advances in the field of robotics have made it possible to use robots not just in industrial automation but also in entertainment, rehabilitation, and home service. Since robots will likely affect many aspects of human existence, fundamental questions of human-robot interaction must be formulated and, if at all possible, resolved. Some of these questions are addressed in this collection of papers by leading HRI researchers

Solution monitoring as a nuclear materials safeguards tool

The work presented in this thesis describes a solution monitoring system that has been developed to assist United Nations' inspectors performing nuclear materials safeguards, primarily pertaining to plutonium storage and nuclear fuel reprocessing facilities. Based on the concept of the 'event', which is essentially any process that occurs on the plant, it aims to construct a hypothesis of which events have actually occurred, and to decide if any of these have safeguards implications. The package developed is robust, portable, and easy to use. The system has been implemented in G2 with extensive call-outs to FORTRAN and C routines. Sensor data from the plant is first analysed, and salient features (sub-events) are extracted. A model based diagnostic algorithm is then used to determine all possible causes of these sub-events; based on topographical knowledge of the plant, this makes extensive use of a simulation model. A rule based system then examines permutations of these sub-events and diagnoses, to find all possible events which could explain the data. From the possibilities generated, the most likely events are chosen on the basis of user specified subjective probabilities and on supporting evidence; these probabilities reflect the view that some events are more likely to be acceptable to the operator than others. Bayesian evidential updating methods are used to achieve this. An automatic model generator is presented, which extends the portability and applicability of the diagnostic aid, and makes implementation a great deal easier. Amongst other things, this enables simulations to be constructed automatically using a library of unit process models. The nature and forms of the various user interfaces are discussed. In particular facilities are available for creating and maintaining databases of rules which are used to identify, classify and rank the events. The system has been tested using data from a number of plants, both hypothetical and real. The primary test facilities have pertained to plutonium nitrate solution storage areas. A hypothetical solvent-extraction and concentration facility has also been considered, to extend the range of applicability of the system. These studies have demonstrated that solution monitoring has the potential to be a valuable aid for inspectors responsible for nuclear materials safeguards

Enabling the Development and Implementation of Digital Twins : Proceedings of the 20th International Conference on Construction Applications of Virtual Reality

Welcome to the 20th International Conference on Construction Applications of Virtual Reality (CONVR 2020). This year we are meeting on-line due to the current Coronavirus pandemic. The overarching theme for CONVR2020 is "Enabling the development and implementation of Digital Twins". CONVR is one of the world-leading conferences in the areas of virtual reality, augmented reality and building information modelling. Each year, more than 100 participants from all around the globe meet to discuss and exchange the latest developments and applications of virtual technologies in the architectural, engineering, construction and operation industry (AECO). The conference is also known for having a unique blend of participants from both academia and industry. This year, with all the difficulties of replicating a real face to face meetings, we are carefully planning the conference to ensure that all participants have a perfect experience. We have a group of leading keynote speakers from industry and academia who are covering up to date hot topics and are enthusiastic and keen to share their knowledge with you. CONVR participants are very loyal to the conference and have attended most of the editions over the last eighteen editions. This year we are welcoming numerous first timers and we aim to help them make the most of the conference by introducing them to other participants

Synthesizing play: exploring the use of artificial intelligence to evaluate game user experience

Digital games are a complex interactive medium providing a multitude of different experiences. The field of games user research (GUR) is dedicated to investigating and optimizing user experience in games. Such inquiries are of both commercial and academic importance, enhancing product quality and our understanding of human behaviour. A common GUR methodology is usertesting, where researchers gain insights from human users interacting with products. However, usertesting is expensive in terms of expert labour, time, and resource costs. To address these concerns, we developed PathOS, a free, open-source tool for game testing with AI agents. PathOS simulates player navigation in games using a basic model of human behaviour. We conducted an evaluation of PathOS with developers, finding that it provides valuable predictions of user behaviour in the iterative design process. Ultimately, we aim to give the game development community a useful and versatile augmentation to their testing processes