HuSIS: A Dedicated Space for Studying Human Interactions

To support the study of effective human-surrogate interaction techniques and modalities, the Office of Naval Research awarded an equipment grant to support the development of a Human-Surrogate Interaction Space (HuSIS) at the University of Central Florida in the Institute for Simulation & Training. The HuSIS consists of a dedicated physical space, structures, and components designed specifically for carrying out controlled studies related to human-surrogate interactions. This article describes the motivation, design, and realization of the HuSIS and the benefits of the common data-collection and analysis framework developed for HuSIS research

Effects of losartan, tempol, and their combination on renal nitric oxide synthases in the animal model of chronic kidney disease

Down-regulation of nitric oxide synthase (NOS) and NO defi ciency in the kidneys have been implicated in the pathogenesis of chronic kidney disease (CKD). In this study we examined the effects of losartan, tempol, and combined treatment on three NOS isoforms expressions, kidney NO content and NOS correlation with renal function and structure in the early stage of adriamycin (ADR)-induced CKD in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR). Rats were divided into control group, and four other groups which were treated with ADR and received vehicle, losartan (L, angiotensin II type 1 receptor blocker), tempol (T, redox-cycling nitroxide) or T + L treatment (by gavage) in a six-week study. Reduction of all NOS isoforms expressions were signifi cantly improved by losartan or tempol, and correlated with proteinuria amelioration. Combined treatment induced down-regulation of constitutive NOS isoforms, whilst inducible NOS was up-regulated and followed by increased nitrite content and a signifi cant decline in the glomerular fi ltration rate. Losartan or tempol prevented ADR-induced neoexpression of vimentin in the glomeruli and tubulointerstital areas, whereas de novo vimentin expression was still observed in the atrophic tubules and in the interstitial fi broblasts and myofi broblasts in combined treatment. It can be concluded that single treatments, contrary to combined, were effective in improving NO bioavailability and slowing down the progression of CKD

Auto-Calibration of Multi-Projector Display Walls

By treating projectors as pin-hole cameras, we show it is possible to calibrate the projectors of a casually-aligned, multi-projector display wall using the principles of planar auto-calibration. We also use a pose estimation technique for planar scenes to reconstruct the relative pose of a calibration camera, the projectors and the plane they project on. Together with assumptions about the pose of the camera, we use the reconstruction to automatically compute the projector-display homographies needed to render properly scaled and oriented imagery on the display wall. The main contribution of this paper is thus to provide a fully automated approach to calibrate a multi-projector display wall without the need for fiducials or interaction

Preventer, A Selection Mechanism For Just-In-Time Preventive Interventions

This paper examines just-in-time adaptive interventions (JITAIs) for stress, a pervasive and affective computing application with significant implications for long-term health and quality of life. We discuss fundamental components needed to enabling JITAIs based for one kind of affect data stress. Chronic stress has significant long-term behavioral and physical health consequences, including an increased risk of cardiovascular disease, cancer, anxiety and depression. This paper conducts post-hoc experiments and simulations to demonstrate feasibility of both real-time stress forecasting and stress intervention adaptation and optimization. Using physiological data collected by ten individuals in the natural environment for one week, we show 1) that simple Hidden Markov Models (HMMs) can be used to forecast physiological measures of stress with up to 3 minutes in advance; and 2) Q-Learning (QL) combined with eligibility traces could be used by an affective computing system to adapt and deliver any number and type of interventions in response to changes in affect. Our hope is that this work will take us one step closer to using pervasive devices to assist in the daily management of chronic stress and other affect-related challenges

Effects Of Instruction Methods On User Experience In Virtual Reality Serious Games

Instructions are an important aspect of virtual reality serious games since they are crucial to understanding what is expected from the user. User friendly instructions can contribute positively to the user experience, while confusing instructions can degrade it. There are various methods of instruction giving. In this study, we examine the effects of four different instruction methods on user experience in virtual reality serious games. The four instruction methods that were explored in our study are 3D animated, pictograph, written and verbal instructions. Eight simple vocational tasks were designed and implemented to be performed in an immersive virtual warehouse environment. A user study was performed with 15 adult participants. Results revealed that animated instructions provided better user experience among the four methods. Pictograph and written instructions shared similar mid-range rankings. Verbal instructions were the least preferred method. In this paper, we present our experiment design, results and discussions of our implications for future virtual reality serious game studies

Effects Of Environmental Clutter And Motion On User Performance In Virtual Reality Games

With the increasing prevalence of virtual reality, games for this medium have also been increasing in number lately. Several factors affect the balancing of video games. However, effects of environmental clutter and motion on game design for virtual reality have not been well explored yet. Environmental clutter and motion are important in making virtual environments more interesting and closer to real life since real world environments usually include some form of clutter or motion. Total exclusion of clutter and motion may make the virtual environment drab and dull. On the other hand, these components may affect the user performance, making the tasks and the game in general more difficult. This study aims at exploring the effects of clutter and motion on task performance in a virtual reality searching game. A user study was performed with 15 participants. Results indicated that clutter effected user performance negatively, made the users feel more restricted inside the virtual environment and made it more difficult to concentrate. No effect of motion on user performance was observed

A Survey On Virtual Reality For Individuals With Autism Spectrum Disorder: Design Considerations

In this article, state of the art on virtual reality (VR) for individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) with a focus on training/targeted intervention is discussed and reflected upon to explore areas for more future benefits. We present advantages of VR for individuals with ASD. We identify challenges and design issues for future training applications regarding individuals with ASD. We discuss and present design guidelines accumulated in the literature so far, mostly based on observations in user studies exploring the usefulness of VR as a training tool for individuals with ASD, with a systematic literature review. We present and apply a new taxonomy that classifies previous VR works on training individuals with ASD according to immersive and regular (non-immersive) VR systems and types of social, life and safety skills based on a systematic literature review. We explore the common design considerations of the previous VR studies for training individuals with ASD. Finally, based on the systematic literature reviews, we identify key gaps in the research on this topic and present future research considerations

Husis: A Dedicated Space For Studying Human Interactions

To support the study of effective human-surrogate interaction techniques and modalities, the Office of Naval Research awarded an equipment grant to support the development of a Human-Surrogate Interaction Space (HuSIS) at the University of Central Florida in the Institute for Simulation amp; Training. The HuSIS consists of a dedicated physical space, structures, and components designed specifically for carrying out controlled studies related to human-surrogate interactions. This article describes the motivation, design, and realization of the HuSIS and the benefits of the common data-collection and analysis framework developed for HuSIS research

A Location-Based Incentive Algorithm For Consecutive Crowd Sensing Tasks

Crowd Sensing (CS) is a sensing paradigm that takes advantage from the increasing use of mobile smart devices and their capabilities for sensing and computation. In this paper, we present an incentive mechanism for encourage user participation in schemes of sensing that requires consecutive and regular sampling. The proposed mechanism uses a recurrent reverse auction that no only takes into account the sample price, but also the participants location. We show that our mechanism achieves an optimal budget utilization while guarantees area coverage and a sufficient number of participants in every round