bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
ICT for Inclusion: Challenges and Opportunities for Bridging the ICT Divide
Authors: del Hoyo-Barbolla E.  , Guillén S.  , Arredondo M.T.
Published: February 2025

Active ageing is proposed as a comprehensive solution for the senior collective in Europe, to ensure a better standard of living for this group. ICT will play a major role in assisting the elderly to manage their lifestyles, and thus make active ageing feasible. However, there is still an important number of individuals who do not enjoy the benefits of ICT. It is widely believed that in order to achieve the inclusion of senior citizens in the Information Society, the digital divide associated with age must be greatly reduced. This seems feasible as this heterogeneous collective seems especially motivated to learn how to use ICT to their best abilities. Empowering senior citizens, by providing personalised information, both in terms of ICT and healthcare knowledge, to keep healthy could be regarded as a potential solution. Stakeholders in policy making and advocacy need to be closely involved in promoting active ageing programmes that make use of ICT, and there needs to be more active cooperation between people and the institutions in charge of social policy.
Biometrics, Identification and Practical Ethics
Authors: Harel Arnon
Published: February 2025

In recent years, many debates and discussions have taken place in many European and North American countries regarding the need for issuing a secure ID. It goes without saying that such an ID usually should incorporate biometric data. In other countries, there exist ID cards systems that do not rely upon biometrics. Ethical questions relating to identity, privacy, liberty, human dignity and democracy are raised by the very act of implementing an identification system; incorporating biometrics amplifies and multiplies those questions. This article discusses the unique threats ascribed to the use of biometric technologies. We analyze the risks that are essentially similar to those inherent in all identification systems. We also focus upon those risks that are exclusive to biometric systems. Several criteria are suggested for assessing the rate of sensitivity associated with biometric systems. Three major biometric operational modes are described and evaluated according to those criteria, and the same is done with the five most popular technologies, creating a multi-dimensional matrix of sensitivity levels. The conclusion of the article is that biometric technologies, although useful, possess dangerous characteristics that may constitute threats to fundamental human and social rights. The public, legislators, decision makers, system founders, designers and developers, lack sufficient awareness (or concern) about these dangerous attributes, and biometric systems that are being implemented do not seem to be dealing with them adequately, or at all. As a result, threats to the individual are not identified, minimized or otherwise controlled. The article redefines the practical ethics and legal framework for dealing with personal sensitive information in the context of identification systems in general and biometric systems in particular, and calls for an informed public discussion regarding those issues.
Model Cheking Ambient Intelligence with AVISPA
Authors: Muñoz Antonio  , Maña Antonio  , Serrano Daniel
Published: February 2025

Current number of Ambient Intelligent systems is growning steadlily in last years. Moreover, several fields such as domotic and remote teaching are practical applications of AmI. These are some systems that interact with different ones, that is the reason of “AmI Ecosystem” term is used. An AmI Ecosystem is defined as the environment in which users interact transparently with a number of inter-connected devices to the Internet through different telematic networks.
Emulation of an Active Tag Location Tracking System
Authors: Beuran Razvan  , Nakata Junya  , Okada Takashi  , Kawakami Tetsuya  , Chinen Ken-ichi  , Tan Yasuo  , Shinoda Yoichi
Published: February 2025

In this paper we present the emulation of a location tracking system that uses active tags to identify the position of the active tag wearer. Using emulation we were able to carry out live experiments with such active tag applications. Emulation is done using QOMET, a wireless communication emulator, and the active tag processor emulator. Experiments are performed using the experiment-support software RUNE. Emulation is used during the development of the pedestrian localization system so as to perform large-scale experiments easily and in a repeatable manner.
Harnessing “Fair Trade” metaphor as privacy control in Ambient Intelligent
Authors: Esquivel Abraham  , Haya Pablo A.  , García-Herranz Manuel  , Alamán Xavier
Published: February 2025

Ambient Intelligence is a promising research area that opens attractive perspective for improving human-computer interaction. Since AmI systems require knowing user's private information, privacy issues are especially relevant. This paper follows a two-fold approach. Firstly, a privacy framework for AmI systems is introduced. We analyses the elements involved in privacy management and the nature of personal information. Mainly we will focus on control privacy for shortterm information. Secondly, this work presents a privacy management solution, simple enough for the common understanding, but rather flexible to fulfill users and services expectations. This proposal, named as “Fair-Trade” metaphor, relays on trading quality of service for information. This strategy combined with optimistic access control and a logging mechanism, enhances users' confidence in the system while encouraging them to share their information, with the consequent benefit for the community.
Forecasting and Preventing Disasters from Natural or Man-made Fires in Forest Areas
Authors: Boz Lăcrămioara  , Tofan Lavinia  , Toma Ovidiu
Published: February 2025

