Identification of cognitive factors related to remote work performance using closed circuit TV displays

Operator perceptual cognitive styles as predictors of remote task performance were identified. Remote tasks which require the use of servo controlled master/slave manipulators and closed circuit television for teleoperator repair and maintenance of nuclear fuel recycling systems are examined. A useful procedure for identifying such perceptual styles is described

Clinical users' perspective on telemonitoring of patients with long term conditions: Understood through concepts of Giddens's structuration theory & consequence of modernity

This is the post-print version of the article - Copyright @ 2010 IOS.This study involves conducting focus group discussions with clinical users (nurses and technicians) prior to the launch of telehealth service in Nottingham, UK, to elicit their initial perceptions about the service. It describes the findings from preliminary phase of otherwise a larger longitudinal study. Using Giddens’s concepts from structuration theory and con-sequence of modernity, we were able to acknowledge trust and sense of security as two very salient aspects that govern adop-tion of new technological innovation. Unattended, these as-pects contribute to arousal of conflict and contradiction within a system. In order for successful telehealth implementa-tions in health care setting, providers of the service, need to focus on ways in which clinical users’ trust can be gained and sense of security can be promoted while using the telehealth service and technology.Funding was obained from MATCH (Multidisciplinary Assessment of Technologies Centre for Healthcare)

Towards an integrated and interoperable platform for telehealth and telecare

Copyright @ 2012 International Journal of Integrated Care (IJIC). This work is licensed under a (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0) Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License.We present experience of implementing and evaluating a platform purpose designed to integrate interoperable telehealth and telecare. We chose the IEEE 11073 standards for all devices and used ZigBee wireless to support many devices concurrently and exploit its mesh networking to extend range around the entire house. We designed the home gateway to be unobtrusive; in project Hydra we used the smart meter and in other projects (Reaction, inCasa) we have developed a purpose designed plugtop ZigBee to GPRS gateway. All use common protocols and are interoperable. Technically the projects have been a success, and we have already implemented a wide range of devices on the common platform (BP, weight, SpO2, glucose, PIR, medication monitor, bed/chair sensor). Immediate feedback from participants has confirmed our goal of simplicity and convenience of use (and thus encourage adherence); and it is interesting that in discussion they then focus on the data rather than the technology. Our current goal is to exploit the potential for combination of physiological and environmental data to determine if change of habits can be detected and how this correlates with change in health. We are using this functionality to manage the frail elderly within project inCasa and we propose to present preliminary findings

Integrated simulation for (sustainable) building design : state-of-the-art illustration

Many buildings are still constructed or remodelled without consideration of energy conserving strategies or other sustainability aspects. To provide substantial improvements in energy consumption and comfort levels, there is a need to treat buildings as complete optimised entities not as the sum of a number of separately optimised components

Building systems and indoor environment : simulation for design decision support

This paper outlines the state-of-the-art in integrated building simulation for design support. The ESP-r system is used as an example where integrated simulation is a core philosophy behind the development. The paper finishes with indicating a number of barriers, which hinder routine application of simulation for building design

Galactic porosity and a star formation threshold for the escape of ionising radiation from galaxies

The spatial distribution of star formation within galaxies strongly affects the resulting feedback processes. Previous work has considered the case of a single, concentrated nuclear starburst, and also that of distributed single supernovae (SNe). Here, we consider ISM structuring by SNe originating in spatially distributed clusters having a cluster membership spectrum given by the observed HII region luminosity function. We show that in this case, the volume of HI cleared per SN is considerably greater than in either of the two cases considered hitherto. We derive a simple relationship between the ``porosity'' of the ISM and the star formation rate (SFR), and deduce a critical SFR_crit, at which the ISM porosity is unity. This critical value describes the case in which the SN mechanical energy output over a timescale t_e is comparable with the ISM ``thermal'' energy contained in random motions; t_e is the duration of SN mechanical input per superbubble. This condition also defines a critical gas consumption timescale t_exh, which for a Salpeter IMF and random velocities of \simeq 10 km s-1 is roughly 10e10 years. We draw a link between porosity and the escape of ionising radiation from galaxies, arguing that high escape fractions are expected if SFR >~ SFR_crit. The Lyman Break Galaxies, which are presumably subject to infall on a timescale < t_exh, meet this criterion, as is consistent with the significant leakage of ionising photons inferred in these systems. We suggest the utility of this simple parameterisation of escape fraction in terms of SFR for semi-empirical models of galaxy formation and evolution and for modeling mechanical and chemical feedback effects.Comment: Accepted to MNRAS. 11 pages, 1 figure; uses mn2e.cls (included

The Superbubble Size Distribution in the Interstellar Medium of Galaxies

We use the standard, adiabatic shell evolution to predict the size distribution N(R) for populations of OB superbubbles in a uniform ISM. We derive N(R) for simple cases of superbubble creation rate and mechanical luminosity function (MLF). For R < the characteristic radius R_e, N(R) is dominated by stalled objects, while for R>R_e it is dominated by growing objects. We also briefly investigate N(R) resulting from momentum-conserving shell evolution. We predict a peak in N(R) corresponding to individual SNRs. To estimate the MLF, we also examine evolutionary effects on the HII region luminosity function (HII LF), finding that for nebular luminosity fading as a power law in time, there is a minimum observed slope for the HII LFs. Comparison with the largely complete HI hole catalog for the SMC shows surprising agreement in the predicted and observed slope of N(R), suggesting that no other fundamental process is needed to explain the size distribution of shells in the SMC. Further comparison with largely incomplete HI data for M31, M33, and Holmberg II is also encouraging. We present expressions for the ISM porosity parameters, and estimate that they are substantially <1 for all of the galaxies except Holmberg II. Most of these galaxies therefore may not be strongly dominated by a hot interstellar component. However, porosity results for the Galaxy remain inconclusive.Comment: 25 pages, MN latex, 4 figures. MNRAS accepted. Complete abstract and preprint also available at http://ast.cam.ac.uk/~oey/oeypubs.htm

Reaction of passengers to public service vehicle ride

A series of questionnaire studies is described, which was carried out on passengers in public service vehicles in the United Kingdom particularly cross-channel hovercraft, helicopter and train. The effectiveness of the different rating techniques employed is examined and it is demonstrated that useful and reliable information can be obtained on the effects of such physical parameters as vibration, vehicle motion and noise using rating methods which involve no external standards. Some results obtained from analysis of the survey returns are presented

Development and demonstration of a renewable energy based demand/supply decision support tool for the building design profession

Future cities are likely to be characterised by a greater level of renewable energy systems deployment. Maximum impact will be achieved when such systems are used to offset local energy demands in contrast to current philosophy dictating the grid connection of large schemes. This paper reports on the development of a software tool, MERIT, for demand/ supply matching. The purpose of MERIT is to assist with the deployment of renewable energy systems at all scales. This paper describes the procedures used to match heterogeneous supply technologies to a set of demand profiles corresponding to the different possible fuel types