Understanding Physiological and Degenerative Natural Vision Mechanisms to Define Contrast and Contour Operators

BACKGROUND:Dynamical systems like neural networks based on lateral inhibition have a large field of applications in image processing, robotics and morphogenesis modeling. In this paper, we will propose some examples of dynamical flows used in image contrasting and contouring. METHODOLOGY:First we present the physiological basis of the retina function by showing the role of the lateral inhibition in the optical illusions and pathologic processes generation. Then, based on these biological considerations about the real vision mechanisms, we study an enhancement method for contrasting medical images, using either a discrete neural network approach, or its continuous version, i.e. a non-isotropic diffusion reaction partial differential system. Following this, we introduce other continuous operators based on similar biomimetic approaches: a chemotactic contrasting method, a viability contouring algorithm and an attentional focus operator. Then, we introduce the new notion of mixed potential Hamiltonian flows; we compare it with the watershed method and we use it for contouring. CONCLUSIONS:We conclude by showing the utility of these biomimetic methods with some examples of application in medical imaging and computed assisted surgery

Pervasive informatics and persistent actimetric information in health smart homes : different approaches

International audienceINTRODUCTION: This paper discuss the ability to obtain a reliable pervasive information at home from a network of localizing sensors allowing to follow the different activity-station at which a dependent (elderly or handicapped) person can be detected. Since 12 years ([1-3]), many experiments have been achieved for watching dependent people at home, in particular elderly and handicapped persons. For acquiring data necessary to permit the alarms triggering, numerous sensors have been invented, in particular for localizing the person at home or in the surroundings. These localizers are on the body (GPS, accelerometers,...), in the flat rooms (on the walls: infrared or radar detectors; on the ground, the bed or the chairs: pressure sensors), on the doors (magnetic switches) or in gardens and streets (video-cameras). METHODS: The data recorded can be treated as time series as the sequence of color coding numbers of balls (symbolizing activity-stations) taken in a Polya's urn, in which the persistence of the presence in an activity-station is represented by adding a number of balls of the same color as the ball just drawn ([5]). The sequence could also represent historical data from a model, deriving from language models and markovian processes existing in speech recognition research, where the persistence is the probability to stay at the same activity-station ([6]). Other models can also be used as well as the mean time passed or the remaining time in the activity-station. Theses models are compared in order to use the most representative one. RESULTS: Using statistics, the best model offers up to 98.03% of good prediction location, considering only the last second of location but distinguishing days of week. Other models need to be improved. We discuss the pertinence of such procedures to early detect sudden or chronic changes in the parameters values of the random process made of the succession of ball numbers. We will use the best procedure to trigger alarms, which will occur when an incorrect prediction is made, or when the person persists at the same station more than the mean time passed in this station, or when the remaining time is passed. CONCLUSIONS: The sensors network is very important to follow up the dependent people during their walk trajectories inside home or outside. If the space/time data are acquired on healthy elderly people or on patients which suffer from neuro-degenerative diseases, the sensors recording must be very well calibrated, to give birth to specific profiles concerning the time series which correspond to the successive locations of the dependent person in rooms inside the flat or in specific places inside a room ([4]). Simpler than Polya's urns derived approach, the Markovian approach seems to be a good way of location modeling. Other models need to be improved in order to concurrence it. A big hope comes from the ambient information techniques to be able to detect a sudden fall on the ground or a progressive stereotyped behavior (for the early diagnosis of chronic neuro-degenerative diseases like the Alzheimer or Parkinson ones). ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS: AFIRM Team from TIMC-IMAG Laboratory for HIS data records. REFERENCES 1. Couturier et al., Rev. Gériatrie 21:23-31, 1996. 2. Demongeot et al., Comptes Rendus Biologies 325:673-682, 2002. 3. Das et al., Pervasive and Mobile Computing 2:372-404, 2006. 4. Le Bellego et al., IEEE Transactions ITB 10:92-99, 2006. 5. Demongeot et al., IEEE CISIS & APPLIMS, 589-594, 2008. 6. Fouquet et al., IEEE CISIS, 2009

Modélisation des attentes en dialogue oral

This thesis aims at modelling speaker's expectations in human dialogue and in man-machine dialogue. Speaker's expectations are the expected results of its acts, assuming that someone in finalized dialogue (oral or not, human or man-machine) has certain expectations from its addressee following his statement. The theory developed draws its sources from analytic philosophy and its speech acts, from ethnomethodology through the faces theory, from cognisciences and the theory of relevance, and from linguistics. A notation of dialog acts has been made to represent knowledge, roles and speech acts of participants. The model considers rules - associating acts and expectations - supplied with probabilities, strategies and dialogic goals. For rules and probabilities evaluation, two corpora were collected: first with human dialogue (within a framework of speech translation), second with man-machine dialogue (to develop a virtual assistant). For the collection of the second one, a wizard of Oz based platform has been made in order to simulate the final system. The corpora collected were transcribed, annotated and analysed in order to show the interest of considering expectations rather than making simple speech acts prediction. The results are interesting for both human and man-machine dialogue: considering the expectations improves identification of interlocutor dialogue acts, and dialogue management.Cette thèse porte sur la modélisation des attentes du locuteur en dialogue humain et en dialogue homme-machine. Les attentes du locuteur sont vues comme les résultats espérés de ses actes, selon l'hypothèse qu'un individu en situation de dialogue finalisé (oral ou non, humain ou homme-machine) aura certaines attentes vis-à-vis de son allocutaire suite à son énoncé. La théorie développée puise ses sources dans la philosophie analytique et sa logique dialogique dérivée des actes de langage, dans l'éthnométhodologie et la théorie des faces, dans les cognisciences et la théorie de la pertinence, et enfin dans la linguistique. Une notation en actes de dialogue a été établie pour représenter les connaissances, les rôles et les actes de langage des interactants. La modélisation considère des règles d'association acte-attentes assorties de probabilités, les stratégies employées et les buts dialogiques.Pour évaluer les règles et les probabilités, deux corpus ont été collectés : l'un en dialogue humain (dans un cadre de traduction de parole), l'autre en dialogue homme-machine (pour développer un assistant d'entreprise virtuel). Pour la collecte du deuxième, une plate-forme à base de magicien d'Oz a été réalisée afin de simuler le système final. Les corpus recueillis ont été transcrits, annotés et analysés en vue de montrer l'intérêt de considérer les attentes plutôt que de faire de la simple prédiction d'acte. Les résultats sont intéressants pour le dialogue humain et pour le dialogue homme-machine : la prise en compte des attentes améliore l'identification des actes de dialogue des interlocuteurs, et le contrôle du dialogue

