Multimodal Subscriber Interfaces for Infocommunication Systems

The quality enhancement of infocommunication systems based on integration of semantically different information transmitted over different communication channels is discussed. The increase of the informational efficiency of the multimodal communication systems is provided by using multimodal subscriber interfaces, compared to traditional telecommunications. The proposed approach is new in the subject area and requires a variety of research studies to develop innovative elements of the theory of multimodal information transmission. A notion of information value is introduced in order to estimate and chose functional structures and parameters that possess the most favorable informational characteristics during development of multimodal communication systems

Diverse perceptions of smart spaces

This is the era of smart technology and of ‘smart’ as a meme, so we have run three workshops to examine the ‘smart’ meme and the exploitation of smart environments. The literature relating to smart spaces focuses primarily on technologies and their capabilities. Our three workshops demonstrated that we require a stronger user focus if we are advantageously to exploit spaces ascribed as smart: we examined the concept of smartness from a variety of perspectives, in collaboration with a broad range of contributors. We have prepared this monograph mainly to report on the third workshop, held at Bournemouth University in April 2012, but do also consider the lessons learned from all three. We conclude with a roadmap for a fourth (and final) workshop, which is intended to emphasise the overarching importance of the humans using the spac

Разработка веб-системы для предоставления обучающих сервисов удаленным мобильным пользователям

Issues of development of methodical support and soft-hardware facilities, which improve capabilities of distant learning with using mobile devices, are considered. The analysis of current state of audio-, video- and presentation devices is used for compilation of the actual content of user web-interface adaptive to mobile device features.Рассматриваются вопросы разработки методического обеспечения и программно-аппаратных средств, повышающих возможности удаленного обучения с применением мобильных устройств. Анализ текущего состояния аудио-, видео-, презентационного оборудования используется при формировании актуального контента пользовательского Web-интерфейса, адаптивного к характеристикам клиентского устройства

