Browsing by Keyword "Human Factors and Ergonomics"
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Item Accessible Ubiquitous Services for Supporting Daily Activities: A Case Study with Young Adults with Intellectual Disabilities(2018-12-28) Aizpurua, Amaia; Miñón, Raúl; Gamecho, Borja; Cearreta, Idoia; Arrue, Myriam; Garay-Vitoria, Nestor; HPAUbiquitous environments have considerable potential to provide services supporting daily activities (using public transportation to and from workplace, using ATM machines, selecting and purchasing goods in ticketing or vending machines, etc.) in order to assist people with disabilities. Nevertheless, the ubiquitous service providers generally supply generic user interfaces which are not usually accessible for all potential end users. In this article, a case study to verify the adequacy of the user interfaces automatically generated by the Egoki system for two supporting ubiquitous services adapted to young adults with moderate intellectual disabilities was presented. The task completion times and the level of assistance required by participants when using the interfaces were analyzed. Participants were able to access services through a tablet and successfully complete the tasks, regardless of their level of expertise and familiarity with the service. Moreover, results indicate that their performance and confidence improved with practice, as they required fewer direct verbal and pointer cues to accomplish tasks. By applying observational methods during the experimental sessions, several potential improvements for the automated interface generation process were also detected.Item HTML5 and the evolution of HTML; tracing the origins of digital platforms(2021-05) Tabarés, Raúl; BIGDATAHTML (Hypertext Markup Language) has experienced a major transformation during the last decade prior to releasing its latest version known as HTML5 (Hypertext Markup Language 5). Several elements conceived around HTML during this period introduced significant problems in the development of the standard due to an increasing fragmentation and complexity in protocols, platforms, devices and systems. With the setting up of the WHATWG (Web Hypertext Application Technology Working Group) and the popularization of HTML5, initial disagreements between W3C (World Wide Consortium) and other digital platforms around the strategy to follow were put to an end. However, the development of HTML5 has opened up doors to profound changes in the way that web standards are produced and the role of the Web as a techno-social platform. For shedding some light on these issues, this paper provides a retrospective throughout a historical revision of the evolution of HTML, shedding some light into the technical, economic and social factors that helped to create a “Living Standard”. For achieving this objective, the paper is built on the empirical evidence gathered from 21 interviews carried out with different HTML5 experts as well as a documentation analysis around the hypertext standard. This contribution stresses how the platform economy paradigm emerged thanks to different factors contributing to the increasing centralization that can be observed nowadays. Lastly, it is argued that the role of organizations like W3C and others should be strengthened for avoiding the oligopolistic practices of digital platforms in future episodes of socio-technical controversies.Item Learning force patterns with a multimodal system using contextual cues(2018-02) Rodríguez, Jorge; Gutiérrez, Teresa; Portillo, Otniel; Sánchez, Emilio J.; CIRMETALPrevious studies on learning force patterns (fine motor skills) have focused on providing “punctual information”, which means users only receive information about their performance at the current time step. This work proposes a new approach based on “contextual information”, in which users receive information not only about the current time step, but also about the past (how the target force has changed over time) and the future (how the target force will change). A test was run to compare the performance of the contextual approach in relation to the punctual information, in which each participant had to memorize and then reproduce a pattern of force after training with a multimodal system. The findings suggest that the contextual approach is a useful strategy for force pattern learning. The advantage of the contextual information approach over the punctual information approach is that users receive information about the evolution of their performance (helping to correct the errors), and they also receive information about the next forces to be exerted (providing them with a better understanding of the target force profile). Finally, the contextual approach could be implemented in medical training platforms or surgical robots to extend the capabilities of these systems.Item A Review of Shared Control for Automated Vehicles: Theory and Applications(2020-12) Marcano, Mauricio; Diaz, Sergio; Perez, Joshue; Irigoyen, Eloy; CCAMThe last decade has shown an increasing interest on advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) based on shared control, where automation is continuously supporting the driver at the control level with an adaptive authority. A first look at the literature offers two main research directions: 1) an ongoing effort to advance the theoretical comprehension of shared control, and 2) a diversity of automotive system applications with an increasing number of works in recent years. Yet, a global synthesis on these efforts is not available. To this end, this article covers the complete field of shared control in automated vehicles with an emphasis on these aspects: 1) concept, 2) categories, 3) algorithms, and 4) status of technology. Articles from the literature are classified in theory- and application-oriented contributions. From these, a clear distinction is found between coupled and uncoupled shared control. Also, model-based and model-free algorithms from these two categories are evaluated separately with a focus on systems using the steering wheel as the control interface. Model-based controllers tested by at least one real driver are tabulated to evaluate the performance of such systems. Results show that the inclusion of a driver model helps to reduce the conflicts at the steering. Also, variables such as driver state, driver effort, and safety indicators have a high impact on the calculation of the authority. Concerning the evaluation, driver-in-the-loop simulators are the most common platforms, with few works performed in real vehicles. Implementation in experimental vehicles is expected in the upcoming years.Item A tale of two innovation cultures: Bridging the gap between makers and manufacturers: Bridging the gap between makers and manufacturers(2020-11) Tabarés, Raúl; Kuittinen, Hanna; Tecnalia Research & Innovation; BIGDATA; Policies for Innovation and TechnologyMaker communities have been widely popularized during the last decade throughout the development of numerous shared spaces in the form of makerspaces, fab labs and hackerspaces across the globe. This phenomenon has drawn the attention of many stakeholders interested in establishing bridges with them for exploring their innovation potential. However, synergies between producer innovation and free innovation paradigms remain quite uncertain. To meet this gap, the authors provide an analysis of the 22 collaborative innovations between makers and manufacturers funded by the OPENMAKER project as well as relevant empirical evidence gathered throughout 126 semi-structured interviews. The findings of this contribution stress the misalignment of makers and manufacturers in society as well as their different values and motivations around innovation, and the lack of shared spaces. At the same time, the paper highlights the benefits that the interaction between these two communities could have for meeting societal challenges, increasing social welfare and speeding up innovation processes if proper incentives and conditions are orchestrated. In this sense, we propose a set of considerations and implications based on the empirical material gathered, for providing future directions for innovation policies and research agendas.