Metodología para el desarrollo de un sistema de visualización multi-proyector con características cromáticas uniformes

Los sistemas de proyección multi-proyector han adquirido gran popularidad en los últimos años para su uso en un amplio rango de aplicaciones como sistemas de realidad virtual, simuladores y visualización de datos. Esto es debido a que normalmente estas aplicaciones necesitan representar sus datos a muy alta resolución y a lo largo de una gran superficie. Este tipo de sistemas de proyección son baratos en comparación con las resoluciones que pueden conseguir, se pueden configurar para proyectar sobre prácticamente cualquier tipo de superficie, sea cual sea su forma, y son fácilmente escalables. Sin embargo, para hacer que este tipo de sistemas generen una imagen sin discontinuidades geométricas o colorimétricas requieren de un ajuste preciso. En la presente tesis se analizan en detalle todos los problemas a los que hay que enfrentarse a la hora de diseñar y calibrar un sistema de proyección de este tipo y se propone una metodología con una serie de optimizaciones para hacer el ajuste de estos sistemas más sencillo y rápido. Los resultados de esta metodología se muestran aplicados a la salida gráfica de un simulador de entrenamiento. Multi-projector display systems have gained high popularity over the past years for its use in a wide range of applications such as virtual reality systems, simulators or data visualization where a high resolution image over a large projection surface is required. Such systems are cheap for the resolutions they can provide, can be configured to project images on almost any kind of screen shapes and are easily scalable, but in order to provide a seamless image with no photometric discontinuities they require a precise geometric and colour correction. In this thesis, we analyze all the problems that have to be faced in order to design and calibrate a multi-projector display. We propose a calibration methodology with some optimizations that make the adjustment of this kind of displays easier and faster. The results of the implementation of this methodology on a training simulator are presented and discussed

Restauración virtual del patrimonio sonoro. Aplicación al antiguo rito hispánico

Una de las aplicaciones más interesantes de las tecnologías de Realidad Acústica Virtual es la posibilidad de recuperar el patrimonio cultural del sonido de los recintos históricos que se han perdido o cuyas características se han modificado a lo largo de los siglos. En este trabajo, las tecnologías de realidad acústica virtual se utilizan para tratar de reconstruir virtualmente el sonido producido en las actividades litúrgicas del antiguo rito hispánico. Bajo este nombre se conoce a la liturgia que celebraban los cristianos de la península ibérica hasta su prohibición, en favor del culto romano, a mediados del siglo XI. El rito hispánico -también conocido como rito visigótico-mozárabe- es una de las manifestaciones culturales más interesantes de la Alta Edad Media en occidente. Se trata de un patrimonio cultural desaparecido, tanto desde el punto de vista de las señales sonoras que lo integraban -ya que la mayoría de las melodías que conformaban el rito se han perdido- como desde el punto de vista de los espacios en los que se desarrollaba, debido a que las iglesias conservadas de la época han experimentado modificaciones a lo largo de los siglos que alteran sus condiciones acústicas con respecto a las que tenían en el periodo de vigencia de esta liturgia. Para llevar a cabo este proyecto, se han realizado modelos acústicos digitales de un grupo representativo de iglesias prerrománicas de la Península Ibérica en su estado primitivo. Se ha procurado que las iglesias seleccionadas representen la variedad de comportamientos acústicos esperables en este tipo de edificios. Con este objetivo, se han elegido cinco iglesias prerrománicas que presentan diferencias sustanciales en los parámetros que, a priori, van a influir en mayor manera a su comportamiento acústico: el volumen del recinto, la forma de la planta y el tipo de cubierta. El proceso de creación de los modelos acústicos digitales de las iglesias se ha dividido en dos fases: en la primera se han creado modelos de los edificios en su estado actual, que se han validado a partir de los datos obtenidos en mediciones acústicas realizadas in situ; a partir de los modelos validados de las iglesias en su estado actual, en la segunda fase se han generado los modelos acústicos digitales correspondientes al estado primitivo de las mismas, modificando los modelos anteriores de acuerdo con las hipótesis de reconstrucción propuestas en las investigaciones arqueológicas más recientes. Se han realizado grabaciones en cámara anecoica de una serie de piezas del repertorio original del canto mozárabe. Las grabaciones se han llevado a cabo con un array esférico compuesto por 32 micrófonos, con objeto de obtener información sobre la directividad de la emisión sonora de los cantantes, que se aplicará en las auralizaciones. Finalmente, se han realizado diversas auralizaciones, teniendo en cuenta diferentes configuraciones litúrgicas que eran usuales en este rito. ABSTRACT One of the most interesting applications of the Acoustic Virtual Reality technologies is the possibility to recover the cultural heritage of the sound of the historical sites that have been lost or whose characteristics have been modified through time. In this work, Acoustic Virtual Reality technologies are used to try to reconstruct virtually the sound produced in the liturgical activities of the Hispanic Rite. This is the name given to the liturgy celebrated by Christians of the Iberian Peninsula prior to the introduction of the Roman cult in the mid-eleventh century. The Hispanic Rite (also known as Visigothic or Mozarabic rite) is one of the most interesting cultural manifestations of the Middle Ages. It is a lost cultural heritage, both from the point of view of the sound signals that were used since the majority of the melodies that conformed the rite have been lost, and from the point of view of the spaces in which this liturgy was celebrated, because the churches preserved from that era have changed over the centuries altering its acoustic conditions respect to which they were in the period in which this liturgy was in effect. To carry out this project, acoustic models of a representative group of the pre-Romanesque churches in the Iberian Peninsula have been made in his primitive state. To select the sample of buildings to study, efforts have been made to ensure that the selected churches were representative of the range of expected acoustic behaviors in this type of buildings. Five churches have been selected, showing differences in the parameters that have the greatest influence on their acoustic behavior: the enclosure volume, the shape of the floor plan and the type of roof. The process of creating digital acoustic models of the churches has been divided into two phases. In the first phase acoustic models of the churches in its current state have been created. These models have been validated with the data obtained from in situ acoustic measurements. From the validated models of churches in its current state, in the second phase, changes in the acoustic models have been performed in order to represent the primitive state of the churches, according to the historical reconstruction hypothesis that have been proposed in the most recent archaeological investigations. Anechoic recordings of a series of pieces of the original Mozarabic Chant repertoire have been recorded. The recordings were made with a spherical array composed of 32 microphones, in order to obtain information on the directivity of the sound emission of the singers. These directivity data will be used to simulate the directional radiation of the sound sources in the auralizations. Finally, auralizations were produced corresponding to different liturgical configurations which were common in this rite.

