OPEB: Open Physical Environment Benchmark for Artificial Intelligence

Artificial Intelligence methods to solve continuous- control tasks have made significant progress in recent years. However, these algorithms have important limitations and still need significant improvement to be used in industry and real- world applications. This means that this area is still in an active research phase. To involve a large number of research groups, standard benchmarks are needed to evaluate and compare proposed algorithms. In this paper, we propose a physical environment benchmark framework to facilitate collaborative research in this area by enabling different research groups to integrate their designed benchmarks in a unified cloud-based repository and also share their actual implemented benchmarks via the cloud. We demonstrate the proposed framework using an actual implementation of the classical mountain-car example and present the results obtained using a Reinforcement Learning algorithm.Comment: Accepted in 3rd IEEE International Forum on Research and Technologies for Society and Industry 201

Frankenstein's Toolkit: Prototyping Electronics Using Consumer Products

In our practice as educators, researchers and designers we have found that centering reverse engineering and reuse has pedagogical, environmental, and economic benefits. Design decisions in the development of new hardware tool-kits should consider how we can use e-waste at hand as integral components of electronics prototyping. Dissection, extraction and modification can give insights into how things are made at scale. Simultaneously, it can enable prototypes that have greater fidelity or functionality than would otherwise be cost-effective to produce

A Conceptual Semi-Humanoid Wireless Robotic Lecturer for Distance Learning (DL)

Information and Communications Technology is causing a worldwide revolution in virtually all fields of human endeavor. The education sector is not left out as the delivery of course content is no longer limited to the traditional teacher-student classroom interaction but also via electronic media. This paper presents a novel approach to e-Learning by leveraging on advancements in Machine-to-Machine communications (M2M), Internet-of-Things (IoT) and robotics technologies to design and construct a semihumanoid class teaching robot that aids teachers, lecturers and other educational personnel in communicating effectively with the students irrespective of their location and the distance using a plastic mannequin. The implementation of the system is achieved through hardware (mannequin) and software designs. The authors successfully developed a plastic mannequin with embedded electronics systems to work as a telepresence lecturer, allowing the elimination of time and distance between a professional remote educator and the students. The device was tested and compared with existing remote teaching technologies such as teleconferencing, telepresence with tablet screens and found to be more reliable, cheaper, and easy to use than the existing ones. The paper therefore concludes that the semi-humanoid robotic lecturer is a disruptive innovation in the world of Distance Education Learning (DEL)

Experiences from Using Gamification and IoT-based Educational Tools in High Schools towards Energy Savings

Raising awareness among young people, and especially students, on the relevance of behavior change for achieving energy savings is increasingly being considered as a key enabler towards long-term and cost-effective energy efficiency policies. However, the way to successfully apply educational interventions focused on such targets inside schools is still an open question. In this paper, we present our approach for enabling IoT-based energy savings and sustainability awareness lectures and promoting data-driven energy-saving behaviors focused on a high school audience. We present our experiences toward the successful application of sets of educational tools and software over a real-world Internet of Things (IoT) deployment. We discuss the use of gamification and competition as a very effective end-user engagement mechanism for school audiences. We also present the design of an IoT-based hands-on lab activity, integrated within a high school computer science curricula utilizing IoT devices and data produced inside the school building, along with the Node-RED platform. We describe the tools used, the organization of the educational activities and related goals. We report on the experience carried out in both directions in a high school in Italy and conclude by discussing the results in terms of achieved energy savings within an observation period.Comment: to be presented at 2019 European Conference on Ambient Intelligenc

PolyGloT: A Personalized and Gamified eTutoring System

The digital age is changing the role of educators and pushing for a paradigm shift in the education system as a whole. Growing demand for general and specialized education inside and outside classrooms is at the heart of this rising trend. In modern, heterogeneous learning environments, the one-size-fits-all approach is proven to be fundamentally flawed. Individualization through adaptivity is, therefore, crucial to nurture individual potential and address accessibility needs and neurodiversity. By formalizing a learning framework that takes into account all these different aspects, we aim to define and implement an open, content-agnostic, and extensible eTutoring platform to design and consume adaptive and gamified learning experiences. Adaptive technology supplementing teaching can extend the reach of every teacher, making it possible to scale 1-1 learning experiences. There are many successful existing technologies available but they come with fixed environments that are not always suitable for the targeted audiences of the course material. This paper presents PolyGloT, a system able to help teachers to design and implement a gamified and adaptive learning paths. Through it we address some important issues including the engagement, fairness, and effectiveness of learning environments. We do not only propose an innovative platform that could foster the learning process of different disciplines, but it could also help teachers and instructors in organizing learning material in an easy-access repositoryComment: 6 pages; 5 figure

An Analytical Study on the Implementation of a Healthcare App to Assist People with Disabilities Using Cloud Computing and IoT

This study targets a group of people who require care, that is, people with special needs. The significance of this study lies in addressing the main problem that this group suffers from, which is the lack of awareness and information that leads to the acceptance of that group in society. This work aims to create a mobile application that contributes to spreading knowledge among people with special needs and enhancing their skills to help them become accepted by community members. This application supports people with special needs with training resources, education, suitable jobs, and other services helping them in developing their experiences and knowledge to be active in society. In addition, an evaluation questionnaire has been developed to collect data from both the private and public sectors to classify the building blocks necessary for KSA to incorporate the Internet of Things (IoT) and cloud computing into the healthcare sector. As a result, most respondents acknowledge the importance of a streamlined data-gathering process, the IoT, and cloud-based computing to meet their healthcare needs. Lastly, six main blocks for checking suppliers and the public to accept IoT and cloud healthcare applications are then acknowledged in this paper

Domestic Widgets: Leveraging Household Creativity in Co-Creating Data Physicalisations

The home environment is a complex design space, especially when it has multiple inhabitants. As such, the home presents challenges for the design of smart products. Householders may be different ages and have differing interests, needs, and attitudes towards technology. We pursued a research-through-design study with family households to envision and ‘co-create’ the future of data-enabled artifacts for their homes. We have iteratively developed domestic research artefacts for these households that are open, data-enabled, physical visualizations. These artefacts - called Domestic Widgets - are customisable in their design and functionality throughout their lifespan. The development process highlights design challenges for sustained co-creation and the leveraging of household creativity in (co-creation) research toolkits. These include the need to allow and inspire iterative customization, the need to accommodate changing roles within the home ecology, and the aim that such design should be inclusive for all family members (irrespective of age and technical proficiency), whilst maintaining a role and purpose in the home. We invite the RTD community to critically discuss our, and other, open and iterative end-user designs for sustained co-creation. By presenting unbuilt and interactive pre-built Domestic Widgets, we interactively foster engagement with practises of sustained co-creation