The study of road conditions that affect tilt-based text input for mobile devices

With the rapid advances in technology of mobile devices, their application areas expand continuously as well. Given the growth of the market share for mobile devices, one of the main issues that arise is the need for new and convenient techniques for data input and output suitable for various settings. Tilt-based text input is one of the alternatives that attract attention of current researchers. This study investigates the potential of using tilt-based interaction to enter text while sitting as a passenger in a moving vehicle. In addition, the investigation focused on the characteristics of the road as well as driving conditions that affect tilt-based text input. The study manipulated the following factors: keyboard size 10×4 and road unevenness (small, moderate, and large). 14 participants, aged 25 to 50, took part in the user study. The best performance and the shortest task completion time equal to 24.5 seconds was observed when the vehicle was moving at a constant speed on a straight road with small unevenness. The task completion time increased by 15% in moderate unevenness road and by almost 20 % in large unevenness road. Error rate and movement efficiency were investigated additionally in order to find out the cause of such times. Article in English. Kelio netolygumų įtakos akselerometru grįstai mobiliojo įrenginio teksto įvesčiai tyrimas Santrauka Greitai besivystant mobiliųjų įrenginių technologijoms vienas iš perspektyvių teksto įvesties būdų yra teksto įvestis naudojant mobiliojo įrenginio akselerometrą. Buvo atliktas kelio kokybės įtakos įvesčiai taikant ekselerometrą tyrimas. Kelio kokybė buvo nustatoma naudojant to paties akselerometro duomenis. Tyrimai parodė, kad važiuojant geros kokybės keliu užduotis atliekama per 24,5 sekundės. Blogėjant kelio kokybei užduoties atlikimo laikas ilgėja. Kartu blogėja ir vidutinės klaidos bei vidutinio judesio efektyvumo rezultatai. Reikšminiai žodžiai: mobilioji teksto įvestis, pokrypio įvestis, klaviatūros dydis, kelio nelygumai

Eye gaze interaction with expanding targets

Recent evidence on the performance benefits of expanding targets during manual pointing raises a provocative question: Can a similar effect be expected for eye gaze interaction? We present two experiments to examine the benefits of target expansion during an eye-controlled selection task. The second experiment also tested the efficiency of a “grab-and-hold algorithm ” to counteract inherent eye jitter. Results confirm the benefits of target expansion both in pointing speed and accuracy. Additionally, the grab-and-hold algorithm affords a dramatic 57 % reduction in error rates overall. The reduction is as much as 68 % for targets subtending 0.35 degrees of visual angle. However, there is a cost which surfaces as a slight increase in movement time (10%). These findings indicate that target expansion coupled with additional measures to accommodate eye jitter has the potential to make eye gaze a more suitable input modality

A new thin film photochromic material: Oxygen-containing yttrium hydride

In this work we report on photochromism in transparent thin film samples of oxygen-containing yttrium hydride. Exposure to visible and ultraviolet (UV) light at moderate intensity triggers a decrease in the optical transmission of visible and infrared (IR) light. The photo-darkening is colour-neutral. We show that the optical transmission of samples of 500 nm thickness can be reduced by up to 50% after one hour of illumination with light of moderate intensity. The reaction is reversible and samples that are left in the dark return to the initial transparent state. The relaxation time in the dark depends on the temperature of the sample and the duration of the light exposure. The photochromic reaction takes place under ambient conditions in the as-deposited state of the thin-film samples.Comment: Accepted for publication in Solar Energy Materials and Solar Cell

Modelling of strain effects in manganite films

Thickness dependence and strain effects in films of $La_{1-x}A_xMnO_3$ perovskites are analyzed in the colossal magnetoresistance regime. The calculations are based on a generalization of a variational approach previously proposed for the study of manganite bulk. It is found that a reduction in the thickness of the film causes a decrease of critical temperature and magnetization, and an increase of resistivity at low temperatures. The strain is introduced through the modifications of in-plane and out-of-plane electron hopping amplitudes due to substrate-induced distortions of the film unit cell. The strain effects on the transition temperature and transport properties are in good agreement with experimental data only if the dependence of the hopping matrix elements on the $Mn-O-Mn$ bond angle is properly taken into account. Finally variations of the electron-phonon coupling linked to the presence of strain turn out important in influencing the balance of coexisting phases in the filmComment: 7 figures. To be published on Physical Review

Synthesis and Characterization of Magnetoresistive Thin Film Oxides and Hydrides

NR 2014080

Rethinking vertikal price fixing : where evil lurks?

