Acceptance model in designing for extreme users: extreme athletes using activity trackers

‘Extreme Users’ (EU) is a design method in Human Computer Interaction, which allows user-centered design in design groups. ‘Acceptance Models’ is a theory in Information Systems, which models how users accept and use technology. We conducted a study to explore the relationships of the factors influencing Extreme Athletes in the acceptance and use of Activity Trackers (AT). The data was collected from a cross-sectional survey conducted using a self-selected convenience sample of 206. The research rendered an exploration and an examination of the factors affecting trail-running athletes. The results were analyzed using several statistical techniques including Structural Equation Analysis. Our goal was to observe to what extent the Health Information Technology Acceptance Model patterns and outlines EU use of AT. This contribution, to the best of our knowledge, is new given that the obtained model can be an initial quantitative working primary tool for designers using the EU design method.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Assessment of activity trackers: toward an acceptance model

In this project we seek to understand the factors that influence user acceptance of Activity Trackers, through a model that quantifies how users come to adhere to the use of Activity Trackers. The proposed research model and hypotheses were validated and tested with data collected from a cross-sectional survey conducted using a self-selected convenience sample. Constructs from half dozen of established models were gathered into a suppositional model, based on their hypothetical applicable relevance for the Activity Trackers use. The results were analyzed using a variety of statistical techniques including Structural Equation analysis. The final result can be a first step for researchers aiming to complement their own processes of study, ideation or design of Activity by taking into account factors such as Usefulness, Ease of Use, Health Consciousness, Hedonic Motivation, Image, Habit, etc.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Dynamic world model for context-aware environments

Tese de doutoramento Tecnologias e Sistemas de informaçãoThe main subject of this dissertation is a dynamic symbolic world model which is connected to sensor networks through data acquisition and processing modules. Being dynamic, it is capable of accompanying the state of the represented spaces in real time. This model can be distributed over several servers as all the objects in the model are uniquely described by URI and relations may exist with objects located in remote servers. It also allows users to construct and share their own models of the world as they visit different places. Symbolic world models are complementary to geometric world models which are much more widespread. They are similar to human mental models of space, allow for meaningful descriptions of locations and the creation of relations between them. The main contributions of our research are: the space characterization based on traces from available networks, automatic feeding of the world model through a set of processing modules that receive information from a wireless network, a world model that resembles human mental models of space, an editing tool for manual creation of the model and a set of applications that contribute to the model expansion and/or use the existing data from the model.O tema principal desta dissertação é um modelo de espaços simbólico e dinâmico ligado a uma rede de sensores através de m´módulos de aquisição e processamento de dados. Sendo dinâmico, acompanha o estado dos espaços representados em tempo real. Este modelo pode ser distribuído por vários servidores uma vez que todos os objetos no modelo estão univocamente identificados por um URI e poderão ser estabelecidas relações entre objetos localizados em servidores remotos. Os utilizadores podem criar e partilhar os seus próprios modelos na medida em que vão visitando os diversos locais de interesse. Os modelos de espaço simbólicos complementam os modelos geométricos que são muito mais comuns. São semelhantes aos modelos mentais, permitem a introdução de descrições mais ricas dos objetos e a criação de relações entre eles. Os contributos deste projeto de investigação são: caracterização dos espaços baseada nos dados provenientes de redes existentes, atualização automática do modelo de espaços através de um conjunto de m´módulos de processamento que recebem os dados de uma rede sem fios, um modelo de espaços semelhante aos modelos mentais, uma ferramenta para criação manual do modelo de espaço e um conjunto de aplicações que atualizam o modelo e/ou utilizam os dados existentes

Navigation based on symbolic space models

Existing navigation systems are very appropriate for car navigation, but lack support for convenient pedestrian navigation and cannot be used indoors due to GPS limitations. In addition, the creation and the maintenance of the required models are costly and time consuming, and are usually based on proprietary data structures. In this paper we describe a navigation system based on a human inspired symbolic space model. We argue that symbolic space models are much easier to create and to maintain, and that they can support routing applications based on self-locating through the recognition of nearby features. Our symbolic space model is supported by a federation of servers where the spatial descriptions are stored, and which provide interfaces for feeding and querying the model. Local models residing in different servers may be connected between them, thus contributing to the system scalability.Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT

Towards a novel optical access networks management solution: addressing general management complexity

