System for robot control inspired by the functionality and organisation of the human nervous system

This paper presents a model of a control system for robot systems inspired by the functionality and organisation of human neuroregulatory system. Our model was specified using software agents within a formal framework and implemented through Web Services. This approach allows the implementation of the control logic of a robot system with relative ease, in an incremental way, using the addition of new control centres to the system as its behaviour is observed or needs to be detailed with greater precision, without the need to modify existing functionality. The tests performed verify that the proposed model has the general characteristics of biological systems together with the desirable features of software, such as robustness, flexibility, reuse and decoupling.

Decomposition of human behavior using model of competencies: application to robotic control system

For many years, humans and machines have shared the same physical space. To facilitate their interaction with humans, their social integration and for more rational behavior has been sought that the robots demonstrate human-like behavior. For this it is necessary to understand how human behavior is generated, discuss what tasks are performed and how relate to themselves, for subsequent implementation in robots. In this paper, we propose a model of competencies based on human neuroregulator system for analysis and decomposition of behavior into functional modules. Using this model allow separate and locate the tasks to be implemented in a robot that displays human-like behavior. As an example, we show the application of model to the autonomous movement behavior on unfamiliar environments and its implementation in various simulated and real robots with different physical configurations and physical devices of different nature. The main result of this work has been to build a model of competencies that is being used to build robotic systems capable of displaying behaviors similar to humans and consider the specific characteristics of robots.

Human-computer interaction for optical music recognition tasks

The need to digitise music scores has led to the development of Optical Music Recognition (OMR) tools. Unfortunately, the performance of these systems is still far from providing acceptable results. This situation forces the user to be involved in the process due to the need of correcting the mistakes made during recognition. However, this correction is performed over the output of the system, so these interventions are not exploited to improve the performance of the recognition. This work sets the scenario in which human and machine interact to accurately complete the OMR task with the least possible effort for the user.

Model of Competencies for Decomposition of Human Behavior: Application to Control System of Robots

Humans and machines have shared the same physical space for many years. To share the same space, we want the robots to behave like human beings. This will facilitate their social integration, their interaction with humans and create an intelligent behavior. To achieve this goal, we need to understand how human behavior is generated, analyze tasks running our nerves and how they relate to them. Then and only then can we implement these mechanisms in robotic beings. In this study, we propose a model of competencies based on human neuroregulator system for analysis and decomposition of behavior into functional modules. Using this model allow separate and locate the tasks to be implemented in a robot that displays human-like behavior. As an example, we show the application of model to the autonomous movement behavior on unfamiliar environments and its implementation in various simulated and real robots with different physical configurations and physical devices of different nature. The main result of this study has been to build a model of competencies that is being used to build robotic systems capable of displaying behaviors similar to humans and consider the specific characteristics of robots.

Quantifying epistemic actions in human-computer interaction

As digital systems move away from traditional desktop setups, new interaction paradigms are emerging that better integrate with users’ realworld surroundings, and better support users’ individual needs. While promising, these modern interaction paradigms also present new challenges, such as a lack of paradigm-specific tools to systematically evaluate and fully understand their use. This dissertation tackles this issue by framing empirical studies of three novel digital systems in embodied cognition – an exciting new perspective in cognitive science where the body and its interactions with the physical world take a central role in human cognition. This is achieved by first, focusing the design of all these systems on a contemporary interaction paradigm that emphasizes physical interaction on tangible interaction, a contemporary interaction paradigm; and second, by comprehensively studying user performance in these systems through a set of novel performance metrics grounded on epistemic actions, a relatively well established and studied construct in the literature on embodied cognition. The first system presented in this dissertation is an augmented Four-in-a-row board game. Three different versions of the game were developed, based on three different interaction paradigms (tangible, touch and mouse), and a repeated measures study involving 36 participants measured the occurrence of three simple epistemic actions across these three interfaces. The results highlight the relevance of epistemic actions in such a task and suggest that the different interaction paradigms afford instantiation of these actions in different ways. Additionally, the tangible version of the system supports the most rapid execution of these actions, providing novel quantitative insights into the real benefits of tangible systems. The second system presented in this dissertation is a tangible tabletop scheduling application. Two studies with single and paired users provide several insights into the impact of epistemic actions on the user experience when these are performed outside of a system’s sensing boundaries. These insights are clustered by the form, size and location of ideal interface areas for such offline epistemic actions to occur, as well as how can physical tokens be designed to better support them. Finally, and based on the results obtained to this point, the last study presented in this dissertation directly addresses the lack of empirical tools to formally evaluate tangible interaction. It presents a video-coding framework grounded on a systematic literature review of 78 papers, and evaluates its value as metric through a 60 participant study performed across three different research laboratories. The results highlight the usefulness and power of epistemic actions as a performance metric for tangible systems. In sum, through the use of such novel metrics in each of the three studies presented, this dissertation provides a better understanding of the real impact and benefits of designing and developing systems that feature tangible interaction.

Risk assessment for public health from human interaction with ornamental waters

Water is essential to life; nevertheless ingestion of contaminated water could result in death caused by waterborne diseases such as cholera. Pathogens present in the water can cause diseases, other than those resulting from water ingestion, being registered an increase in the number of case reports in recent years. It is not clear if this increase is due either to a better case reporting system or to an increase in microorganism’s virulence. The generalized use of antibiotics in agriculture and animal farming contributed to their dissemination in the environment which promotes microorganism selection and emergence of resistant strains. This phenomenon can be enhanced by the ability of microorganism to persist within complex communities known as biofilms. In the present work we aim to characterize the microbial population present in ornamental waters and perform a risk assessment for public health resulting from human interaction with it.