Straipsnyje nagrinėjamas istoriškai vienas iš griežčiausiai vertinamų vertikaliųjų apribojimų - vertikalus kainų fiksavimas. Atskleidžiamas susiformavęs požiūris j tokio pobūdžio vertikaliuosius apribojimus Europos Sąjungos ir Jungtinių Amerikos Valstijų konkurencijos teisės sistemose, aptariamas tokio susitarimo teigiamas ir neigiamas poveikis konkurencijai, daug dėmesio skiriant ekonominio poveikio analizei. Atsižvelgiantį straipsnyje išplėtotus argumentus dėl ekonominio tokių susitarimų poveikio konkurencijai, pateikiama kritiška nuomonė apie Europos Komisijos ir Lietuvos Respublikos konkurencijos tarybos vykdomą konkurencijos politiką vertikalaus kainų fiksavimo susitarimų atžvilgiu. Reikšminiai žodžiai: Vertikalus kainų fiksavimas; Konkurencijos teisės sistemos; Ekonominio poveikio analizė; Konkurencijos tarybos politika; Vertical price fixing; Competition law systems; Analysis of economic effects; Policy of Competition CouncilVertical price fixing historically is one of the most harshly treated vertical restraints in competition law systems of both European Union and the US. Although criticised by the economic theory for a long time, this approach has been weakened only after the Leegin decision of the US Supreme Court delivered in 2007. The wave of discussions initiated by the mentioned judgement revealed that vertical agreements regarding resale price maintenance cannot be considered as exclusively banning the competition. The article reveals the assessment of vertical price fixing in European Union and US competition law systems. Upon performing the historical analysis of the European Union competition policy it may be concluded that notwithstanding the fact that vertical price fixing agreements may be theoretically justified by granting an individual exemption pursuant to Article 101(3) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, due to practically undeniable presumptions, enormous burden of proof and extremely negative attitude of the European Commission, such agreements arc effectively prohibited cle facto per se. While seeking to assess the actual effect of the vertical price fixing to the competition, the article examines the ways in which this vertical restraint may facilitate competition and where the potential dangers can be identified. From such analysis a conclusion is drawn that depending on various factors and the market power of the relevant undertakings, these vertical restraints may have both procompetitive and anticompetitive effects, therefore exclusively negative attitude towards such agreements is incompatible with the economic analysis of their effects. Considering the results of the performed analysis, a critical opinion regarding the competition policy of Lithuania is presented, criticising the decision to align the effects of vertical price fixing to those created by the horizontal cartels

Novelty and Individual Character in the Community Design Law

Design importance in product marketing has been dramatically increasing in the last few years. There is hardly a commodity available in the market which could escape the ever-growing design trend. Consumer design awareness is growing simultaneously and thus more and more companies choose to invest into researching possible design applications to their products. Currently where production costs are so low in the third world countries design is the key competitive tool for European industry to survive this battle. Design protection varies greatly from one Member State to another in the Community. This on its own causes problems to free movement of goods and hinders the functioning of internal market. Mainly for the above mentioned reasons the Community has introduced Community design protection that functions in parallel to the national systems and should hopefully in the near future outrun the national protection. Within this thesis the author has chosen to discuss and analyze to important notions of novelty and individual character. These two notions form the protection requirements for the Community design. Each design in order to be protected under the Community design system will have to be new and have individual character. The author analyzes the legislative preparatory works and doctrine to give flesh to those two important notions. Such questions as when the design should be considered to be new and when it will be deemed to be similar to already known design are discussed. According to the individual character test the design will have individual character when it produces an overall different impression on the informed user. Who is the informed user and when one will have different overall impression is analyzed. Throughout understanding of these notions will enable one to grasp the boundaries of protection that Community design provides and thus recognize the benefits of using it. A research to find case law on the Community designs is carried out and the results are shortly discussed. At the end different interpretations are discussed and the author provides some proposals of how one or other issue could be handled