bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A video-tracking based serious game for motor rehabilitation of post-stroke hand impairment
Authors: Souza Alyson M. de C. , Gadelha Matheus A. , Coutinho Edson A. G. , Santos Selan R. dos , Pantoja André L. H. , Pereira Antonio
Published: November 2020

This work describes the development of a serious game focused on health treatment. The Handcopter Game was designed to support the recovery of motor function in patients who have suffered a stroke recently. We propose a non-conventional low cost input device to funtion as the game controller. It detects the patient's hand movements via computer vision algorithms and map that to movements on the game character in the virtual environment. The premise is that the game play makes patients execute hand movements typically found in a physiotherapy session. We also discuss how to use this game as part of the patient's treatment. Finally, we present the results collected when real patients played the game as part of their recovery treatment.
An evaluation of real-time requirements for automatic sign language recognition using ANNs and HMMs - The LIBRAS use case
Authors: Pizzolato Ednaldo Brigante , Anjo Mauro dos Santos , Feuerstack Sebastian
Published: November 2020

Sign languages are the natural way Deafs use to communicate with other people. They have their own formal semantic definitions and syntactic rules and are composed by a large set of gestures involving hands and head. Automatic recognition of sign languages (ARSL) tries to recognize the signs and translate them into a written language. ARSL is a challenging task as it involves background segmentation, hands and head posture modeling, recognition and tracking, temporal analysis and syntactic and semantic interpretation. Moreover, when real-time requirements are considered, this task becomes even more challenging. In this paper, we present a study of real time requirements of automatic sign language recognition of small sets of static and dynamic gestures of the Brazilian Sign Language (LIBRAS). For the task of static gesture recognition, we implemented a system that is able to work on small sub-sets of the alphabet - like A,E,I,O,U and B,C,F,L,V - reaching very high recognition rates. For the task of dynamic gesture recognition, we tested our system over a small set of LIBRAS words and collected the execution times. The aim was to gather knowledge regarding execution time of all the recognition processes (like segmentation, analysis and recognition itself) to evaluate the feasibility of building a real-time system to recognize small sets of both static and dynamic gestures. Our findings indicate that the bottleneck of our current architecture is the recognition phase.
The BRAVA Initiative
Authors: Anacleto Junia
Published: November 2020

The Brazilian Visual Analytics Initiative, or BRAVA, aims at leveraging the collaborative research in the field of VA promoting the networking among Brazilian and Canadian researchers. Annual BRAVA Exploratory workshops are being proposed since 2012 to provide a forum for discussions on potential research collaborative projects among Brazilians and between Brazilian and Canadian research centres.
A Dynamic Blocks Platform Based on Projective Augmented Reality and Tangible Interfaces for Educational Activities
Authors: Roberto Rafael Alves , Freitas Daniel , Simões Francisco , Teichrieb Veronica
Published: November 2020

This paper describes a dynamic blocks platform, called ARBlocks, which is based on projective augmented reality and tangible user interfaces aiming early childhood educational activities development. This tool was conceived specifically for children, applying design techniques to determinate the best shape, material and typography for young students. The content is displayed by projectors, which exhibit the required information only on the blocks surface using an automatic projector calibration technique. The blocks are tracked through a frame marker using the moving edges approach with multiple hypotheses to improve robustness. ARBlocks was evaluated from three different perspectives: computational, educational and user experience. Technical results show that the platform achieves a real time frame rate and an accurate projector calibration, as well as precisely displays information over the blocks. Additionally, in the educational evaluation the teachers interviewed asserted that the ARBlocks has a great potential and can be a very useful tool to be used in classrooms. Regarding the user experience, both teachers and children were excited in using this system continuously.
Proposal and evaluation of a tablet-based tool for 3D virtual environments
Authors: Medeiros Daniel , Carvalho Felipe , Teixeira Lucas , Braz Priscilla , Raposo Alberto , Santos Ismael
Published: November 2020

The introduction of embedded sensors in smartphones and tablets allowed the use of these devices to interact with virtual environments. These devices also have the possibility of including additional information and performing naturally non-immersive tasks. This work presents a 3D interaction tablet-based tool, which allows the aggregation of all major 3D interaction tasks, such as navigation, selection, manipulation, system control and symbolic input. This tool is for generalpurpose systems, as well as, engineering applications. Generally this kind of application uses specific interaction devices with four or more degrees of freedom and a common keyboard and mouse for tasks that are naturally non-immersive, such as symbolic input (e.g., text or number input). This article proposes a new tablet-based device that can perform all these major tasks in an immersive environment. It also presents a study case of the use of the device and some user tests.
Guest Editorial: Foreword to the Special Issue on Digital Games
Authors: Teichrieb Veronica , Clua Esteban
Published: November 2020

