Building a Driving Simulator as an Electric Vehicle Hardware Development Tool

Driving simulators have been used to support the development of new vehicle systems for many years. The rise of electric vehicles (EVs) as a means of reducing carbon emissions has lead to the emergence of a number of new design challenges related to the performance of EV components and the flow of power under a variety of circumstances. In this paper we describe the integration of an EV drive train test system with a driving simulator to allow the performance of EV systems to be investigated while under the control of real drivers in simulated scenarios. Such a system offers several potential benefits. The performance of EV drive trains can be evaluated subjectively by real world users while the electrical and mechanical properties can be tested under a variety of conditions which would be difficult to replicate using standard drive cycles

The State of the Art in Fuel Cell Condition Monitoring and Maintenance

Fuel cell vehicles are considered to be a viable solution to problems such as carbon emissions and fuel shortages for road transport. Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) Fuel Cells are mainly used in this purpose because they can run at low temperatures and have a simple structure. Yet to make this technology commercially viable, there are still many hurdles to overcome. Apart from the high cost of fuel cell systems, high maintenance costs and short lifecycle are two main issues need to be addressed. The main purpose of this paper is to review the issues affecting the reliability and lifespan of fuel cells and present the state of the art in fuel cell condition monitoring and maintenance. The Structure of PEM fuel cell is introduced and examples of its application in a variety of applications are presented. The fault modes including membrane flooding/drying, fuel/gas starvation, physical defects of membrane, and catalyst poisoning are listed and assessed for their impact. Then the relationship between causes, faults, symptoms and long term implications of fault conditions are summarized. Finally the state of the art in PEM fuel cell condition monitoring and maintenance is reviewed and conclusions are drawn regarding suggested maintenance strategies and the optimal structure for an integrated, cost effective condition monitoring and maintenance management system

Restorative practice and behaviour management in schools: discipline meets care.

The history of restorative practices in New Zealand schools is directly related to projects such as the Suspension Reduction Initiative (SRI) and the more recent Student Engagement Initiative (SEI); thus the origins of restorative practices in schools are linked with behaviour management and school discipline. During the same period, teachers' work has become more complex: They are working with an increasingly diverse range of students, which in turn requires epistemologically diverse teaching and relationship-building approaches to ensure maximum participation for all. Teachers are looking for new and better ways to interact with students in their classrooms, and those responsible for disciplinary systems are looking to restorative practice for new ways to resolve the increasing range and number of difficulties between teachers and students, students and other students, and between the school and parents. Restorative practices (RP) are currently seen as a way of achieving all this, so they carry a huge burden of hope. Relationship skills are a key competency in the new curriculum, and the philosophy of restoration offers both a basis for understanding and a process for putting this agenda into practice. In effect, it means educating for citizenship in a diverse world, including teaching the skills of conflict resolution. If we accept this philosophy, the curriculum for teacher education will require significant changes in what students are taught about behaviour and classroom management

Exploring (un)sustainable growth of digital technologies in the home

HCI and Ubicomp research often centres around the support of humans interacting with digital technology. Despite this obvious focus, there seems to be less work on understanding how these digital technologies can lead to growth in use, dependence, and influence practices in everyday life. In this paper we discuss how digital technologies have been, and continue to be, adopted in domestic practices—and how the growth of interactions with various ecologies of digital technologies can lead to growth in use and energy consumption. We further the discussion within ICT4S and sustainable HCI on how to promote research that encourages sustainability as a core concern—socially, economically, and ecologically—emphasising that defining limits to growth are important when trying to affect change in sustainable directions. We echo calls for more significant sustainability research from HCI, and set out some avenues of design for moving in this direction

Single Dose of the Attention Training Technique Increases Resting Alpha and Beta-Oscillations in Frontoparietal Brain Networks: A Randomized Controlled Comparison