This paper is intended as an “alarm signal” for the preservation of the two priceless valuables, human life and the environment. It is essential for this approach to empower the idea of rendering everybody responsible for all factors in the sense that they should extend to individuals' efforts as well as to team efforts in order to preserve life and the environment. This is achieved by complying with prevention regulations for fire hazards in forest areas and also by proper behaviour concerning the warning, evacuation and saving people in a forest area on fire. In addition, the article aims to render public opinion sensitive enough to understand that forest fires are disasters that can be avoided, or at least limited, and carrying forward positive results is entirely in man's power.
Building the Cold War Frontier: Bases, Refugees, and Germans in Franconia, 1945–60
Authors: Seipp Adam R.
Published: February 2025

This chapter argues that the management of refugee affairs was a crucial day-to-day responsibility of American occupation troops in western Germany after World War Two. Because of official disinterest in the refugee problem, conventional histories of the occupation have largely ignored the important connections between different groups of refugees and the occupation forces. In places like Lower Franconia, the American decision to expand its troop presence in Central Europe after 1950 had important repercussions for refugee populations, since many remaining refugee camps occupied space now claimed by the US Army.
Terrorism, Mobility and Transportation Security
Authors: Szyliowicz Joseph S.
Published: February 2025

One of the key characteristics of the modern world is the ever growing mobility of peoples and freight. Such mobility which is essential for the functioning of modern economies and societies is dependent upon the effective functioning of transportation systems that are threatened by terrorism. Transportation systems present attractive targets but are difficult to defend because of their characteristics and developments such as globalization and intermodalism. This paper discusses the relevance of these issues for the security of both freight and passenger systems and the strengths and weaknesses of the policies that have been implemented to safeguard these systems as well as challenges that still require attention.
Sample Preparation and Good Practice in Synchrotron Radiation Circular Dichroism Spectroscopy
Authors: Miles Andrew J.  , Wallace B.A.
Published: February 2025

The development of synchrotron radiation circular dichroism (SRCD) spectroscopy, which uses the intense light of a synchrotron beam, has greatly expanded the utility of circular dichroism (CD), enabling the measurement of lower wavelength data containing more electronic transitions and hence more structural information. Furthermore the higher signal-to-noise and the ability to do faster measurements facilitate high-throughput data collection using smaller samples. In general the good practice protocols required for conventional CD studies also apply to SRCD studies; however there are additional good practice issues unique to SRCD spectroscopy and these are covered in this chapter.
Methods of Analysis for Circular Dichroism Spectroscopy of Proteins and the DichroWeb Server
Authors: Whitmore Lee  , Wallace B.A.
Published: February 2025

Circular dichroism spectroscopy is a very useful method for the analysis of the secondary structures of proteins. This chapter summarises the current (and past) algorithms, methodologies and reference datasets developed for such analyses, including the online analysis server DichroWeb. The chapter also includes sections on practical approaches to such analyses with existing software, and potential sources of errors in analyses and how they can be avoided.
Reference Datasets for Protein Circular Dichroism and Synchrotron Radiation Circular Dichroism Spectroscopic Analyses
Authors: Janes Robert W.
Published: February 2025

In this chapter the contents and compositions of existing reference datasets used for the analysis of protein secondary structures from circular dichroism (CD) data are described. It includes discussions of the quality of the CD data and the crystal structures that are used. Early reference datasets are compared with a new dataset, SP175, which was specifically created based on bioinformatics assessments of protein secondary structure and fold space. Finally, the issues that need to be considered when creating a new reference dataset are discussed.
LDPC Codes in the McEliece Cryptosystem: Attacks and Countermeasures
Authors: Baldi Marco
Published: February 2025

The McEliece cryptosystem is a public-key cryptosystem based on coding theory that has successfully resisted cryptanalysis for thirty years. The original version, based on Goppa codes, is able to guarantee a high level of security, and is faster than competing solutions, like RSA. Despite this, it has been rarely considered in practical applications, due to two major drawbacks: i) large size of the public key and ii) low transmission rate. Several attempts have been made for overcoming such drawbacks, but the adoption of most families of codes has not been possible without compromising the system security. Low-Density Parity-Check (LDPC) codes are state-of-art forward error correcting codes that permit to approach the Shannon limit while ensuring limited complexity. Quasi-Cyclic (QC) LDPC codes are a particular class of LDPC codes, able to join low complexity encoding of QC codes with high-performing and low-complexity decoding techniques based on the belief propagation principle. In a previous work it has been proposed to adopt a particular family of QC-LDPC codes in the McEliece cryptosystem to reduce the key size and increase the transmission rate. It has been shown that such variant is able to counter all the classic attacks, and also attacks that can compromise the security of previous LDPC-based versions. Recently, however, new attacks have been found that are able to exploit a flaw in the transformation from the private key to the public one. Such attacks can be effectively countered by changing the form of some constituent matrices, without altering the system parameters. This change has marginal effects on the complexity of the cryptosystem that, instead, preserves its security against all known attacks. This work gives an overview of the QC-LDPC codes-based McEliece cryptosystem and its cryptanalysis. Two recent versions are considered, and their ability to counter all the currently known attacks is discussed. A third version able to reach a higher security level is also proposed. Finally, it is shown that the new QC-LDPC codes-based cryptosystem scales favorably when larger keys are needed, as very recently pointed out by the successful implementation of an attack against the original cryptosystem.
Mapping SLA-based workflows onto Grid resources with parallel processing technology
Authors: Quan Dang Minh  , Yang Laurence T.
Published: February 2025