Guest Editors introduction to the Special Issue on Games
Understanding and Proposing a Design Rationale of Digital Games based on Brain-Computer Interface: Results of the AdmiralMind Battleship Study
Authors: Ferreira Alessandro Luiz Stamatto , Marciano Juvane Nunes , Miranda Leonardo Cunha de , Miranda Erica Esteves Cunha de
Published: November 2020

Brain-Computer Interfaces (BCIs) present great potential to the field of digital games, though the design of this kind of interface is still a challenge for most of the game designers and developers. In this work it is presented a literature review about digital games based on BCI, aiming to analyze the interaction design of these games, to identify the approaches applied, limitations and implications related to BCIs design. After the review, we accomplish a reflection about the design decisions involved in the development of digital games based on BCI. This approach leads to the construction of a design rationale developed to support the process of BCI-based games, with its use established on the design of a battleship game based on BCI. As contributions of this work, we highlight the literature review, design rationale and results of the study accomplished.
Applying Haptic Systems in Serious Games: A Game for Adult’s Oral Hygiene Education
Authors: Rodrigues Herbet Ferreira , Machado Liliane S. , Valença Ana Maria Gondim
Published: November 2020

Most commonly used in virtual reality systems, haptic devices are taken as an important way of providing greater interaction and engagement between the user and the computer system, particularly in problems that depend on skill and use the sense of touch. It is known that the development of serious games, composed by immersive environments and unconventional devices can contribute with the motivation and learning of the players. However, an important question relates to how to integrate these devices to conform its limitations to a specific problem addressed in serious game. In the present work it is presented a study related to the integration of haptic systems for serious games for adult oral hygiene in order to adjust teaching content to computational resources. Thus, a specific process model to the development of serious games was applied to the creation of TouchBrush serious game, dedicated to education of good tooth brushing practices.
A Heuristic Approach to Render Ray Tracing Effects in Real Time for First-Person Games
Authors: Andrade Paulo , Clua Esteban , Sabino Thales , Forti Fabio
Published: November 2020

Realistic computer graphics effects as mirror reflections, transparency, caustics and detailed shadows are hard to simulate using real time raster based rendering, since they require global illumination approaches. One option is ray trace these effects using a real-time hybrid renderer, where ray tracing and raster rendering are used together to generate the best visual experience. Unfortunately, the ray tracing stage of a hybrid renderer can be a very demanding stage, making it hard to maintain real time frame rates in virtual environments where many elements must be ray traced. This work present a heurist to select the best subset of elements to ray trace in real time, in a hybrid renderer, in order to improve the visual experience offered by an equivalent raster only render, and still maintain the real time experience. The selection process considers rendering time constraints, spatial information of the environment, previous elements selected for ray tracing and current information about the candidate elements.
Guest Editorial
Authors: Silveira Ismar , Clua Esteban
Published: November 2020

Foreword to the special issue of SBGames 2013 - Brazilian Symposium on Games and Digital Entertainment
Exploring Energy Management on GPUs in Game Architectures
Authors: Zamith Marcelo , Valente Luis , Joselli Mark , Junior José Ricardo Silva , Clua Esteban , Feijó Bruno
Published: November 2020

CPUs and GPUs have been evolving rapidly over time regarding their capabilities and processing power. This has opened many new possibilities for interactive and real time systems, such as more sophisticated scene realism, more precise and complex artificial intelligence, and better physical simulations. However, these improvements come at a cost: increase of energy consumption. Energy management in interactive and real time architectures have not been receiving much attention over the years, but this issue is likely to become important in the near future due to the increasing energy demand and consumption required by top-notch game applications(especially regarding the mobile and portable consoles). In this paper we introduce the concept of intelligent energy management for games and interactive systems and address the aforementioned issue through these contributions: 1) an investigation of works related to energy management (in general); 2) implementations of feasibility tests for energy management on GPUs; and 3) a novel game architecture with energy management, using multiple GPUs.
3D Sketching and Flexible Input for Surface Design: A Case Study
Authors: Leal Anamary , Bowman Doug A.
Published: November 2020

Designing three-dimensional (3D) surfaces is difficult in both the physical world and in 3D modeling software, requiring background knowledge and skill. The goal of this work is to make 3D surface design easier and more accessible through natural and tangible 3D interaction, taking advantage of users' proprioceptive senses to help them understand 3D position, orientation, size, and shape. We hypothesize that flexible input based on fabric may be suitable for 3D surface design, because it can be molded and folded into a desired shape, and because it can be used as a dynamic flexible brush for 3D sketching. Fabric3D, an interactive surface design system based on 3D sketching with flexible input, explored this hypothesis. Through a longitudinal five-part study in which three domain experts used Fabric3D, we gained insight into the use of flexible input and 3D sketching for surface design in various domains.
A panoramic synthetic vision model for improving collision avoidance in crowd simulation
Authors: De Queiroz Ricardo Bustamante , Dutra Teófilo , Vidal Creto , Cavalcante-Neto Joaquim
Published: November 2020

