Again-st Abandon. National Report Index

Lo studio e' stato realizzato da Stoa' e Studio Staff nell'ambito del progetto "AGAIN-ST ABANDON Contrastare il fenomeno degli abbandoni, ripensare i linguaggi della consulenza". Il progetto Again-st Abandon, finanziato dal Programma europeo "Leonardo da Vinci", si pone l'obiettivo di contrastare il fenomeno dei drop-out (DO) - quei giovani che interrompono il percorso scolastico e formativo rendendosi invisibili agli operatori del sociale - nell'ottica di un loro reinserimento nei contesti formali di istruzione, formazione ed impiego. Nel paper viene sviluppata un'analisi territoriale dell'area del Comune di Ercolano tesa ad indagare la domanda e l'offerta di servizi di orientamento e formazione, oltre alla visibilita' e all'accessibilita' degli stessi, attraverso l'utilizzo di dati statistici e indicatori di tipo qualitativo

Experimental Analysis of RSSI-based Indoor Location Systems with WL Circularly Polarized Antennas

Circularly polarized antennas are used in 2.4 GHz ZigBee radio modules to evaluate performance improvement of RSSI (Received Signal Strength Indicator) based location techniques, with respect to conventional linearly polarized antennas. Experimental RSSI measurements in an indoor environment clearly show that multipath fading is significantly reduced when CP antennas are used; this determines a more reliable estimation of the field amplitude decay law as a function of the distance of the mobile node from the fixed access point, and then a higher location accuracy. At the best of authors' knowledge, it is the first time that the circular polarization features are applied to RSSI-based radio location techniques

Multidisciplinary approach for developing a new robotic system for domiciliary assistance to elderly people

This paper aims to show the effectiveness of a (inter / multi)disciplinary team, based on the technology developers, elderly care organizations, and designers, in developing the ASTRO robotic system for domiciliary assistance to elderly people. The main issues presented in this work concern the improvement of robot’s behavior by means of a smart sensor network able to share information with the robot for localization and navigation, and the design of the robot’s appearance and functionalities by means of a substantial analysis of users’ requirements and attitude to robotic technology to improve acceptability and usability

On the design, development and experimentation of the ASTRO assistive robot integrated in smart environments

This paper presents the full experience of designing, developing and testing ASTROMOBILE, a system composed of an enhanced robotic platform integrated in an Ambient Intelligent (AmI) infrastructure that was conceived to provide favourable independent living, improved quality of life and efficiency of care for senior citizens. The design and implementation of ASTRO robot was sustained by a multidisciplinary team in which technology developers, designers and end-user representatives collaborated using a user-centred design approach. The key point of this work is to demonstrate the general feasibility and scientific/technical effectiveness of a mobile robotic platform integrated in a smart environment and conceived to provide useful services to humans and in particular to elderly people in domestic environments. The main aspects faced in this paper are related to the design of the ASTRO’s appearance and functionalities by means of a substantial analysis of users’ requirements, the improvement of the ASTRO’s behaviour by means of a smart sensor network able to share information with the robot (Ubiquitous Robotics) and the development of advanced human robot interfaces based on natural language

Ambient Assisted Living and Ageing: Preliminary Results of RITA Project

The ageing of population is a social phenomenon that most of worldwide countries are facing. They are, and will be even more in the future, indeed trying to find solutions for improving quality of life of their elderly citizens. The project RITA wants to demonstrate that an update of the current socio-medical services with an Ambient Assisted Living (AAL) approach could improve the service efficiency and the quality of life of both elderly and caregiver. This paper presents the preliminary results obtained in RITA

Estimation of Spatiotemporal Gait Parameters in Walking on a Photoelectric System: Validation on Healthy Children by Standard Gait Analysis

The use of stereophotogrammetry systems is challenging when targeting children's gait analysis due to the time required and the need to keep physical markers in place. For this reason, marker-less photoelectric systems appear to be a solution for accurate and fast gait analysis in youth. The aim of this study is to validate a photoelectric system and its configurations (LED filter setting) on healthy children, comparing the kinematic gait parameters with those obtained from a three-dimensional stereophotogrammetry system. Twenty-seven healthy children were enrolled. Three LED filter settings for the OptoGait were compared to the BTS P6000. The analysis included the non-parametric 80% limits of agreement and the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC). Additionally, normalised limits of agreement and bias (NLoAs and Nbias) were compared to the clinical experience of physical therapists (i.e., assuming an error lower than 5% is acceptable). ICCs showed excellent consistency for most of the parameters and filter settings; NLoAs varied between 1.39% and 12.62%. An inverse association between the number of LEDs for filter setting and the bias values was also observed. Observations confirm the validity of the OptoGait system for the evaluation of spatiotemporal gait parameters in children

Validation of the Quantitative Checklist for Autism in Toddlers in an Italian Clinical Sample of Young Children With Autism and Other Developmental Disorders.

Background: The Quantitative Checklist for Autism in Toddlers (Q-CHAT) is parent-report screening questionnaire for detecting threshold and sub-threshold autistic features in toddlers. The Q-CHAT is a dimensional measure normally distributed in the general population sample and is able to differentiate between a group of children with a diagnosis of autism and unselected toddlers. Objectives: We aim to investigate the psychometric properties, score distribution, and external validity of the Q-CHAT in an Italian clinical sample of young children with autism versus children with developmental delay and typically developing children. Method: N = 126 typically developing children (TD), n = 139 children with autism, and n = 50 children presenting developmental delay (DD) were administered the Q-CHAT. Standardized measures of cognitive functions, language, and behaviors were also obtained. Results: The Q-CHAT scores were normally distributed and demonstrated adequate internal consistency and good item to total score correlations. The mean Q-CHAT score in the autism group was significantly higher than those found in the DD sample and TD children. No difference on the mean Q-CHAT score between DD and TD children was found. The accuracy of the Q-CHAT to discriminate between autism and TD was very good. Two different cut-points (27 and 31, respectively) maximized sensitivity and specificity for autism versus TD and DD, respectively. Finally, higher Q-CHAT scores were correlated with lower language and social communication skills. Conclusions: In clinical settings, the Q-CHAT demonstrated good psychometric properties and external validity to discriminate autism children not just from children with typical development but also from children with developmental delay