Service Level Agreements (SLAs) are currently one of the major research topics in Grid Computing. Among many system components for supporting of SLA-aware Grid jobs, the SLA mapping module holds an important position and the capability of the mapping module depends on the runtime of the mapping algorithm. With the previously proposed mapping algorithms, the mapping module may develop into the bottleneck of the system if many requests come in during a short period of time. Besides that, the mapping module may also miss some high quality mapping solutions. This Chapter presents parallel mapping algorithms, which can either reduce the runtime of the mapping algorithms without reducing the quality of the mapping solutions or increase the quality of the mapping solutions without increasing the runtime of the mapping algorithms. Performance measurements thereby deliver evaluation results showing the quality of the method. The speedup of the algorithms and the quality of the solutions are significantly improved when using 8 CPUs comparing to using 1 CPU.
Large Scale Distributed and Parallel Computing for Linear Algebra Problems: Practice and Experience
Authors: Choy Laurent  , Petiton Serge G.  , Sato Mitsuhisa
Published: February 2025

Parallel and distributed programming for large scale computing platforms is a topical and challenging issue. Through our experience on the distribution and parallelization of linear algebra problems, especially the real symmetric eigenproblem, we present in this Chapter our approach to tackle this issue. It starts from very early choices related to numerical algorithms in order to determine an optimal communication paradigm. As an example, by choosing the Bisection algorithm, we underline how far is interesting the parametric-parallelism paradigm in the context of world-wide computing. We also emphasize the importance of data distribution on communication and we propose useful techniques to deploy an application on a web-based heterogeneous environment. In particular, out-of-core programming and data persistence are relevant in this context. We evaluate our case study application on nation and world-wide platforms by using the XtremWeb peer-to-peer middleware and the OmniRPC grid computing middleware. In addition, we perform evaluations on large size instances of the eigenproblem. Therefore, we show the feasibility of the global computing model for linear algebra problems.
Parallel Implementations of SVM for Earth Observation
Authors: Muñoz-Marí Jordi  , Plaza Antonio J.  , Gualtieri J. Anthony  , Camps-Valls Gustavo
Published: February 2025

Imaging spectroscopy, also known as hyperspectral remote sensing, is concerned with the measurement, analysis, and interpretation of spectra acquired from a given scene (or specific object) at a short, medium or long distance by an airborne or satellite sensor. Analysis in a timely manner of the acquired multi-dimensional images allows to develop applications with high social impact, such as urban growing monitoring, crop fields identification, target detection for military and defense/security deployment, wildland fire detection and monitoring, biological threat detection, biophysical parameter estimation, or monitoring of oil spills and other types of chemical contamination.
Fighting Against Terrorism in Kyrgyzstan: Collaborative Partnerships and Citizen Involvement Approach
Authors: Yuldashev Farhod  , Demiroz Fatih  , Volkov Igor
Published: February 2025

The evil of terrorism has manifested itself in both large and small scale events in Kyrgyzstan. In fighting against terrorism, Kyrgyzstan has developed policy reforms to increase the state capacity and technical base with the help of international assistance and cooperation. However, the involvement of community groups and citizens has largely been overlooked. This paper uses collaborative public management and new governance perspectives to argue that establishing mechanisms of collaborative partnerships and citizen participation in solving societal problems that breed terrorism will help the Kyrgyz government increase the legitimacy and effectiveness of government agencies in preventing terrorism by virtue of distinctive local capabilities and resources that communities and citizens provide.
Nuclear Forensic Analysis as a Response Tool to Nuclear Terrorism Events
Authors: Fedchenko Vitaly
Published: February 2025

The term Nuclear Forensic Analysis (NFA) first appeared in the early 1990s in the context of combating nuclear smuggling. Currently it is a rapidly developing field of science. This chapter discusses the use of NFA in the investigation of different possible cases of nuclear terrorism.
Improvised NBCR Attacks on Civilian and Military Infrastructure
Authors: Zimmerman Peter D.
Published: February 2025