Crowd Simulation is very important in many virtual reality applications, because it improves the sense of immersion of the users by making the population of agents in the environment to move as real crowds do. Recently, models for simulating crowds, in which each agent is equipped with a synthetic vision system, have shown interesting results regarding the natural manner in which the agents navigate inside the environment thanks to their visual perception. In this article, we propose an upgrade to the agent’s visual system with a panoramic view in order to allow an agent to expand its vision beyond the limit of 180o imposed by the common projection provided by rendering APIs. Also, we analyze different parameters, which are used to define the field of view, to investigate the influence they have on the agent’s behavior. The impacts that those changes may cause on the efficiency of the algorithms are also analysed. A visible change on the agent’s behavior is achieved by using the technique, with a slight loss of performance.
5* Magic Wand: a RGBD camera-based 5 DoF pointing device for 3D interaction
Authors: De Sousa Alexandre Martins Ferreira , Morimoto Carlos Hitoshi
Published: November 2020

This paper introduces the 5* Magic Wand, an inexpensive pointing device for 3D interaction. As users play the role of a “wizard”, the 5* Magic Wand allows them to interact with the computer by pointing to places, performing gestures, and casting “spells”. We have developed computer vision techniques to track the wand with 5 degrees of freedom, and built a real-time prototype consisting of a standard PC, a RGBD camera, and a simple stick. Finally, in order to demonstrate the applicability of the system for navigating in virtual environments, we have created a 3D application called “Magic Carpet”.
Emotion Contagion Model for Crowds
Authors: Borges Fortes Neto Amyr , Raupp Musse Soraia , Pelachaud Catherine
Published: November 2020

Latest advances in crowd simulation models that attempt to make agents with more realistic human-like behaviors explore heterogeneity of agent behaviors in order to achieve increased overall simulation realism. In general, human behavioral and psychological studies are used as base of knowledge and researchers try to simulate observed human behavior patterns within virtual agents. In this direction, this paper implements an emotion contagion model, within crowd simulation scenarios, in order to create realistic perception of agent behaviors on crowds.
Combining genetic algorithm and swarm intelligence for task allocation in a real time strategy game
Authors: Tavares Anderson R. , Zuin Gianlucca Lodron , Azpúrua Héctor , Chaimowicz Luiz
Published: November 2020

Real time strategy games are complex scenarios where multiple agents must be coordinated in a dynamic, partially observable environment. In this work, we model coordination as a task allocation problem, in which specific tasks must be properly assigned to agents. We employ a task allocation algorithm based on swarm intelligence and adjust its parameters using a genetic algorithm. A fitness estimation method is employed to accelerate execution of the genetic algorithm. To evaluate this approach, we implement this coordination mechanism in the AI of a popular video game: StarCraft: BroodWar. Experiment results show that the genetic algorithm successfully adjusts task allocation parameters. Besides, we assess the trade-off between solution quality and execution time of the genetic algorithm with fitness estimation.
Experimental Approach of the Asymptotic Computational Complexity of Shaders for Mobile Devices with OpenGL ES
Authors: Lima Alex S. C. , Junior Edson A. C.
Published: November 2020

The usage of mobile devices and increasingly realistic graphics is emerging, but the graphics performance is still a critical factor in games. There’s more hardware restriction on mobile devices than on a computer. Thus, this paper proposes an experimental approximation of the asymptotic computational complexity of miscellaneous vertex and fragment shaders for Android and iOS platforms. The asymptotic complexities of the shaders will be analyzed based on number of instructions per second and rendering time metrics, depending on the number of polygons rendered. By means of the adjusted curves is also possible to compare the performance of the devices used in this work, which are the Nexus 4, HTC One, iPhone 5s and iPad Air. Besides, an automatic tool – that plots the data and uses the method of least squares to adjust the values obtained – will be presented, being able to estimate which curve has better approximation to the sampled data.
BioPlan: Classical Planning with Crowd simulation
Authors: Magnaguagno Maurício C. , Meneguzzi Felipe
Published: November 2020

Crowd simulation for evacuation situations often assumes that all agents are trying to reach a single point within an environment. Although such an assumption is not entirely wrong, human agents often exhibit more complex behaviors, even if deviations from the standard behavior are not particularly frequent. Classical planning is far from the best way to achieve the minimal path or correct behavior for agents, but adds a deeper level of reasoning about complex goal-achievement and about actions that are more complex than simply moving about. In this paper, we describe a crowd simulation experiment that uses classical AI planning to enrich the behavior of the agents in the scenario. Using this approach, we can express not only the target destination of the agents, but also (sub)goals and path preferences.
Concept, development and evaluation of a mind action game with the electro encephalograms as an auxiliary input
Authors: Joselli Mark , Binder Fabio , Clua Esteban , Soluri Eduardo
Published: November 2020