Sound based social networks

The sound environment is an eco of the activity and character of each place, often carrying additional information to that made available to the eyes (both new and redundant). It is, therefore, an intangible and volatile acoustic fingerprint of the place, or simply an acoustic snapshot of a single event. Such rich resource, full of meaning and subtleness, Schaeffer called Soundscape. The exploratory research project presented here addresses the Soundscape in the context of Mobile Online Social Networking, aiming at determining the extent of its applicability regarding the establishment and/or strengthening of new and existing social links. Such research goal demanded an interdisciplinary approach, which we have anchored in three main stems: Soundscapes, Mobile Sound and Social Networking. These three areas pave the scientific ground for this study and are introduced during the first part of the thesis. An extensive survey of the state-of-the-arte projects related with this research is also presented, gathering examples from different but adjacent areas such as mobile sensing, wearable computing, sonification, social media and contextaware computing. This survey validates that our approach is scientifically opportune and unique, at the same time. Furthermore, in order to assess the role of Soundscapes in the context of Social Networking, an experimental procedure has been implemented based on an Online Social Networking mobile application, enriched with environmental sensing mechanisms, able to capture and analyze the surrounding Soundscape and users' movements. Two main goals guided this prototypal research tool: collecting data regarding users' activity (both sonic and kinetic) and providing users with a real experience using a Sound-Based Social Network, in order to collect informed opinions about this unique type of Social Networking. The application – Hurly-Burly – senses the surrounding Soundscape and analyzes it using machine audition techniques, classifying it according to four categories: speech, music, environmental sounds and silence. Additionally, it determines the sound pressure level of the sensed Soundscape in dB(A)eq. This information is then broadcasted to the entire online social network of the user, allowing each element to visualize and audition a representation of the collected data. An individual record for each user is kept available in a webserver and can be accessed through an online application, displaying the continuous acoustic profile of each user along a timeline graph. The experimental procedure included three different test groups, forming each one a social network with a cluster coefficient equal to one. After the implementation and result analysis stages we concluded that Soundscapes can have a role in the Online Social Networking paradigm, specially when concerning mobile applications. Has been proven that current offthe- shelf mobile technology is a promising opportunity for accomplishing this kind of tasks (such as continuous monitoring, life logging and environment sensing) but battery limitations and multitasking's constraints are still the bottleneck, hindering the massification of successful applications. Additionally, online privacy is something that users are not enthusiastic in letting go: using captured sound instead of representations of the sound would abstain users from utilizing such applications. We also demonstrated that users who are more aware of the Soundscape concept are also more inclined to assume it as playing an important role in OSN. This means that more pedagogy towards the acoustic phenomenon is needed and this type of research gives a step further in that direction.O ambiente sonoro de um lugar é um eco da sua atividade e carácter, transportando, na maior parte da vezes, informação adicional àquela que é proporcionada à visão (quer seja redundante ou complementar). É, portanto, uma impressão digital acústica - tangível e volátil - do lugar a que pertence, ou simplesmente uma fotografia acústica de um evento pontual. A este opulento recurso, carregado de significados e subtilezas, Schafer chamou de Paisagem-Sonora. O projeto de investigação de carácter exploratório que aqui apresentamos visa o estudo da Paisagem-Sonora no contexto das Redes Sociais Móveis Em-Linha, procurando entender os moldes e limites da sua aplicação, tendo em vista o estabelecimento e/ou reforço de novos ou existente laços sociais, respectivamente. Para satisfazer este objectivo foi necessária uma abordagem multidisciplinar, ancorada em três pilares principais: a Paisagem-Sonora, o Som Móvel e as Redes Sociais. Estas três áreas determinaram a moldura científica de referência em que se enquadrou esta investigação, sendo explanadas na primeira parte da tese. Um extenso levantamento do estado-da-arte referente a projetos relacionados com este estudo é também apresentado, compilando exemplos de áreas distintas mas adjacentes, tais como: Computação Sensorial Móvel, Computação Vestível, Sonificação, Média Social e Computação Contexto-Dependente. Este levantamento veio confirmar quer a originalidade quer a pertinência científica do projeto apresentado. Posteriormente, a fim de avaliar o papel da Paisagem-Sonora no contexto das Redes Sociais, foi posto em prática um procedimento experimental baseado numa Rede Social Sonora Em-Linha, desenvolvida de raiz para dispositivos móveis e acrescida de mecanismos sensoriais para estímulos ambientais, capazes de analisar a Paisagem-Sonora envolvente e os movimentos do utilizador. Dois objectivos principais guiaram a produção desta ferramenta de investigação: recolher dados relativos à atividade cinética e sonora dos utilizadores e proporcionar a estes uma experiência real de utilização uma Rede Social Sonora, de modo a recolher opiniões fundamentadas sobre esta tipologia específica de socialização. A aplicação – Hurly-Burly – analisa a Paisagem-Sonora através de algoritmos de Audição Computacional, classificando- a de acordo com quatro categorias: diálogo (voz), música, sons ambientais (“ruídos”) e silêncio. Adicionalmente, determina o seu nível de pressão sonora em dB(A)eq. Esta informação é então distribuída pela rede social dos utilizadores, permitindo a cada elemento visualizar e ouvir uma representação do som analisado. É mantido num servidor Web um registo individual da informação sonora e cinética captada, o qual pode ser acedido através de uma aplicação Web que mostra o perfil sonoro de cada utilizador ao longo do tempo, numa visualização ao estilo linha-temporal. O procedimento experimental incluiu três grupos de teste distintos, formando cada um a sua própria rede social com coeficiente de aglomeração igual a um. Após a implementação da experiência e análise de resultados, concluímos que a Paisagem- Sonora pode desempenhar um papel no paradigma das Redes Sociais Em- Linha, em particular no que diz respeito à sua presença nos dispositivos móveis. Ficou provado que os dispositivos móveis comerciais da atualidade apresentam-se com uma oportunidade promissora para desempenhar este tipo de tarefas (tais como: monitorização contínua, registo quotidiano e análise sensorial ambiental), mas as limitações relacionadas com a autonomia energética e funcionamento em multitarefa representam ainda um constrangimento que impede a sua massificação. Além disso, a privacidade no mundo virtual é algo que os utilizadores atuais não estão dispostos a abdicar: partilhar continuamente a Paisagem-Sonora real em detrimento de uma representação de alto nível é algo que refrearia os utilizadores de usar a aplicação. Também demonstrámos que os utilizadores que mais conhecedores do fenómeno da Paisagem-Sonora são também os que consideram esta como importante no contexto das Redes Sociais Em-Linha. Isso significa que uma atitude pedagógica em relação ao fenómeno sonoro é essencial para obter dele o maior ganho possível. Esta investigação propõe-se a dar um passo em frente nessa direção

Semi-aural Interfaces: Investigating Voice-controlled Aural Flows

To support mobile, eyes-free web browsing, users can listen to ‘playlists’ of web content— aural flows . Interacting with aural flows, however, requires users to select interface buttons, tethering visual attention to the mobile device even when it is unsafe (e.g. while walking). This research extends the interaction with aural flows through simulated voice commands as a way to reduce visual interaction. This paper presents the findings of a study with 20 participants who browsed aural flows either through a visual interface only or by augmenting it with voice commands. Results suggest that using voice commands reduced the time spent looking at the device by half but yielded similar system usability and cognitive effort ratings as using buttons. Overall, the low-cognitive effort engendered by aural flows, regardless of the interaction modality, allowed participants to do more non-instructed (e.g. looking at the surrounding environment) than instructed activities (e.g. focusing on the user interface)