Attacks by terrorists armed with radiological, chemical and biological weapons, and even true nuclear explosives are assessed as credible by many analysts and scholars. This paper examines ways in which nuclear attacks might be staged, and comments on the effects of all four types of weapons used by terrorists against some military and some civilian targets. It appears likely that civilian and military targets have different vulnerabilities to each of the weapon types.
High resolution Eddy Current Atomic Force Microscopy: Development, Theoretical Modeling and Application
Authors: Nalladega Vijayaraghava  , Sathish Shamachary  , Jata Kumar  , Blodgett Mark  , Knopp Jeremy
Published: February 2025

This paper describes the development of a high resolution eddy current imaging system by combining the basic principles of conventional eddy current and an atomic force microscope (AFM). The eddy currents are generated by exciting a small coil, placed under an electrically conductive sample, with a low frequency electromagnetic signal. The eddy currents through the sample are detected by a magnetic film coated AFM tip-cantilever. The force between the coil and the magnetic tip, with and without the electrically conductive sample, is related to the electrical conductivity, at that location in the sample. The images of the electrical conductivity variations in the sample are obtained by scanning the sample with a magnetic film coated tip. Eddy current images of metal, composite, and nano-composites are presented. A theoretical model developed to evaluate the response of the magnetic film coated AFM tip under the eddy current excitation is described. The results obtained on simple metals are compared with the theoretical model. The model is used to interpret in general the observed contrast and features in different materials.
Transient Electromagnetic Phenomena in Pulsed Eddy Current Testing
Authors: Tsuboi Hajime  , Ozaki Makoto  , Seshima Norio  , Tanaka Motoo
Published: February 2025

In pulsed eddy current testing (ECT), much information can be obtained by a measurement. Understanding the electromagnetic phenomena in pulsed ECT is necessary for establishment of the design method of probe and the processing method of detected signal. In this paper, a simple axisymmetric aluminum plate model was investigated by using finite element analysis. We tried to clarify the electromagnetic phenomena in the aluminum plate model excited by pulsed source current and collect fundamental data for the investigation of three-dimensional problems.
Electromagnetic Evaluation of the Concentration of Hydrogen Diffused in Zirconium Alloys used in PHWR
Authors: Grimberg Raimond  , Ruch Marta Clelia  , Savin Adriana  , Steigmann Rozina  , Iftimie Nicoleta  , Bruma Alina
Published: February 2025

In this paper we propose the nondestructive determination of the deuterium content from the pressure tubes using a classical eddy current multi frequency method. The conductivity of the zirconium alloy is determined by inversion, the influence of ZrO layer being eliminated. The developed model, the inversion method and the comparing of prediction - experiment are presented, the data obtained experimentally validating the proposed method.
Magnetic NDE for Cold-rolled and Thermally Aged Fe-Cu Alloy using Impedance Measurement
Authors: Kikuchi Hiroaki  , Sato Fumitoshi  , Ara Katsuyuki  , Kamada Yasuhiro  , Kobayashi Satoru
Published: February 2025

Since ac permeability is a more useful parameter than one obtained from a hysteresis loop from the viewpoints of electricity consumption and real-time measurement, a magnetic single-yoke having a winding coil was adopted in order to investigate characteristics of ac permeability of cold-rolled and thermally aged Fe-Cu alloys. An impedance of the coil wound on the single-yoke was measured using a LCR meter with a frequency of 1 Hz to 1kHz. The inductance at low frequency decreases and the resistance at high frequency increases with increasing reduction ratio before thermal aging. On the other hand, inductance and resistance increase with thermal aging in early stage and then decrease on both undeformed and deformed specimen. Those behaviours are discussed in connection with their microstructure changes.
On the Imaging of Two-Dimensional Thin Inclusions by a MUSIC-Type Algorithm from Boundary Measurements
Authors: Park W.K.  , Ammari H.  , Lesselier D.
Published: February 2025

A MUSIC-type imaging technique is proposed for the reconstruction of thin, curve-like penetrable inclusions in a homogeneous space. It is based on an appropriate asymptotic formula of the scattering amplitude, here assuming planar excitations. Operating at a fixed nonzero frequency, it yields the shape of the inclusion from scattered far-fields in addition to estimates of the length of the supporting curve. Numerical experiments exhibit how the proposed technique behaves.
Three Dimensional Shape Recovery of Fatigue Crack using Eddy Current Testing Signals
Authors: Oshima Kenichi  , Kojima Fumio
Published: February 2025

This paper is concerned with deep-lying effects in fatigue cracking from eddy current testing (ECT) signals. The fatigue crack often remains tightly closed, and thus difficult to find by visual inspection. It is important to estimate the direction of crack growth because of evaluating the common mode of failure in structural and mechanical engineering components. Our study is aimed at developing a practical method for identifying three dimensional profiles from surface image obtained by scanning ECT probe. A various type of fatigue cracks are made from compact tension (CT) specimen of aluminum alloy samples. ECT signals are collected for those test samples using the transmit-receive (TR) probe and absolute pancake probe. We discuss the features of ECT detecting signals of fatigue cracking which are different from electric discharge machining (EDM) crack signals.
Nondestructive Evaluation of Beryllium to Copper Joining for Iter By Using An Electromagnetic Acoustic Transducer (EMAT)
Authors: Jung Hyun-Kyu  , Cheong Yong-Moo  , Lee Dong-Won  , Hong Bong-Geun
Published: February 2025

Beryllium has a higher magneto-mechanical coupling factor than any other metal and is possibly suitable for an application to Electromagnetic Acoustic Transducers (EMAT). EMAT excites and detects an ultrasonic wave in electrically conducting materials through a reaction of the induced eddy currents and static magnetic fields. This technique has the advantages of a non-contact nature and an easy selection of the desired wave mode. A shear horizontal (SH) wave can be generated easily by using EMAT and it has several attractive features over longitudinal (L) and shear vertical (SV) waves. But the experimental results of SH waves showed the no signal from the interface due to full transparency of the interface. However, in the case of the existence of a defect, several peaks at the higher resonant frequencies can be found through the Fourier Transform. A 10 MHz ultrasonic immersion test as well as an EMAT test have been conducted to compare them by using the same bonded structure.
Multifrequency Eddy Current Evaluation of Tube Heat Exchangers
Authors: Chady Tomasz  , Kowalczyk Jacek
Published: February 2025

This paper describes works on nondestructive evaluation of tube heat exchangers. A dedicated eddy current transducer was utilized. Various configurations were evaluated and the most promising one was selected. Additional signal processing algorithms were applied to extract useful information. The proposed solutions were tested using a real specimen with artificial defects.
Modeling of Steam Generator Tubes Inspection in the Proximity of Support Plates via a Coupled Finite Elements – Volume Integral Method Approach
Authors: Skarlatos Anastassios  , Gilles-Pascaud Catherine  , Pichenot Grégoire  , Cattiaux Gérard  , Sollier Thierry
Published: February 2025

A combined Finite Elements Method (FEM) – Volume Integral Method (VIM) approach is presented for the modeling of Steam Generator (SG) tube inspection in the vicinity of support plates. The coupled approach combines the flexibility of the FEM in modeling complex geometries with the numerical efficiency of the VIM, reducing the computational time demanded for the solution of the problem using the FEM only. Additional effects like material deposit between plate and tube can be also taken into account. The developed coupling technique is planed to be integrated in the CIVA nondestructive evaluation simulation platform.
Assessing Temporal Relationships Between Events in Smart Environments
Authors: Mastrogiovanni Fulvio  , Scalmato Antonello  , Sgorbissa Antonio  , Zaccaria Renato
Published: February 2025

A knowledge representation system is introduced that allows the recognition of temporal patterns of events in context-aware environments. The system is based on standard frameworks, such as an ontology, an inference mechanism, and relational operators acting on numerical quantities. The paper describes how knowledge is managed, then introduces a collection of temporal operators that are inspired by the Allen's interval algebra, and then details a situation recognition algorithm to assess knowledge semantics. An example is reported to describe the approach.
Interleaved Activity Recognition for Smart Home residents
Authors: Singla Geetika  , Cook Diane J.
Published: February 2025

Smart environments rely on artificial intelligence techniques to make sense of the sensor data and to use the information for recognition and tracking activities. However, many of the techniques that have been developed are designed for simplified situations. In this paper we discuss a more complex situation, namely recognizing activities when they are interweaved in complex and realistic scenarios. This technology is beneficial for monitoring the health of smart environment residents and for correlating activities with parameters such as energy usage. We describe our approach to interleaved activity recognition and evaluate various probabilistic techniques for activity recognition. We validate our algorithm on real sensor data collecting in our smart apartment testbed.
Transferring Learned Activities in Smart Environments
Authors: Rashidi Parisa  , Cook Diane J.
Published: February 2025

Most commonly-used techniques in smart environments such as ADL recognition are designed and tested for a specific space and a specific person; therefore learning in each environmental situation is treated as a separate context. In this paper, we try to develop a method for recognizing and transferring learned knowledge of activities between different residents. Our method is able to map activities despite intra-subject variability and inter-subject variability, by using a discontinuous mining method and a similarity measurement method. At the end, we will provide the results of our experiments on real data obtained from a smart apartment.
Creating an Ambient Intelligent Environment with an Emotion-Aware System
Authors: Mowafey Sherief  , Schmitt Alexander  , Hagras Hani  , Minker Wolfgang
Published: February 2025

In this paper, we describe a novel approach of combining an emotion voice aware system with a fuzzy logic system to develop embedded agents aimed at creating an Ambient Intelligent Environment (AIE). This combined approach was evaluated in the GUC intelligent Classroom (iClass) which a is real world AIE testbed. The developed system aims to control the user environment on his behalf while taking into account the user's emotions. The agent learns online the fuzzy membership functions and rules from the user monitored actions to generate an agent that models the user behavior in an educational AIE like the iClass. The agent then operates in a life long learning mode where the agent can be adapted over long time intervals to the user's changing desires and preferences.
Synthesizing Datasets for Pervasive Spaces
Authors: Mendez-Vazquez Andres  , Helal Abdelsalam (Sumi)  , Cook Diane Joyce
Published: February 2025

Persistent problems in obtaining test data while developing technologies for pervasive spaces include the lack of data generation and representation standards, limited amount of available test data, incompleteness of existing data sets, and high cost of implementing a given pervasive space. This not only hinders the development and design of pervasive spaces, but also decreases the ability of researchers to compare results with those of other areas in computer science. For example, in the interaction between sensors and actuators, testing the robustness of new algorithms and evaluating risk requires large datasets that portray different scenarios. However, associated costs can be prohibitive as the data burden increases. In response to this situation, we propose a Pervasive Space Simulation Technique (PSST) that uses Markov chains, non-homogenous Poisson processes, and distribution fitting for generation of synthetic test data. PSST provides a realistic simulation of events in the pervasive space.
Insights into the design of communicative location-based experiences
Authors: Rizopoulos Charalampos  , Charitos Dimitris
Published: February 2025

This paper presents a study of the communicative experience of locative media users participating in a multi-user pervasive game in an attempt to provide insights on the design of such experiences. The study presented therein is a follow-up to earlier work outlining a theoretical model of locative media use for the purposes of communication and social interaction.
An Application of Swarm Robotics in Architectural Design
Authors: Yiannoudes Socrates
Published: February 2025

This paper examines the potential of applying swarm intelligence concepts onto the design of architecture, and in particular transformable structures. Recently, swarm intelligence concepts have inspired research for the design and implementation of collective robotic systems as well as transformable flexible buildings. I argue that the latter exhibit limited capabilities for flexibility, both functional and physical, contrary to the architects' initial intentions, whereas swarm based robotics present a more promising future for technological swarm applications. Based on these arguments, a concept for a transformable environment, called Swarm-Roof, is proposed and described, drawing from swarm robotics technologies and ideas.
Perceptual Evaluation of Radio Signal Quality Degradation
Authors: Zablotskiy Sergey  , Müller Thomas  , Minker Wolfgang
Published: February 2025

In this paper we present an approach, which avoids expansive and time consuming subjective assessment of audio quality degradation, caused by different nature disturbances during the transmitting and receiving of stereo audio signal through the radio channel. This approach is based on the basic version of PEAQ (Perceptual Evaluation of Audio Quality) method, optimized generally for audio codec testing. The MOV (Model Output Variables) vector of the PEAQ method is transformed to the transmitted audio quality degradation scale, using the combination of neural networks and genetic algorithms.
Localized In-Network Detection and Tracking of Phenomena Clouds using Wireless Sensor Networks
Authors: Bose Raja  , Helal Abdelsalam (Sumi)
Published: February 2025

Phenomena clouds are characterized by non-deterministic, dynamic variations over time, of their shape, size and direction of motion along multiple axes. In the past, the utility of phenomena detection and tracking has been limited to applications such as tracking oil spills and gas clouds. However, through our collective experience over the years in a completely different deployment domain (Smart Spaces), we have discovered great utility and value in applying this concept to accurately and efficiently observe other types of phenomena. In this paper, we propose distributed sensor network algorithms which utilize localized in-network processing to simultaneously detect and track multiple phenomena clouds in a sensor space. Our algorithms not only ensure low processing and networking overhead but also minimize the number of sensors which are actively involved in the detection and tracking processes at any given time. We validate our approach using both real-life smart home applications as well as simulation experiments. We also show that our algorithms result in significant reduction in resource usage and power consumption as compared to contemporary stream-based approaches.
Cipo_09 music box
Authors: Kostas Daflos E.
Published: February 2025

The CIPO artwork program are interactive action-based installations, that investigate through robot agents, the relationship between subjects, body and space. The interminglement of spectators within the digital framework transforms the space to an experimental place. The CIPO program involves the physical viewer participation and the live energy of the human presence; it agitates the spectators to perform into an active relation with subjects and objects in place. Cipo_09 art objects are (3) three similar interactive handmade music boxes bring sound events. Cipo_09 music boxes have been drawn such as unhistoric impromptu instruments, which appropriate the concept and sounds of old music boxes from the 19thcentury. Different sound events created by human presences, are transcribed through cipo_09 hybrid objects to open sound scenarios.
Internalizing Unknown Objects by Means of Perception and Communication in Multi-Agent Systems
Authors: Dipsis Nikolaos  , Stathis Kostas
Published: February 2025