Games are interactive applications that require input devices in order to send messages for the interaction. Normally this input devices are mouse, keyboards and joysticks. Lately, this input has been done in different ways, such as voice, touch and movement with new input devices. One type of input that has not been very explored is the use of the brain waves as a input for the game. While in past these devices where expensive, nowadays Brain Computer Interface (BCI) have become accessible, cheap and can be acquired with nonintrusive top off-the-shelf products, which can create a new paradigm of interaction for games. This work presents a novel architecture and framework that can help the development of games with both BCI and traditional interfaces. As a proof of concept, this paper shows the experience in designing and developing a game prototype using the framework and EEG brainwaves as one of the players input. The game is an action slice game, similar to Fruit Ninja, called MindNinja. This game differ form most BCI game, since it is based on an action game, using touch input where the BCI is used as an auxiliary input to change the game behavior. This game was tested and evaluated with a group of person, showing promising results in the fun level, as well as increasing the attention level of subjects.
Defining a notation for usability-oriented interaction and navigation modeling for interactive systems
Authors: Marques Anna Beatriz , Barbosa Simone Diniz Junqueira , Conte Tayana Uchôa
Published: November 2020

Modeling the interaction and navigation of an interactive system can assist designers in making decisions about how the users will be able to achieve their interaction goals. However, there is a lack of proposals to: (1) deal with interaction and navigation in an integrated way and (2) deal with usability features in interaction and navigation modeling. In this paper, we propose a usability-oriented interaction and navigation model to improve the quality in use of interactive systems. We evaluate the feasibility of the model through a study with three participants with experience in using models in industry, teaching models and carrying out academic research about models. Our main contributions are: (1) a knowledge base about the existing solutions for the problem, (2) the USINN (Usability-oriented Interaction and Navigation) model, (3) a preliminary evaluation about the feasibility of USINN, (4) the evolution of the USINN notation based on the results of the feasibility study, and (5) the definition of the USINN metamodel.
Reflections over Communicability in PaaS Environments
Authors: Brandão Rafael Rossi de Mello , Moreno Marcio Ferreira , Ferreira Juliana Jansen , Cerqueira Renato Fontoura de Gusmão
Published: November 2020

Platform as a Service (PaaS) has become an essential product for large technology companies. It is a way of delivering hardware, software tools and other resources for application development and hosting, as a service. Its users are developers who need to build and deploy new applications. Besides computational power, PaaS environments (PaaSE) offer services, development tools and even complete apps to be put together in web applications. These pieces of software can be developed by diverse groups of people, presenting a significant challenge from a Human-Centric Computer (HCC) perspective. We argue that the semiotic engineering (SemEng) theory, which views human-computer interaction as computer-mediated communication between designers and users at interaction time, may be applied to help creating knowledge in this context. In PaaSE, several designers communicate with PaaSE’s users (developers). In this paper, we apply SemEng concepts to analyze different software artifacts present in PaaSE, showing evidence of communication breakdowns between designers and users. Our goal is to provide a better understanding of existing metacommunication processes in such environments, offering specific suggestions to emphasize communication boundaries.
Networking Issues for 3D Medical Collaborative Virtual Environments: Design and Applications
Authors: Paiva Paulo V. F. , Machado Liliane dos S. , De Oliveira Jauvane C. , De Moraes Ronei M.
Published: November 2020

Collaborative Virtual Environments (CVEs) are Virtual Reality (VR) systems and can simulate medical procedures such as surgeries performed by a group of remote users which can interact with one another through the simulation in real-time, with the aid of a network such as the Internet.Therefore, it is important to note that research on CVE-specific networking issues allows us to better understand the requirements for real-time applications. This paper discloses design and implementation issues of a peer-to-peer multicast architecture on the collaborative module of theCyberMed VR framework, aiming at providing better network scalability, as well as it shows as results, some developed applications as validation. Finally, we compared the performance of the newly implemented peer-to-peer multicast architecture with the peer-to-peer unicast previously existent with simulated models designed with OPNET Network Modeler and R statistical software. As result of our experiments, the null hypothesis was rejected (p = 2.2e-16, level of significance = 5%) confirming what we expected about the behavior of CyberMed’s multicast protocol.
An Essay on Human Values in HCI
Authors: Pereira Roberto , Baranauskas Maria Cecília Calani , Liu Kecheng
Published: November 2020

Academic literature has indicated a new moment for the HCI field that requires it to revisit methods and practices to consider aspects that are difficult to deal with, such as human values and culture. Although recognized as important and a challenge for HCI, human values is still a topic that demands investigation, discussion, and practical results (theoretical, methodological, technical) so that it may become somewhat useful for HCI as both a discipline and a community. This paper presents an informed discussion in which we explore possible understandings for values in HCI, the importance of the topic, and existing approaches. We draw on the literature and on our own research experiences in the topic to develop critical discussions and suggest possible directions for advancing the research and practice in the context of this challenge.
Specification and Usability Evaluation of an Attention-aware Remote Control designed in a Physical Prototype
Authors: Chagas Daniel Almeida , Furtado Elizabeth Sucupira
Published: November 2020

This paper defines requirements for entering text in interactive digital TV, based on theories of shared attention, in order to make a prototype of a remote control which enables more natural user interaction. The physical prototype of this newly created device features movement recognition and sensory feedback as modalities of interaction. In usability tests, data on users’ performance and satisfaction was collected, as well as data on their cognitive load (attention) and state of meditation (relaxation) captured through an Electroencephalogram device. The results showed that the solution, analyzed for a sample of 18 users, increased performance for typing long texts by 26.5%, raised satisfaction scores by 15%, relaxation scores by 29.4%, and maintained the users’ cognitive load when compared to use of an infrared remote control.
Computational Thinking Tools: Analyzing concurrency and its representations
Authors: Slaviero Cleyton , Haeusler Edward Herman
Published: November 2020

Computational thinking (CT) tools, as a software system, express their designers' perspective on how a selected set of Computer Science concepts should be introduced, typically hiding details to avoid unnecessary complexity. This paper focuses on how concurrency is dealt with by five well-known tools in this domain: Scratch, Alice, AgentSheets, NetLogo and Greenfoot. We present the results of a systematic analysis contrasting their model of concurrent behavior with the corresponding metamessages, the messages about messages of concurrency, that trigger users' interpretation and learning of concurrency-related concepts. We present and discuss the conceptualizations that potentially emerge from using these five tools and compare them with established concurrency concepts. Our findings indicate opportunities for an explicit exploration of how some concurrency aspects are implemented in games and simulations built with CT tools. We believe that this might facilitate future learning and comprehension of complex concurrency concepts, considering that the knowledge embedded in these tools can also influence students’ understanding of concurrency.
Applicability and evaluation of the GestureChair virtual game: comparison between people with and without spinal cord injury
Authors: Krutli Renata dos Santos , Calixto Géssica Soares , Sime Mariana Midori , Mendes Paulo Vinicius Braga , Brandão Alexandre Fonseca , Carrijo Débora Couto De Melo , Cruz Daniel Marinho Cezar da
Published: November 2020

Introduction: Spinal cord injury rehabilitation requires updating from professionals regarding the possible interventions that can enhance recovery. Virtual reality (VR) games have become evident as a resource used in the rehabilitation process. Their effectiveness is based on the theory of neuronal reorganization, mediated by mirror neurons, responsible for motor imagery. Objectives: To test the applicability and evaluation of the virtual game Gesture Chair by people with and without spinal cord injury, to identify users' perceptions about the characteristics and demands of the VR game after its use and compare the immediate effects of the game on motor performance components in both groups. Method: We analyzed upper limb range of motion (ROM) after performing a practice using the exergame in a sample of five subjects with spinal cord injury and a comparative group with five other participants. The game was applied for 15 minutes, counting periods of activity and rest, while the subject remained seated. Results: The number of subjects in the sample does not allow statistically significant results on changes in shoulder ROM; however, factors that interfered with performance, perceptions about initial contact with the activity, presence of muscular fatigue and pain that may be present related to the increase of energy expenditure during the action were identified. Regarding the interest, there were reports of demotivation and disinterest, but there were also reports considering the activity motivating. Conclusion: The study implies the importance of the process of choosing individualized resources during the rehabilitation process and the need for adaptation among users of novel technologies. Future studies will be able to analyze the enhancement of the game with different users.
Synesthesia: A Study on Immersive Features of Electronic Games
Authors: Silva Bastos Arthur , Gomes Renata Faria , Dos Santos Clemilson Costa , Maia José Gilvan Rodrigues
Published: November 2020

Immersion is a quality that turns user experiences more appealing, despite the definition of immersion itself still being a source of controversy. Modern electronic games became a well-established immersive media which already has a number of consumer-level virtual reality hardware and software available. Endowing a game with immersion requires not only theoretical background found in literature but more practical guidelines for assisting developers to glimpse possibilities and make design decisions. In this paper, we investigate specific features that bestow immersion to an electronic game. So, we first analyzed game titles the audience, the critics and developers themselves consider immersive in order to enumerate potentially immersive features found in these games. We then developed a potentially immersive game prototype based on these features. Results of a comparative evaluation of our prototype and the selected titles under different settings suggest that six features were able to provide an immersive experience.
Improved MPS method and its variations for simulating incompressible fluids on GPU
Authors: Vieira-e-Silva André Luiz Buarque , Brito Caio , Almeida Mozart William , Teichrieb Veronica
Published: November 2020