Quality of experience in telemeetings and videoconferencing: a comprehensive survey

Telemeetings such as audiovisual conferences or virtual meetings play an increasingly important role in our professional and private lives. For that reason, system developers and service providers will strive for an optimal experience for the user, while at the same time optimizing technical and financial resources. This leads to the discipline of Quality of Experience (QoE), an active field originating from the telecommunication and multimedia engineering domains, that strives for understanding, measuring, and designing the quality experience with multimedia technology. This paper provides the reader with an entry point to the large and still growing field of QoE of telemeetings, by taking a holistic perspective, considering both technical and non-technical aspects, and by focusing on current and near-future services. Addressing both researchers and practitioners, the paper first provides a comprehensive survey of factors and processes that contribute to the QoE of telemeetings, followed by an overview of relevant state-of-the-art methods for QoE assessment. To embed this knowledge into recent technology developments, the paper continues with an overview of current trends, focusing on the field of eXtended Reality (XR) applications for communication purposes. Given the complexity of telemeeting QoE and the current trends, new challenges for a QoE assessment of telemeetings are identified. To overcome these challenges, the paper presents a novel Profile Template for characterizing telemeetings from the holistic perspective endorsed in this paper

Multimodal Content Delivery for Geo-services

This thesis describes a body of work carried out over several research projects in the area of multimodal interaction for location-based services. Research in this area has progressed from using simulated mobile environments to demonstrate the visual modality, to the ubiquitous delivery of rich media using multimodal interfaces (geo- services). To effectively deliver these services, research focused on innovative solutions to real-world problems in a number of disciplines including geo-location, mobile spatial interaction, location-based services, rich media interfaces and auditory user interfaces. My original contributions to knowledge are made in the areas of multimodal interaction underpinned by advances in geo-location technology and supported by the proliferation of mobile device technology into modern life. Accurate positioning is a known problem for location-based services, contributions in the area of mobile positioning demonstrate a hybrid positioning technology for mobile devices that uses terrestrial beacons to trilaterate position. Information overload is an active concern for location-based applications that struggle to manage large amounts of data, contributions in the area of egocentric visibility that filter data based on field-of-view demonstrate novel forms of multimodal input. One of the more pertinent characteristics of these applications is the delivery or output modality employed (auditory, visual or tactile). Further contributions in the area of multimodal content delivery are made, where multiple modalities are used to deliver information using graphical user interfaces, tactile interfaces and more notably auditory user interfaces. It is demonstrated how a combination of these interfaces can be used to synergistically deliver context sensitive rich media to users - in a responsive way - based on usage scenarios that consider the affordance of the device, the geographical position and bearing of the device and also the location of the device

E-Learning

E-learning enables students to pace their studies according to their needs, making learning accessible to (1) people who do not have enough free time for studying - they can program their lessons according to their available schedule; (2) those far from a school (geographical issues), or the ones unable to attend classes due to some physical or medical restriction. Therefore, cultural, geographical and physical obstructions can be removed, making it possible for students to select their path and time for the learning course. Students are then allowed to choose the main objectives they are suitable to fulfill. This book regards E-learning challenges, opening a way to understand and discuss questions related to long-distance and lifelong learning, E-learning for people with special needs and, lastly, presenting case study about the relationship between the quality of interaction and the quality of learning achieved in experiences of E-learning formation

Designing and Composing for Interdependent Collaborative Performance with Physics-Based Virtual Instruments

Interdependent collaboration is a system of live musical performance in which performers can directly manipulate each other’s musical outcomes. While most collaborative musical systems implement electronic communication channels between players that allow for parameter mappings, remote transmissions of actions and intentions, or exchanges of musical fragments, they interrupt the energy continuum between gesture and sound, breaking our cognitive representation of gesture to sound dynamics. Physics-based virtual instruments allow for acoustically and physically plausible behaviors that are related to (and can be extended beyond) our experience of the physical world. They inherently maintain and respect a representation of the gesture to sound energy continuum. This research explores the design and implementation of custom physics-based virtual instruments for realtime interdependent collaborative performance. It leverages the inherently physically plausible behaviors of physics-based models to create dynamic, nuanced, and expressive interconnections between performers. Design considerations, criteria, and frameworks are distilled from the literature in order to develop three new physics-based virtual instruments and associated compositions intended for dissemination and live performance by the electronic music and instrumental music communities. Conceptual, technical, and artistic details and challenges are described, and reflections and evaluations by the composer-designer and performers are documented