Very commonly, multi-agent systems built for ubiquitous computing and ambient intelligence applications require from their members to perform collaborative tasks or to attempt to communicate regarding potentially unknown objects in their environment. The specific class of this type of systems that constitutes the domain for the proposed research defines multi-agent systems utilizing agents that encompass high-level symbolic name worlds that are linked to their environment via low level sensory input. A successful outcome when attempting collaborative tasks in such systems is always dependent on the ability of the agents to refer to the correct objects in their communication. In my research I will pursue an approach towards confronting the above problem and propose a solution. This solution will be applied in this category of multi-agent systems enabling them to deal with the imperative to verify that all agents refer to the correct object in order for the outcome of a collaborative task upon it or the communication regarding it to be successful.
Selecting AAC Devices for Persons with ALS Taking into Consideration the Disease Progression
Authors: Rita Ana  , Londral Ana  , Encarnação Pedro  , Azevedo Luís
Published: February 2025

Progressive neurological disorders, such as Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), pose a great challenge to Assistive Technology (AT) selection. In fact, as the disease progresses, the patient needs for AT support change and assistive technology devices can soon become of no use to the patient. To assist professionals in the selection of AT devices for Communication, a table that suggests commercially available technologies appropriate to each stage of ALS is presented. This instrument provides a guideline for technology selection, taking into consideration the disease progression. However, it does not substitute a thorough patient assessment, and it does not consider user preferences. The main purpose of developing such a table is to bring into the assistive technology selection process not only the ALS patient present needs but also the envisioned future needs. Prescribing AT with these concerns has the potential to reduce the need to substitute devices as the disease progresses, releasing the patient from the effort to adapt to a different technology and avoiding the usually long time interval before getting a new device, during which the person stays with no useful AT support.
Evaluation of Unambiguous Virtual Keyboards with Character Prediction
Authors: Molina Alberto  , Rivera Octavio  , Gómez Isabel  , Sánchez Gemma
Published: February 2025

This paper presents simulation model that estimates average text entry time and average number of user inputs per character for an unambiguous virtual keyboard with different character predictors. The simulation is focused on VK operated by binary user inputs (ON,OFF), that could come from physical buttons, wink detection systems, etc. The model allows us to use different predictors (k-grams, n-grams or any combination of them), prediction list scanning methods, lengths of prediction list and prediction turn-on delays. The simulation give us optimal list length and prediction delay for different predictors and scanning methods.
Efficient Algorithms for a Brain Computer Interface: Performance Studies
Authors: Martín José Luis  , Ferreira André  , Mazo Manuel  , Boquete Luciano  , Palazuelos Sira  , Garcia Juan Carlos
Published: February 2025

The design of a reliable Brain Computer Interface (BCI) is a very interesting topic in the Assistive Technology field because it would allow to people with very severe limitations to interact with his environment using electronic devices. This paper describes an architectural proposal for a BCI along with the results of a full test set. Proposed architecture has a three step structure: preprocessing, feature extraction and classification; tests have been conducted with twelve subjects of different gender and ages. Analysis of the data obtained in tests shows that the best performance in almost every circumstance can be achieved with a combination of Fast Fourier Transform and Wavelets (FFT-WT) as feature extraction step and Support Vector Machines (SVM) as classification step.
The Assistive Technology Internet Café
Authors: Morandell Martin M.
Published: February 2025

The Assistive Technology Internet Café was an innovative concept set up in the context of an international summer camp for young people with disabilities from 18 countries. Providing different kinds of Assistive Technology software and hardware it aimed to be usable for all visitors, independent of their nationality, computer knowledge, personal abilities or special needs.
The Meaning of Living with or without Environmental Control Systems for People with Tetraplegia: An Irish Focus Group Study
Authors: Verdonck Michèle  , Steggles Elizabeth  , Chard Gill
Published: February 2025

Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis was used to analyse four focus groups that explored the lived experience of life with and without environmental controls (ECS) for persons with high cervical spinal cord injury. Findings revealed themes of autonomy, freedom, safety, time alone, and relationship. These experiences offer useful insights for both users and practitioners in the field of assistive technology.
Integrating Fall Detection into a Home Control System
Authors: Bianchi Valentina  , Grossi Ferdinando  , De Munari Ilaria  , Ciampolini Paolo
Published: February 2025

In this paper, we discuss the full integration of a wearable fall detector into a comprehensive home control network, as an effective way to reduce implementation costs and to improve the service functionality. Instead of accounting for a stand-alone fall-detection system, we consider the detector as a component of a wider, multi-functional wireless sensor network, used to implement different home services and integrated in a home monitoring system.
Is Flash Really Accessible When Interacting through Screen Readers?
Authors: Leporini Barbara  , Paternò Fabio  , Spano Lucio Davide
Published: February 2025

In this paper we report on a study, which aims to assess whether the recent versions of Flash allow designers to obtain really accessible applications when users interact through screen readers. A Flash application has been analysed for this purpose along with various solutions for improving its accessibility. The results show that in some important cases Flash applications still raise important accessibility problems.
Evaluation of Failsafe Wheelchair Brake for Users with Memory Loss in Clinical Use: Short-Term Evaluation of Function
Authors: Nihei Misato  , Ishiwata Rina  , Deguchi Genbu  , Misegawa Michiko  , Inoue Takenobu
Published: February 2025