Past technological advances and an increasing need to communicate have led to the creation of the current telecommunications networks. A critical part of a telecommunications network is the access network, since it must bridge the clients with the services provided, ensuring an efficient connection between them. In the last few years, both governments and organizations from several countries have adopted large fiber optics implementations in their access networks, given its broadband capabilities. However, the structure of such networks can become very complex, forcing organizations to use means that allow them to efficiently manage such complexity. Several software solutions available on the market are capable of providing management features for these networks, but the complexity of these solutions can negatively affect management, making it lengthy and error-prone. In this paper, we describe the initial development of a software solution, consisting of a set of integrated tools that will make optical access networks management more efficient by addressing the complexity limitations of the current solutions. One of the tools, presented in this paper, was tested with a local ISP (Internet Service Provider) and showed to be capable of overcoming the limitations faced by the organization on managing their optical access network.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Smart mobility: a survey

Internet of Things (IoT) describes a world where everyday objects are always connected to the Internet, allowing them to communicate and interact with each other. By connecting these everyday objects to the Internet and making them available everywhere at any time, IoT allows to remotely monitor, manage, and gather status information about them and their surrounding environment. IoT is a revolutionary concept that brought new experiences to everyday life and enabled Smart City initiatives all over the world. These initiatives are using a combination of technology paired with physical infrastructure and services, to improve people’s quality of life. One of the high priority domain to support the Smart City’s vision is the field of Smart Mobility. This paper reviews the current IoT approaches and concepts related to Smart Cities and Smart Mobility. In addition, it analyzes distinct features and numerous applications covering both Intelligent Transportation and Real Time Traffic Management Systems.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Overview of context-sensitive technologies for well-being

Today smart devices such as smartphones, smartwatches and activity trackers are widely available and accepted in most developed societies. These devices present a broad set of sensors capable of extracting detailed information about different situations of daily life, which, if used for good, have the potential to improve the quality of life not only for individuals but also for the society in general. One of the key areas where this type of information can help to improve the quality of life is in healthcare since it allows to monitor and infer the current level of well-being of the smart devices carriers. In this paper, some of the available literature about well-being sensing through context-aware data is reviewed. Also, the main types of mechanisms used in these studies are identified. These mechanisms are related to monitoring, generalization, inference, feedback, energy management and privacy. Furthermore, a description of the mechanisms used in each study is presented.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

PhysioVR: a novel mobile virtual reality framework for physiological computing

Virtual Reality (VR) is morphing into a ubiquitous technology by leveraging of smartphones and screenless cases in order to provide highly immersive experiences at a low price point. The result of this shift in paradigm is now known as mobile VR (mVR). Although mVR offers numerous advantages over conventional immersive VR methods, one of the biggest limitations is related with the interaction pathways available for the mVR experiences. Using physiological computing principles, we created the PhysioVR framework, an Open-Source software tool developed to facilitate the integration of physiological signals measured through wearable devices in mVR applications. PhysioVR includes heart rate (HR) signals from Android wearables, electroencephalography (EEG) signals from a low cost brain computer interface and electromyography (EMG) signals from a wireless armband. The physiological sensors are connected with a smartphone via Bluetooth and the PhysioVR facilitates the streaming of the data using UDP communication protocol, thus allowing a multicast transmission for a third party application such as the Unity3D game engine. Furthermore, the framework provides a bidirectional communication with the VR content allowing an external event triggering using a real-time control as well as data recording options. We developed a demo game project called EmoCat Rescue which encourage players to modulate HR levels in order to successfully complete the in-game mission. EmoCat Rescue is included in the PhysioVR project which can be freely downloaded. This framework simplifies the acquisition, streaming and recording of multiple physiological signals and parameters from wearable consumer devices providing a single and efficient interface to create novel physiologically-responsive mVR applications.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Supporting Students' Mental Health and Academic Success Through Mobile App and IoT

Smartphones have become devices of choice for running studies on health and well-being, especially among young people. When entering college,students often face many challenges,such as adaptation to new situations, establish new interpersonal relationships, heavier workload and shorter deadlines, teamwork assignments and others. In this paper, the results of four studies examining students’ well being and mental health as well as student’s perception of challenges and obstacles they face during their academic journey are presented. In addition, a mobile application that acts as a complement to a successful tutoring project implemented at the authors’ University is proposed. The application allows students to keep their schedules and deadlines in one place while incorporating virtual tutor features. By using both, the events from the student’s calendar and his or her mood indicators, the application sends notifications accordingly. These notifications encompass motivational phrases, time management guidelines, as well as relaxation tips.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio