An innovative AAL system based on neural networks and IoT-aware technologies to improve the quality of life in elderly people

Nowadays more and more elderly people need support in daily activities. This is due to the increase of cognitive diseases and other conditions which lead the elderly to not being self-sufficient. Considering this, providing an Ambient Assisted Living system could improve significantly people life quality and could support caregivers' tasks. The combination of Ambient Assisted Living systems and information and communication technologies achieve this purpose perfectly. They exploit internet of things and artificial intelligence paradigms to make daily challenges easier for people with neurodegenerative diseases. This work melds technologies mentioned above providing a smart system for elderly to manage goods and fill in shopping lists. It was possible using software, hardware, and cloud systems combined with a neural network aimed to recognise products. The proposed system has been validated both from a functional point of view through a proof-of-concept and quantitatively by a performance analysis of its components

Advances in multispectral and hyperspectral imaging for archaeology and art conservation

Multispectral imaging has been applied to the field of art conservation and art history since the early 1990s. It is attractive as a noninvasive imaging technique because it is fast and hence capable of imaging large areas of an object giving both spatial and spectral information. This paper gives an overview of the different instrumental designs, image processing techniques and various applications of multispectral and hyperspectral imaging to art conservation, art history and archaeology. Recent advances in the development of remote and versatile multispectral and hyperspectral imaging as well as techniques in pigment identification will be presented. Future prospects including combination of spectral imaging with other noninvasive imaging and analytical techniques will be discussed

Features descriptors for demographic estimation: A comparative study

Estimation of demographic information from video sequence with people is a topic of growing interest in the last years. Indeed automatic estimation of audience statistics in digital signage as well as the human interaction in social robotic environment needs of increasingly robust algorithm for gender, race and age classification. In the present paper some of the state of the art features descriptors and sub space reduction approaches for gender, race and age group classification in video/image input are analyzed. Moreover a wide discussion about the influence of dataset distribution, balancing and cardinality is shown. The aim of our work is to investigate the best solution for each classification problem both in terms of estimation approach and dataset training. Additionally the computational problem it considered and discussed in order to contextualize the topic in a practical environment

Autofocus laser system for multi-NIR scanning imaging of painting surfaces

A variety of optical investigation methods applied to paintings are, by now, an integral part of the repair process, both to plan the restoration intervention and to monitor its various phases. Among them infrared reflectography in wide-band modality is traditionally employed in non-invasive diagnostics of ancient paintings to reveal features underlying the pictorial layer thanks to transparency characteristics to NIR radiation of most of the materials composing the paints. This technique was improved with the introduction of the multi-spectral modality that consists in acquiring the radiation back scattered from the painting into narrow spectral bands. The technology, widely used in remote sensing applications such as satellite or radar imaging, has only recently gained importance in the field of artwork conservation thanks to the varied reflectance and transmittance of pigments over this spectral region. In this work we present a scanning device for multi-NIR spectral imaging of paintings, based on contact-less and single-point measurement of the reflectance of painted surfaces. The back-scattered radiation is focused on square-shaped fiber bundle that carries the light to an array of 16 photodiodes equipped with pass-band filters so to cover the NIR spectral range from 900 to 2500 nm. In particular, we describe the last instrument upgrade that consists in the addition of an autofocus system that keeps the optical head perfectly focused during the scanning. The output of the autofocus system can be used as a raw map of the painting shape

Optical micro-profilometry for archaeology

A quantitative morphological analysis of archaeological objects represents an important element for historical evaluations, artistic studies and conservation projects. At present, a variety of contact instruments for high-resolution surface survey is available on the market, but because of their invasivity they are not well received in the field of artwork conservation. On the contrary, optical testing techniques have seen a successful growth in last few years due to their effectiveness and safety. In this work we present a few examples of application of high-resolution 3D techniques for the survey of archaeological objects. Measurements were carried out by means of an optical micro-profilometer composed of a commercial conoprobe mounted on a scanning device that allows a maximum sampled area of 280 7280 mm 2. Measurements as well as roughness calculations were carried out on selected areas, representative of the differently degraded surface, of an ellenestic bronze statue to document the surface corrosion before restoration intervention started. Two highly-corroded ancient coins and a limestone column were surveyed to enhance the relief of inscriptions and drawings for dating purposes. High-resolution 3D survey, beyond the faithful representation of objects, makes it possible to display the surface in an image format that can be processed by means of image processing software. The application of digital filters as well as rendering techniques easies the readability of the smallest details

Emotional Expression in Children With ASD: A Pre-Study on a Two-Group Pre-Post-Test Design Comparing Robot-Based and Computer-Based Training