Meshless methods to simulate fluid flows have been increasingly evolving through the years since they are a great alternative to deal with large deformations, which is where meshbased methods fail to perform efficiently. A well known meshless method is the Moving Particle Semi-implicit (MPS) method, which was designed to simulate free-surface truly incompressible fluid flows. Many variations and refinements of the method’s accuracy and precision have been proposed through the years and, in this paper, a reasonably wide literature review was performed together with their theoretical and mathematical explanations. Due to these works, it has proved to be very useful in a wide range of naval and mechanical engineering problems. However, one of its drawbacks is a high computational load and some quite time-consuming functions, which prevents it to be more used in Computer Graphics and Virtual Reality applications. Graphics Processing Units (GPU) provide unprecedented capabilities for scientific computations. To promote the GPU-acceleration, the solution of the Poisson Pressure equation was brought into focus. This work benefits from some of the techniques presented in the related work and also from the CUDA language in order to get a stable, accurate and GPU-accelerated MPS-based method, which is this work’s main contribution. It is shown that the GPU version of the method developed can perform from, approximately, 6 to 10 times faster with the same reliability as the CPU version, both extended to three dimensions. Lastly, a simulation containing a total of 62,600 particles is fully rendered in 3D.
Analysing Balance Loss in VR Interaction with HMDs
Authors: Martinez Armando , Paganelli Antonio Iyda , Raposo Alberto
Published: November 2020

Immersive virtual reality (VR) has been used in different fields such as training, educational programs, entertainment, psychological treatments, and rehabilitation. Despite its broad utilization, some issues limit its application such as the loss of balance. Balance is disturbed because visual stimuli received from the virtual scenario are not in harmony with perceived stimuli by the proprioception and vestibular systems that remain in contact with the real environment. With the increasing popularity and accessibility of high-quality VR systems, concerns have been raised about the propensity of VR to induce balance loss. Balance is essential for safe use of VR experience and its loss can result in severe injury. In this work, we present a methodology and the necessary tools to quantify the influence of VR on the user’s balance and assess risk of falls during VR interaction. By means of an experiment making use of an Oculus Rift and a MS Kinect Sensor, we observe, quantify and compare the effect of VR scenes with different levels of danger on the balance of users, as well as the effect of visual and auditory warnings of balance loss. Results suggest that auditory signs were not effective in warning users about risk of fall, and that the order which the scenes are presented to users affects their behavior. Users who were first presented to a more challenging scene proceeded more carefully and most of the time carried this behavior to the other less challenging scenes.
Comparing Seven Methodogies for Rigid Alignment of Point Clouds with Focus on Frame-to-Frame Registration in Depth Sequences
Authors: Yamada Fernando Akio , Giraldi Gilson Antonio , Vieira Marcelo Bernardes , Almeida Liliane Rodrigues , Apolinário Jr. Antonio Lopes
Published: November 2020

Pairwise rigid registration aims to find the rigid transformation that best registers two surfaces represented by point clouds. This work presents a comparison between seven algorithms, with different strategies to tackle rigid registration tasks. We focus on the frame-to-frame problem, in which the point clouds are extracted from a video sequence with depth information generating partial overlapping 3D data. We use both point clouds and RGB-D video streams in the experimental results. The former is considered under different viewpoints with the addition of a case-study simulating missing data. Since the ground truth rotation is provided, we discuss four different metrics to measure the rotation error in this case. Among the seven considered techniques, the Sparse ICP and Sparse ICP-CTSF outperform the other five ones in the point cloud registration experiments without considering incomplete data. However, the evaluation facing missing data indicates sensitivity for these methods against this problem and favors ICP-CTSF in such situations. In the tests with video sequences, the depth information is segmented in the first step, to get the target region. Next, the registration algorithms are applied and the average root mean squared error, rotation and translation errors are computed. Besides, we analyze the robustness of the algorithms against spatial and temporal sampling rates. We conclude from the experiments using a depth video sequences that ICP-CTSF is the best technique for frame-to-frame registration.
Understanding and designing sociotechnical scenarios: a multi-theoretical approach
Authors: Prado Alysson , Baranauskas Cecilia
Published: November 2020

Technology evolution is pushing the limits of our comprehension of the world and of ourselves, blurring the boundaries between people and objects. To understand this interweaving of ubiquitous computer systems and their dynamic social relations different theoretical sources are necessary. Socially Aware Computing provides a deep understanding on how information systems emerge from and interact with the social context, whereas Actor-Network Theory represents a promising referential to explain how people and artifacts mutually actuate to render social structures. In this paper, we assess the paradigmatic compatibility of these two theories, proposing a blend that provides a single basis to enrich the understanding of complex scenarios for designers of sociallyaware technology. In the sequence, we present an application of such proposal in a real-world problem. Finally, we discuss how this approach can be further extended to model nondeterministic interactions involving people and devices in social situations.
An Analysis of Five Different Native and Web-Hybrid Platforms for Building Android Apps and their Accessibility for Screen Readers
Authors: Carvalho Lucas Pedroso , Dias Felipe Silva , Freire André Pimenta
Published: November 2020

