50,306 research outputs found
Accessible user interface support for multi-device ubiquitous applications: architectural modifiability considerations
The market for personal computing devices is rapidly expanding from PC, to mobile, home entertainment systems, and even the automotive industry. When developing software targeting such ubiquitous devices, the balance between development costs and market coverage has turned out to be a challenging issue. With the rise of Web technology and the Internet of things, ubiquitous applications have become a reality. Nonetheless, the diversity of presentation and interaction modalities still drastically limit the number of targetable devices and the accessibility toward end users. This paper presents webinos, a multi-device application middleware platform founded on the Future Internet infrastructure. Hereto, the platform's architectural modifiability considerations are described and evaluated as a generic enabler for supporting applications, which are executed in ubiquitous computing environments
Stressing the Boundaries of Mobile Accessibility
Mobile devices gather the communication capabilities as no other gadget.
Plus, they now comprise a wider set of applications while still maintaining
reduced size and weight. They have started to include accessibility features
that enable the inclusion of disabled people. However, these inclusive efforts
still fall short considering the possibilities of such devices. This is mainly
due to the lack of interoperability and extensibility of current mobile
operating systems (OS). In this paper, we present a case study of a
multi-impaired person where access to basic mobile applications was provided in
an applicational basis. We outline the main flaws in current mobile OS and
suggest how these could further empower developers to provide accessibility
components. These could then be compounded to provide system-wide inclusion to
a wider range of (multi)-impairments.Comment: 3 pages, two figures, ACM CHI 2013 Mobile Accessibility Worksho
Combining brain-computer interfaces and assistive technologies: state-of-the-art and challenges
In recent years, new research has brought the field of EEG-based Brain-Computer Interfacing (BCI) out of its infancy and into a phase of relative maturity through many demonstrated prototypes such as brain-controlled wheelchairs, keyboards, and computer games. With this proof-of-concept phase in the past, the time is now ripe to focus on the development of practical BCI technologies that can be brought out of the lab and into real-world applications. In particular, we focus on the prospect of improving the lives of countless disabled individuals through a combination of BCI technology with existing assistive technologies (AT). In pursuit of more practical BCIs for use outside of the lab, in this paper, we identify four application areas where disabled individuals could greatly benefit from advancements in BCI technology, namely,“Communication and Control”, “Motor Substitution”, “Entertainment”, and “Motor Recovery”. We review the current state of the art and possible future developments, while discussing the main research issues in these four areas. In particular, we expect the most progress in the development of technologies such as hybrid BCI architectures, user-machine adaptation algorithms, the exploitation of users’ mental states for BCI reliability and confidence measures, the incorporation of principles in human-computer interaction (HCI) to improve BCI usability, and the development of novel BCI technology including better EEG devices
The design-by-adaptation approach to universal access: learning from videogame technology
This paper proposes an alternative approach to the design of universally accessible interfaces to that provided by formal design frameworks applied ab initio to the development of new software. This approach, design-byadaptation, involves the transfer of interface technology and/or design principles from one application domain to another, in situations where the recipient domain is similar to the host domain in terms of modelled systems, tasks and users. Using the example of interaction in 3D virtual environments, the paper explores how principles underlying the design of videogame interfaces may be applied to a broad family of visualization and analysis software which handles geographical data (virtual geographic environments, or VGEs). One of the motivations behind the current study is that VGE technology lags some way behind videogame technology in the modelling of 3D environments, and has a less-developed track record in providing the variety of interaction methods needed to undertake varied tasks in 3D virtual worlds by users with varied levels of experience. The current analysis extracted a set of interaction principles from videogames which were used to devise a set of 3D task interfaces that have been implemented in a prototype VGE for formal evaluation
The Impact of Flow in an EEG-based Brain Computer Interface
Major issues in Brain Computer Interfaces (BCIs) include low usability and
poor user performance. This paper tackles them by ensuring the users to be in a
state of immersion, control and motivation, called state of flow. Indeed, in
various disciplines, being in the state of flow was shown to improve
performances and learning. Hence, we intended to draw BCI users in a flow state
to improve both their subjective experience and their performances. In a Motor
Imagery BCI game, we manipulated flow in two ways: 1) by adapting the task
difficulty and 2) by using background music. Results showed that the difficulty
adaptation induced a higher flow state, however music had no effect. There was
a positive correlation between subjective flow scores and offline performance,
although the flow factors had no effect (adaptation) or negative effect (music)
on online performance. Overall, favouring the flow state seems a promising
approach for enhancing users' satisfaction, although its complexity requires
more thorough investigations
Considering the User in the Wireless World
The near future promises significant advances in communication capabilities, but one of the keys to success is the capability understanding of the people with regards to its value and usage. In considering the role of the user in the wireless world of the future, the Human Perspective Working Group (WG1) of the Wireless World Research Forum has gathered input and developed positions in four important areas: methods, processes, and best practices for user-centered research and design; reference frameworks for modeling user needs within the context of wireless systems; user scenario creation and analysis; and user interaction technologies. This article provides an overview of WG1's work in these areas that are critical to ensuring that the future wireless world meets and exceeds the expectations of people in the coming decades
CREOLE: a Universal Language for Creating, Requesting, Updating and Deleting Resources
In the context of Service-Oriented Computing, applications can be developed
following the REST (Representation State Transfer) architectural style. This
style corresponds to a resource-oriented model, where resources are manipulated
via CRUD (Create, Request, Update, Delete) interfaces. The diversity of CRUD
languages due to the absence of a standard leads to composition problems
related to adaptation, integration and coordination of services. To overcome
these problems, we propose a pivot architecture built around a universal
language to manipulate resources, called CREOLE, a CRUD Language for Resource
Edition. In this architecture, scripts written in existing CRUD languages, like
SQL, are compiled into Creole and then executed over different CRUD interfaces.
After stating the requirements for a universal language for manipulating
resources, we formally describe the language and informally motivate its
definition with respect to the requirements. We then concretely show how the
architecture solves adaptation, integration and coordination problems in the
case of photo management in Flickr and Picasa, two well-known service-oriented
applications. Finally, we propose a roadmap for future work.Comment: In Proceedings FOCLASA 2010, arXiv:1007.499
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