Several studies have found a delay in the development of facial emotion recognition and expression in children with an autism spectrum condition (ASC). Several interventions have been designed to help children to fill this gap. Most of them adopt technological devices (i.e., robots, computers, and avatars) as social mediators and reported evidence of improvement. Few interventions have aimed at promoting emotion recognition and expression abilities and, among these, most have focused on emotion recognition. Moreover, a crucial point is the generalization of the ability acquired during treatment to naturalistic interactions. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of two technological-based interventions focused on the expression of basic emotions comparing a robot-based type of training with a “hybrid” computer-based one. Furthermore, we explored the engagement of the hybrid technological device introduced in the study as an intermediate step to facilitate the generalization of the acquired competencies in naturalistic settings. A two-group pre-post-test design was applied to a sample of 12 children (M = 9.33; ds = 2.19) with autism. The children were included in one of the two groups: group 1 received a robot-based type of training (n = 6); and group 2 received a computer-based type of training (n = 6). Pre- and post-intervention evaluations (i.e., time) of facial expression and production of four basic emotions (happiness, sadness, fear, and anger) were performed. Non-parametric ANOVAs found significant time effects between pre- and post-interventions on the ability to recognize sadness [t(1) = 7.35, p = 0.006; pre: M (ds) = 4.58 (0.51); post: M (ds) = 5], and to express happiness [t(1) = 5.72, p = 0.016; pre: M (ds) = 3.25 (1.81); post: M (ds) = 4.25 (1.76)], and sadness [t(1) = 10.89, p < 0; pre: M (ds) = 1.5 (1.32); post: M (ds) = 3.42 (1.78)]. The group*time interactions were significant for fear [t(1) = 1.019, p = 0.03] and anger expression [t(1) = 1.039, p = 0.03]. However, Mann–Whitney comparisons did not show significant differences between robot-based and computer-based training. Finally, no difference was found in the levels of engagement comparing the two groups in terms of the number of voice prompts given during interventions. Albeit the results are preliminary and should be interpreted with caution, this study suggests that two types of technology-based training, one mediated via a humanoid robot and the other via a pre-settled video of a peer, perform similarly in promoting facial recognition and expression of basic emotions in children with an ASC. The findings represent the first step to generalize the abilities acquired in a laboratory-trained situation to naturalistic interactions

A scanning device for VIS-NIR multispectral imaging of paintings

We present a scanning device for multispectral imaging of paintings in the 380-2300 nm spectral range (32 VIS + 14 NIR bands). The system is based on contact-less and single-point measurement of the spectral reflectance factor. Multispectral images are obtained by scanning the painted surface under investigation. At present the VIS and NIR modules work separately due to the lack of synchronization between them. Measurement campaigns were carried out on several paintings in situ and at the INOA Optical Metrology Laboratory located inside the Opificio delle Pietre Dure in Florence. We report herein on the measurements carried out on a few panel and canvas paintings. Multivariate image analyses (MIAs) were performed and the detected images were analysed by means of the conventional principal component analysis (PCA) and the K-nearest-neighbouring cluster analysis (KNN)

Multispectral imaging of paintings: Instrument and applications

In this paper we present a scanning device for multispectral imaging of paintings in the 380-800 nm spectral region; the system is based on a spectrophotometer for contact-less single-point measurements of the spectral reflectance with 10 nm resolution. Two orthogonal XY translation stages allow to scan up to 1,5 m(2) with spatial resolution up to 8 dots/mm. As an application we present the results of the measurements carried Out on Ritratto Trivulzio by Antonello da Messina and Madonna in gloria tra Santi by Andrea Mantegna. Besides spectra comparison also multivariate image analyses (MIA) have been performed by considering the multi-spectral images as three-way data set.In order to point out the slight spectral differences of two areas of a painting we analyzed its multispectral data cube by means of the Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and the K-Nearest-Neighbouring Cluster Analysis (KNN)

A scanning device for multi-spectral imaging of paintings

We present a scanning device for 32-band multi-spectral imaging of paintings in the 380-800 nm spectral region. The system is based on contact-less and single-point measurement of the spectral reflectance factor. Multi-spectral images are obtained by scanning the painted surface under investigation. An adjustment procedure was established and calibration was performed by means of a set of seven matt ceramic color tiles certified by National Physical Laboratory (UK). Colorimetric calculations were carried out in the XYZ colorimetric space, by following the CIE recommendations and choosing the D65 standard illuminant and the 1931 standard observer.Measurement campaigns were carried out on several paintings in situ and at the INOA Optical Metrology Laboratory located inside the Opificio delle Pietre Dure in Florence. As an example we report herein on the measurements carried out on the Madonna in gloria tra Santi by Andrea Mantegna, (at present in the Pinacoteque of the Castello Sforzesco in Milan). Multivariate image analyses (MIA) were performed by considering the multi-spectral images as three-way data set. The stack of detected images were unfolded in a 2D data matrix and analyzed by the conventional Principal Component Analysis (PCA)