The choice of an interface platform to develop mobile applications may have important implications to how accessible the resulting product can be for visually-disabled users. This paper aimed to analyze four platforms to develop native and web-hybrid mobile Android applications, and to verify the adequacy of their interface components to implement mobile applications, in order to identify the main accessibility problems that could be encountered by developers when using them, and the main strategies to overcome those issues. We built 5 prototypes of mobile applications with the aim of adhering as much as possible to accessibility recommendations. The applications were built using techniques of native applications developed with Android Studio with and without Web components and hybrid development using the frameworks Apache Cordova, Ionic and Appcelerator Titanium. We then performed an accessibility inspection of a sample of 30 Android interface components present in 5 prototypes of mobile applications, to verify their adequacy for working with screen readers. The results showed that the prototypes developed using web components were more compatible with accessibility criteria in the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG 2.0) and with the screen reader TalkBack. The most frequent accessibility problems in native components occurred in tables, headings and multimedia elements. We conclude by showing initial evidence that webbased components in hybrid applications developed using webhybrid and native with embedded web components currently have better support for accessibility than applications with only native components.
Towards adopting serious games for cognitive tests with Brazilian older people
Authors: Amaral Leandro Agostini do , Fortes Renata Pontin de Mattos , Chagas Marcos Hortes Nisihara , Castro Paula Costa , Bittar Thiago Jabur , Lobato Luanna Lopes
Published: November 2020

Serious games are a promising tool in different scenarios, such as education and health; however, there has been little research reported on their specialized use for older adults. We created a digital cognitive test – with the characteristics of a serious game – using Unified Design aiming to reproduce digitally the results of clinical cognitive evaluation in older people. The digital cognitive test was submitted to two validation experiments targeting an older public (n=40) with little experience in dealing with tablets or smartphones. The first experiment did not show significant correlation, but from it, we implemented initiatives to simplify the tests, which brought a positive result regarding convergence analysis in the second experiment. We concluded that it is possible to use digital games as cognitive tests adapted to the needs of older adults to achieve similar results as those of paper-based cognitive tests.
Investigation of fMRI protocol for evaluation of Gestural Interaction applied to upper-limb motor improvement
Authors: Brandao Alexandre Fonseca , Casseb Raphael , Almeida Sara , Assis Gilda , Camargo Alline , Min Li Li , Castellano Gabriela
Published: November 2020

The use of Virtual Reality (VR) systems for rehabilitation treatment as a complement to conventional therapy has grown in recent years. Upper limbs therapy using VR has already been shown useful for stroke patients. In this work, we present a pilot study aiming to investigate the use of a functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) protocol to analyze brain connectivity changes in subjects undergoing upper limb training through a VR environment. Thirteen healthy subjects underwent resting-state fMRI exams before and after a VR session. Although no significant changes are expected in healthy subjects performing only one training session, this study could pave the way for future studies performed with both stroke patients or athletes performing more sessions. Indeed, no significant changes in motor cortex connectivity were found. Nonetheless, an evaluation protocol for this type of VR rehabilitation procedure was successfully established, to be used in further studies with patients or athletes.
Karl Hadank (1882–1945) and the Kurdisch-Persische Forschungen: Ambitions, Achievements, and Ideological Entanglements
Authors: Paul Ludwig
Published: November 2020

This article examines Karl Hadank’s contribution to the important publication series Kurdisch-Persische Forschungen (KPF) in a comprehensive way. It considers the academic and historical context in which Hadank edited three KPF volumes from Oskar Mann’s Nachlass (scholarly legacy) between 1926 and 1932. It furthermore provides a narrative of 25 years of Hadank’s academic life, exploring his personality, including his entanglements in ideological discourses of his time.
Smart E-Textile Materials
Authors: Canan Çelikel Dilan
Published: November 2020

Smart textiles are one of the areas that provides added value to textile materials. It is a sector that has been developed with new technologies, new fibers, and textile materials. The production of smart or intelligent textiles cooperate with other branches of science like nanotechnology, materials science, design, electronics, and computer engineering, etc. Smart textiles are classified into three groups as passive smart textiles, active smart textiles and ultra smart textiles according to their performance characteristics. Passive smart textiles are the first generation of smart textiles and sense the external conditions; for instance, UV protecting clothing, conductive fibers, etc. As active smart textiles respond to external conditions, ultra smart textiles sense, react, and adopt themselves to conditions. Shape memory materials, chromic materials, heat storage, and thermo-regulated fabrics are the typical applications of active smart textiles.
Development of a Destination Image Recovery Model for Enhancing the Performance of the Tourism Sector in the Developing World
Authors: Farayi Kanokanga Phillip , Tukuta Marian , Chikuta Oliver
Published: November 2020