The Attention Training Technique (ATT) was developed with the aim of reducing self-focused attention and increasing executive control as part of metacognitive therapy. So far there is a paucity of data on the neurophysiological effects of ATT. In the present study we tested for specific effects to determine if attention control components of ATT elicit a specific signature that is different from passive listening. Thirty-six healthy volunteers were randomized to an active (follow instructions) or control (ignore instructions) condition. Resting state EEG was recorded for 3 min with eyes open and eyes closed before and after exposure to training, and the power of the theta, alpha, and beta-bands were analyzed in frontal, midline, and posterior electrodes. The active ATT condition enhanced alpha and beta-band activity during eyes-open, and frontal alpha during eyes-closed (p < 0.005). Frontoparietal changes in Alpha were generally accompanied by changes in Beta in the same brain regions of interest. However, these associations were largely significant in the active ATT rather than the control condition. No between-group differences were observed in the Theta-band. These results suggest a single dose of attention training increases alpha and beta-oscillations in frontoparietal networks. These networks are associated with top-down attentional or executive control

Are people the key to enabling collaborative smart logistics?

The number of parcels delivered is growing annually, with a 15.7% increase to 1 billion parcel deliveries in the UK in 2015. We introduce Freight Traffic Control 2050 which is exploring how to transform last-mile urban freight through “collaborative logistics”. Based on our ethnographic fieldwork, we introduce the context and challenges in this domain. We highlight the value of experience and tacit knowledge, and the importance of approaching this domain from a socio-technical perspective. We offer a selection of early challenges identified as a starting point for discussion within the HCI community

ICT under constraint: exposing tensions in collaboratively prioritising ICT innovation for climate targets

The international treaty known as the Paris Agreement requires global greenhouse gas emissions to decrease at a pace that will limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. Given the pressure on all sectors to reduce their emissions to meet this target, the ICT sector must begin to explore how to innovate under constraint for the first time. This could mean facing the unprecedented dilemma of having to choose between innovations, in which case the community will need to develop processes for making collective decisions regarding which innovations are most deserving of their carbon costs. In this paper, we expose tensions in collaboratively prioritising ICT innovation under constraints, and discuss the considerations and approaches the ICT sector may require to make such decisions effectively across the sector. This opens up a new area of research where we envision HCI expertise can inform and resolve such tensions for values-based and target-led ICT innovation towards a sustainable future

ICT Under Constraint : Exposing Tensions in Collaboratively Prioritising ICT Innovation for Climate Targets

The international treaty known as the Paris Agreement requires global greenhouse gas emissions to decrease at a pace that will limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. Given the pressure on all sectors to reduce their emissions to meet this target, the ICT sector must begin to explore how to innovate under constraint for the first time. This could mean facing the unprecedented dilemma of having to choose between innovations, in which case the community will need to develop processes for making collective decisions regarding which innovations are most deserving of their carbon costs. In this paper, we expose tensions in collaboratively prioritising ICT innovation under constraints, and discuss the considerations and approaches the ICT sector may require to make such decisions effectively across the sector. This opens up a new area of research where we envision HCI expertise can inform and resolve such tensions for values-based and target-led ICT innovation towards a sustainable future

The climate impact of ICT:A review of estimates, trends and regulations

In this report, we examine the available evidence regarding ICT's current and projected climate impacts. We examine peer-reviewed studies which estimate ICT's current share of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to be 1.8-2.8% of global GHG emissions. Our findings indicate that published estimates all underestimate the carbon footprint of ICT, possibly by as much as 25%, by failing to account for all of ICT's supply chains and full lifecycle (i.e. emissions scopes 1, 2 and fully inclusive 3). Adjusting for truncation of supply chain pathways, we estimate that ICT's share of emissions could actually be as high as 2.1-3.9%. There are pronounced differences between available projections of ICT's future emissions. These projections are dependent on underlying assumptions that are sometimes, but not always, made explicit - and we explore these in the report. Whatever assumptions analysts take, they agree that ICT will not reduce its emissions without a major concerted effort involving broad political and industrial action. We provide three reasons to believe ICT emissions are going to increase barring a targeted intervention, and we note that in light of these, it seems risky to assume that ICT will, by default, assist in the attainment of climate targets. Based on our analysis, we find that not all carbon pledges in the ICT sector are ambitious enough to meet climate targets. We explore the underdevelopment of mechanisms for enforcing sector-wide compliance, and contend that without a global carbon constraint, a new regulatory framework is required to keep the ICT sector's carbon footprint in alignment with the Paris Agreement. We further contend that a global carbon constraint should be viewed as a significant opportunity for the ICT sector, as efficiencies within and enabled by ICT would be even greater enablers of productivity and utility than they are today