Human factors of driver-vehicle interaction in the IVHS environment. Final report.

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Washington, D.C.

EIHI, environmental issues and human interactions : studies concerning man's interaction with the environment : [a product of the 1993 Summer Science Institute with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Environmental Research Laboratories (ERL)].

Mode of access: Internet.

Influencing human interaction in public schools : studies of IPR effectiveness as an inservice teacher training program /

Research performed under contract with the National Institute of Mental Health.

Formal analysis of human-computer interaction using model checking

Experiments with simulators allow psychologists to better understand the causes of human errors and build models of cognitive processes to be used in human reliability assessment (HRA). This paper investigates an approach to task failure analysis based on patterns of behaviour, by contrast to more traditional event-based approaches. It considers, as a case study, a formal model of an air traffic control (ATC) system which incorporates controller behaviour. The cognitive model is formalised in the CSP process algebra. Patterns of behaviour are expressed as temporal logic properties. Then a model-checking technique is used to verify whether the decomposition of the operator's behaviour into patterns is sound and complete with respect to the cognitive model. The decomposition is shown to be incomplete and a new behavioural pattern is identified, which appears to have been overlooked in the analysis of the data provided by the experiments with the simulator. This illustrates how formal analysis of operator models can yield fresh insights into how failures may arise in interactive systems.

Individual differences in human-computer interaction

This thesis initially presents an 'assay' of the literature pertaining to individual differences in human-computer interaction. A series of experiments is then reported, designed to investigate the association between a variety of individual characteristics and various computer task and interface factors. Predictor variables included age, computer expertise, and psychometric tests of spatial visualisation, spatial memory, logical reasoning, associative memory, and verbal ability. These were studied in relation to a variety of computer-based tacks, including: (1) word processing and its component elements; (ii) the location of target words within passages of text; (iii) the navigation of networks and menus; (iv) command generation using menus and command line interfaces; (v) the search and selection of icons and text labels; (vi) information retrieval. A measure of self-report workload was also included in several of these experiments. The main experimental findings included: (i) an interaction between spatial ability and the manipulation of semantic but not spatial interface content; (ii) verbal ability being only predictive of certain task components of word processing; (iii) age differences in word processing and information retrieval speed but not accuracy; (iv) evidence of compensatory strategies being employed by older subjects; (v) evidence of performance strategy differences which disadvantaged high spatial subjects in conditions of low spatial information content; (vi) interactive effects of associative memory, expertise and command strategy; (vii) an association between logical reasoning and word processing but not information retrieval; (viii) an interaction between expertise and cognitive demand; and (ix) a stronger association between cognitive ability and novice performance than expert performance.

Interaction of quinolone antibiotics with the human intestinal CACO-2 cell model

The transport of a group of quinolone antibiotics across the human intestinal model, Caco-2 cells, was investigated. It was found that the transport of the quinolones generally correlated with the lipophilicity of the compounds, indicating the passive diffusional transcellular processes were involved. However, it was observed that the transport in both directions apical-to-basolateral and basolateral-to-apical was not equivalent, and polarised transport occurred. For all the quinolones studied except, BMS-284756-01, it was found that the basolateral-to-apical transport was significantly greater than the apical-to-basolateral transport. This finding suggested that the quinolones underwent a process of active secretion. The pKas and logPs for the quinolones were determined using potentiometric titrations. The measured logP values were compared with those determined using theoretical methods. The theoretical methods for calculating logP including the Moriguchi method correlated poorly with the measured logP values. Further investigations revealed that there may be an active transporter involved in the apical-to-basolateral transport of quinolones as well. This mechanism was sensitive to competing quinolones, but, it was unaffected by the metabolic inhibitor combination of sodium azide (15mM) with 2-deoxy-D-glucose (50mM). The basolateral-to-apical transport of quinolones was found to be sensitive to inhibition by a number of different inhibitors. The metabolic inhibitors, sodium azide (15mM) with 2-deoxy-D-glucose (50mM) and 2,4-dinitrophenol (1mM), were able to reduce the basolateral-to-apical transport of quinolones. A reduction in temperature from 37°C to 2°C caused an 80-fold decrease in the transport of gatifloxacin in both directions, however, this effect was not sufficient to abolish the greater basolateral-to-apical secretion. As with apical-to-basolateral transport, it was found that quinolones competed with gatifloxacin for basolateral-to-apical transport, both ofloxacin (100μM) and norfloxacin (100μM) significantly (P<0.003) decreased the basolateral-to-apical transport of gatifloxacin; however, ciprofloxacin (100μM and 300μM) had no effect. A number of inhibitors of various transport systems were also investigated. It was found that the anion transport inhibitor, probenecid (100 μM) had a significant inhibitory effect on the basolateral-to-apical transport of ciprofloxacin (P=0.039), while the cation transport inhibitor cimetidine (100μM and 500μM) had no effect. The organic anion exchange inhibitor 4,4'diisothiocyanostilbene-2-2' -disulphonic acid DIDS (400μM) also had a significant inhibitory effect (P=O.O 13). The PgP inhibitor and anion exchange inhibitor verapamil (400Mμ) was able to completely abolish the basolateral-to-apical secretion of gatifloxacin and bring it into line with the apical-to-basolateral flux. In conclusion, the apical-to-basolateral and basolateral-toapical transport of quinolones involved an active component. The basolateral-to-apical secretion was abolished by a verapamil (400μM), a bisubstrate for PgP and the anion transporter.