This chapter is based on a doctoral thesis on the development of a destination image (DI) recovery model for enhancing the performance of the tourism sector in Zimbabwe. The study was prompted by the failure of African destinations to develop DI image recovery models. A pragmatist paradigm, a convergent parallel mixed methodology research approach and a cross sectional survey were adopted. A sample of three hundred and nineteen comprising international tourists, service providers and key informants was used. A structured, semi-structured questionnaire and semi-structured interview guide were used respectively. Quantitative data was analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) and AMOS version 25 while qualitative data was analyzed using NVivo version 12. Tests were conducted using descriptive statistics, exploratory factor analysis, and confirmatory factor analysis. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was used to analyze the multiple independent variables. The major findings were that price, ancillary services and amenities significantly influenced affective image while ancillary services significantly influenced destination performance. The study recommended that the Ministry of Environment, Climate, Tourism and Hospitality Industry trains tourism stakeholders including the host community in order to achieve sustainable destination image recovery.
Management of Patients with Brain Injury Using Noninvasive Methods
Authors: Frigieri Gustavo , Nunes Rabelo Nicollas , de Carvalho Nogueira Ricardo , Brasil Sérgio
Published: November 2020

In the last decades, the development of new noninvasive technologies in critical care allowed physicians to continuously monitor clinical parameters, aggregating important information that has been previously inaccessible or restricted due to the invasiveness of the existing techniques. The aim of this chapter is to present noninvasive methods in use on intensive care units (ICU) for brain injured patients monitoring, collaborating to the diagnosis and follow-up, aiding medical teams to achieve better outcomes.
Coaching and Mentoring: Focus on Graduate Medical Education
Authors: N. DeTurk Stephen , J. Kaza Anish , Ng Pellegrino Anna
Published: November 2020

Individuals at any level of the medical field could potentially benefit from feedback and supervision: from medical students, nurses, or physician assistants; to residents, advanced practitioners, and attending physicians. Two of the most common forms of feedback and supervision utilized in medical education are coaching and mentoring. These terms are often used interchangeably but are commonly misunderstood. In this chapter, we will highlight the differences between coaching and mentoring, place emphasis on the use of mentoring in medical education, discuss the characteristics of a successful mentor-mentee relationship, and provide an example of a mentoring program at a local community hospital.
Corporate Social Responsibility in India: The Saga Continues
Authors: Kumar Guha Shouvik , Roychowdhury Anuradha
Published: November 2020

In course of this paper, the authors have sought to trace the various contours of the manner in which the concept of corporate social responsibility has evolved in India, culminating into its inclusion into the governing legislations for companies. The apparent shift of the CSR regime from being a voluntary one to a mandatory one involving sanctions for non-compliance via the latest legislative amendments has also been commented upon. After having discussed the key legislative provisions that govern CSR spending by companies by India, the paper goes on to highlight some of the legislative amendments relating to CSR and the potential impact thereof, including relaxations provided to start-up companies, the mandatory transfer of unspent CSR funds to escrow funds and eventually to public funds centrally controlled by the government, the additional compliance monitoring authority granted to the government, and the penal provisions for non-compliance. The paper finally refers to the draft Companies (Amendment) Bill, 2020 and its possible effect on the CSR regime in India that is looking more and more like corporate taxation with these new amendments.
Linked Open Data: State-of-the-Art Mechanisms and Conceptual Framework
Authors: Okoye Kingsley
Published: November 2020

Today, one of the state-of-the-art technologies that have shown its importance towards data integration and analysis is the linked open data (LOD) systems or applications. LOD constitute of machine-readable resources or mechanisms that are useful in describing data properties. However, one of the issues with the existing systems or data models is the need for not just representing the derived information (data) in formats that can be easily understood by humans, but also creating systems that are able to process the information that they contain or support. Technically, the main mechanisms for developing the data or information processing systems are the aspects of aggregating or computing the metadata descriptions for the various process elements. This is due to the fact that there has been more than ever an increasing need for a more generalized and standard definition of data (or information) to create systems capable of providing understandable formats for the different data types and sources. To this effect, this chapter proposes a semantic-based linked open data framework (SBLODF) that integrates the different elements (entities) within information systems or models with semantics (metadata descriptions) to produce explicit and implicit information based on users’ search or queries. In essence, this work introduces a machine-readable and machine-understandable system that proves to be useful for encoding knowledge about different process domains, as well as provides the discovered information (knowledge) at a more conceptual level.