Modélisation des attentes en dialogue oral

Cette thèse porte sur la modélisation des attentes du locuteur en dialogue humain et en dialogue homme-machine. Les attentes du locuteur sont vues comme les résultats espérés de ses actes, selon l'hypothèse qu'un individu en situation de dialogue finalisé (oral ou non, humain ou homme-machine) aura certaines attentes vis-à-vis de son allocutaire suite à son énoncé. La théorie développée puise ses sources dans la philosophie analytique et sa logique dialogique dérivée des actes de langage, dans l'éthnométhodologie et la théorie des faces, dans les cognisciences et la théorie de la pertinence, et enfin dans la linguistique. Une notation en actes de dialogue a été établie pour représenter les connaissances, les rôles et les actes de langage des interactants. La modélisation considère des règles d'association acte-attentes assorties de probabilités, les stratégies employées et les buts dialogiques. Pour évaluer les règles et les probabilités, deux corpus ont été collectés : l'un en dialogue humain (dans un cadre de traduction de parole), l'autre en dialogue homme-machine (pour développer un assistant d'entreprise virtuel). Pour la collecte du deuxième, une plate-forme à base de magicien d'Oz a été réalisée afin de simuler le système final. Les corpus recueillis ont été transcrits, annotés et analysés en vue de montrer l'intérêt de considérer les attentes plutôt que de faire de la simple prédiction d'acte. Les résultats sont intéressants pour le dialogue humain et pour le dialogue homme-machine : la prise en compte des attentes améliore l'identification des actes de dialogue des interlocuteurs, et le contrôle du dialogue.GRENOBLE1-BU Sciences (384212103) / SudocSudocFranceF

An Expressive Conversation Language for Artificial Agent of Mixed Community

International audienceThose languages currently used in Agent Communication were made to be used by artificial agents only, essentially with the aim of exchanging knowledge. This paper considers mixed multi-agent systems (or communities) composed of human and artificial agents. We put forward an Expressive Conversation-Language that enables agents to form expressive dialogues; mainly deliberative dialogue such as negotiation, advice seeking, bargaining and setting up appointments. Thirty two expressive conversation acts have been formally defined. These are basic acts of conversation, such as giving and requesting information, but also promising, suggesting or asserting etc. which confer artificial agents with advanced language skills

An Expressive Conversation Language for Artificial Agent of Mixed Community

International audienceThose languages currently used in Agent Communication were made to be used by artificial agents only, essentially with the aim of exchanging knowledge. This paper considers mixed multi-agent systems (or communities) composed of human and artificial agents. We put forward an Expressive Conversation-Language that enables agents to form expressive dialogues; mainly deliberative dialogue such as negotiation, advice seeking, bargaining and setting up appointments. Thirty two expressive conversation acts have been formally defined. These are basic acts of conversation, such as giving and requesting information, but also promising, suggesting or asserting etc. which confer artificial agents with advanced language skills

The transition from hospital to home based hospital cares and its consequences for the understanding of caregiving

12th Conference of the European Sociological AssociationInternational audienceThe transition from hospital to home based hospital cares and its consequences The increasing pressure to reduce patient stays in European hospitals as well as the increase in chronic diseases has had numerous consequences, among which, the development of homecare. While its use for the care of elderlies and chronic diseases is well known, States are now pushing for its diversification toward patients suffering from more acute diseases and undergoing complex treatments. The development of home based hospital cares which are aimed at coordinating care happening at the patient home is a direct consequence of this trend, thus blurring the meaning behind being discharged for a number of patients.This paper will focus on how the transition from hospital to home-based hospital care impacts the relationships between home care professionals, patients and their families. First, it will describe what happens behind the scene when the patient is released from hospital, and into the hand of home based hospital care professionals. Second, it will rely on the understanding of these events to give an interpretation of their impact on the relationships between patient, carers and health professionals.Our research is based on two qualitative studies of French home based hospital care organizations which were funded respectively by the French health ministry (PREPS program) and the French League Against Cancer and in collaboration respectively with members of TASDA and the Hygée centre. They includes interviews with patients, family members and healthcare professionals involved both in the coordination of care and caregiving

Pervasive informatics and persistent actimetric information in health smart homes : From Language Model to Location Model

International audienceThis paper presents an approach of location model deriving from language models existing in speech recognition research. The purpose is to applicate existing model in speech recognition to predict location of an elderly person. Using statistics, the model offers up to 98.03% of good prediction location, considering only the last second of location but distinguishing days of week. Simpler than Polya's urns derived approach, this approach seems to be a good way of location modelling