In developing new assistive technologies, we need to evaluate their clinical efficacy. The purpose of this study was to evaluate a protocol devised for evaluating the efficacy of new assistive devices. This paper describes the short-term evaluation of a new, simple, failsafe brake for wheelchairs that reduces the risk of falls during patient transfer, as a case study. The evaluation confirmed the activation of the brake during patient transfer and deactivation during travel. This short-term evaluation confirms the effectiveness of the protocol and informs our plan for a long-term evaluation.
Study on Background Illuminance and Color Conspicuity Characteristics for Persons with Low Visual Capacity
Authors: Mitani Seiji  , Yoshida Toshiaki  , Kobayashi Sei  , Fujisawa Shoichiro  , Sueda Osamu  , Tauchi Masaki
Published: February 2025

The purpose of our study was to contribute to efficient and safe independent mobility of persons with low visual capacity by improving the visibility of Tactile Walking Surface Indicators. For this purpose, we measured color perception of persons with low visual capacity using the method of measuring color conspicuity and studied proper color for Tactile Walking Surface Indicators. As a result, yellow had very high conspicuity on the dark background, and red (5R4/14) and yellow-red (10R5/14) were the most conspicuous on the dark background.
An Analysis of the Phonological Database of Japanese Sign Language
Authors: Kanda Kazuyuki  , Kimura Tsutomu  , Morimoto Kazunari  , Ichikawa Akira  , Nagashima Yuji  , Hara Daisuke
Published: February 2025

The result of an analysis of JPD shows there is a hierarchy of frequency among the phonological elements in JSL. It will help developing sign recognition and sign generation.
Organizing Research in Web 2.0 Era
Authors: Burzagli Laura  , Como Andrea  , De Monte Maria Tagarelli  , Gabbanini Francesco
Published: February 2025

The evolution of Web in what is called 2.0 version is increasingly changing the use of the Internet for information exchange. The world of Research is also involved, meaning a change in laboratories daily routine and a higher possibility of informational exchange between people also physically distant to each other. This paper presents a first insight into the ICT-ONE project aiming to design and develop an accessible Web tool designed for Researchers coming from the domains of ICT, Optics, Nanotechnology and Energy, and the challenges lying beneath the creation of a tool to meet different users organizational needs.
Delivering the D in R&D: Increasing Product Outcomes from R&D Projects
Authors: Lane Joseph P.
Published: February 2025

Sponsored Research and Development projects in the field of assistive technology, are expected to generate tangible device or service outcomes to improve the quality of life for persons with disabilities. Why does the field experience a relatively small number of successful outcomes in relation to the funding invested? A retrospective case study of 78 development projects from a dozen U.S. Rehabilitation Engineering Research Centers sought evidence of progress in the latter from initial conception of the project, through internal prototype completion, and then transfer out to awareness and use by external stakeholders. The results show evidence of progress to internal prototype for the majority of projects, but evidence of transfer into use by others by about one quarter of the proposed projects. The lack of progress to the intended results for the majority of projects is attributed to deficiencies in the initial problem selection, and to operational issues such as project planning and resource management. These limitations could be addressed by applying generally accepted models and methods of new product development. These are considered to be standard practice in industry, yet they are not widely known or applied by people trained as academic researchers. Findings suggest that successful development projects require a level of rigor and relevance in development projects equal to that applied to research projects. Sponsored projects in assistive technology which intend to generate beneficial impacts among people with disabilities, need to differentiate research, development and production activity, and ensure that the appropriate personnel, resources and systems are applied to achieve the desired results. This, in turn, requires funding agencies and host institutions to treat these various forms of activity with equal rigor and relevance.
A Step forward towards Increasing the Mobility and Participation of People with Disabilities Utilizing Satellite Navigation Technology Applications
Authors: Malavasi Massimiliano  , Fanucci Luca  , Hoogerwerf Evert-Jan  , Iacopetti Fabrizio  , Muscinelli Roberto  , Neccia Francesca  , Rimondini Matteo  , Rossi Stefano  , Varacalli Giancarlo
Published: February 2025

Large groups of the population in Europe encounter significant difficulties in taking part in everyday life due to their functional limitations. The NADIA (NAvigation for DIsability Applications) Project, funded and promoted by the Italian Space Agency (ASI) and implemented by Thales Alenia Space Italia with the collaboration of a mixed team of companies, university and user associations, has made concrete steps forward in demonstrating that satellite navigation applications can have an important role in facilitating the mobility of people with disabilities. This paper describes not only some basic features of the system, but looks at how they are related to the process of defining user needs and requirements, highlighting the role of end users and of professional users of Assistive Technology (AT).