Blog

Robotics (DT009/3) fulfils joint function of lab book and mini project (report). I use Wordpress.com (a free resource). The students are required to enter four posts during the semester. Topics are specified but some are flexible for substitution, as they cover the learning outcomes from the module descriptor. Posts: these are like lab write ups. They have more flexibility with the schedule. Feedback is formative until the end of semester. Pages: practical application, proof of concept, undertake work (4-5 weeks). This is like a long lab report, structured like a final year project report

Towards an ontology for soft robots: What is soft?

The advent of soft robotics represents a profound change in the forms robots will take in the future. However, this revolutionary change has already yielded such a diverse collection of robots that attempts at defining this group do not reflect many existing ‘soft’ robots. This paper aims to address this issue by scrutinising a number of descriptions of soft robots arising from a literature review with the intention of determining a coherent meaning for soft. We also present a classification of existing soft robots to initiate the development of a soft robotic ontology. Finally, discrepancies in prescribed ranges of Young’s modulus, a frequently used criterion for the selection of soft materials, are explained and discussed. A detailed visual comparison of these ranges and supporting data is also presented

Electromagnetic measurement of spinal curvature

In this paper, we describe an original mathematical technique for calculating the position and orientation of an electromagnetic coil from a minimum of four collinear magnetic field measurements. This problem arose in the development of a system for evaluating the efficacy of inflatable back rafts designed to mitigate complications that arise from the immobilisation of patients with suspected spinal injuries on spinal boards during transport to hospital. Electromagnetic markers are attached to points of interest on the back of an immobilised test subject. Spinal curvature is then measured by passing a magnetometer underneath the board

Augmented control of hands free voice prostheses

Laryngectomy patients often use an electrolarynx to facilitate speech following a tracheotomy. Devices of this type provide the most intelligible means of communication for tracheotomy patients. However, the electro-larynx has inherent drawbacks such as the buzzing monotonic sound emitted, the need for a free hand to operate the device, and the difficulty experienced by many tracheotomy patients in adapting to use it. The most effective means of addressing the shortcomings of existing electro-larynges is to provide the user with a hands-free facility. This allows the user to perform other manual tasks whilst speaking, or simply to communicate more effectively through body language. Hands-free devices do exist but require a considerable amount of patient training as they involve the use of the shoulder muscles to control pitch. Furthermore, they are not suitable for all patients as the hands-free is suitable only for users with a certain type of tracheotomy. Goldstein et al in 2004 [1] produced a working prototype of a hands-free device that employed electromyographic signals to activate the device. However, it was quite cumbersome in design and failed to alleviate the monotonous sound produced. The goal of this research is to research the implementation of a hands-free electrolarynx, using various activation methods including electromyographic signals to vary parameters of the output signal. Once a satisfactory system of initiation has been devised and tested, a method of pitch variation shall be developed

Re-Annotation of Cough Events in the AMI Corpus

Cough sounds act as an important indicator of an individual\u27s physical health, often used by medical professionals in diagnosing a patient\u27s ailments. In recent years progress has been made in the area of automatically detecting cough events and, in certain cases, automatically identifying the ailment associated with a particular cough sound. Ethical and sensitivity issues associated with audio recordings of coughs makes it more difficult for this data to be made publicly available. However, without the public availability of a reliable database of cough sounds, developments in the area of audio event detection are likely to be hampered. The purpose of this paper is to spread awareness of a database containing a large amount of naturally occurring cough sounds that can be used for the implementation, evaluation, and comparison of new machine learning algorithms that allow for audio event detection associated with cough sounds. Using a purpose built GUI designed in MATLAB, the re-annotation procedure followed a reusable methodology that allowed for quick and efficient importing and marking of audio signals, resulting in a re-annotated version of the Augmented Multi-party Interaction (AMI) corpus\u27 cough location annotations, with 1369 individual cough events. All cough annotations and the re-annotation tool are made available for download and public use

Intelligibility of Electrolarynx Speech using a Novel Hands-Free Actuator

During voiced speech, the larynx provides quasi-periodic acoustic excitation of the vocal tract. In most electrolarynxes, mechanical vibrations are produced by a linear electromechanical actuator, the armature of which percusses against a metal or plastic plate at a frequency within the range of glottal excitation. In this paper, the intelligibility of speech produced using a novel hands-free actuator is compared to speech produced using a conventional electrolarynx. Two able-bodied speakers (one male, one female) performed a closed response test containing 28 monosyllabic words, once using a conventional electrolarynx and a second time using the novel design. The resulting audio recordings were randomized and replayed to ten listeners who recorded each word that they heard. The results show that the speech produced using the hands-free actuator was substantially more intelligible to the majority of listeners than that produced using the conventional electrolarynx. The new actuator has properties (size, weight, shape, cost) which lends itself as a suitable candidate for possible hands-free operation. This is one of the research ideals for the group and this test methodology presented as a means of testing intelligibility. This paper outlines the procedure for the possible testing of intelligibility of electrolarynx designs

Object Position Labelling in Video Using PRBS Audio Multilateration

Supervised machine learning approaches for tracking objects’ positions in video typically require a large set of images in which the positions are labelled. Human labelling is time-consuming and automatic position labelling using visual markers is generally not possible because visible markers would corrupt the data. Here, we present an approach in which an object is tracked using a hidden tag that emits a PRBS audio signal. Four microphones arranged in a planar cross formation capture parallel recordings of the PRBS signal. Multilateration, using the time difference of arrival (TDoA) of the PRBS at each microphone, is used to estimate the position of the emitter. Here, we describe and evaluate the method by which the TDoAs are obtained and the emitter position is calculated. When evaluated, the approach yielded threedimensional position estimates with a mean error of 18.56cm. In its present form, the method is suitable for applications in which precision is not a priority, but three-dimensional object coordinates are required rather than two-dimensional camera view coordinates

Prospectus, September 18, 2013

PYGMALION MUSIC FESTIVAL 2013 PREVIEW; The benefits of being a Parkland student; International Student Award recipient: Nguyen Anh; Why your waiter hasn\u27t gotten a raise in 22 years; The on-campus effect of off-campus threats; Sign-Painters: The Movie; Meet the Pros: Doug Burgett; Cobra golf teeing up for fall seasonhttps://spark.parkland.edu/prospectus_2013/1013/thumbnail.jp

Prospectus, April 1, 2014

ASSIGNED PARKING TO BEGIN AT PARKLAND; Smoking to be allowed at Parkland in the Fall; Swearing ban instituted at Parkland; No Foolin\u27: Celebrate April Fool\u27s Day with a few unsuspecting friends; Great pranks throughout history; Hookah lounge and brownie bar to be added to Student Services Center; Mystery substance causes superpowers in Parkland students; Winter is coming; The NBA to add a woman to its lineup; Parkland\u27s new football team to hold tryouts; Meet our new mascot: the Cuddlerhttps://spark.parkland.edu/prospectus_2014/1020/thumbnail.jp