Plataforma terapeútica basada en Kinect para niños con parálisis cerebral infantil

El sistema SONRIE (Sistema de terapia, basadO en KiNect, paRa nIños con parálisis cErebral), realizado como Proyecto Fin de Grado por Dña. Estefanía Sampedro Sánchez, se desarrolló con el fin de permitir el proceso de rehabilitación de los músculos faciales en niños con Parálisis Cerebral Infantil (PCI). SONRIE se compone de una plataforma de juegos cuyo objetivo es lograr una mejora terapéutica en la musculatura orofacial de niños diagnosticados de PCI con edades comprendidas entre los 4 y los 12 años. El escenario de aplicación del sistema SONRIE son las escuelas de integración que tienen escolarizados alumnos diagnosticados con este trastorno. La posibilidad de rehabilitación de los músculos faciales mediante tratamientos que se apoyan en el uso de sistemas telemáticos, junto con el empleo de tecnologías actuales (Realidad Virtual, Realidad Aumentada y Serious Games) supone una gran innovación en el entorno de la neuro-rehabilitación, entendida como el proceso de terapia que permite optimizar la participación de una persona en la sociedad, alcanzando un grado de bienestar óptimo. El trabajo realizado en este Proyecto Fin de Grado pretende escalar el sistema SONRIE, mediante el análisis, diseño y desarrollo de un Framework encargado de facilitar, ampliar y validar el uso adecuado del sistema SONRIE en entornos escolares a través de la integración de nuevas tecnologías. La plataforma desarrollada en este proyecto, permite dotar de dinamismo y persistencia a la plataforma de juegos, ofreciendo a los usuarios de SONRIE (principalmente fisioterapeutas y rehabilitadores que trabajan en entornos escolares) un sistema de terapia para niños con PCI accesible vía web. En este Proyecto Fin de Grado se describe el conjunto de componentes software desarrollados con el fin de proporcionar un entorno web que escale el sistema SONRIE, convirtiéndolo en un sistema de terapia efectivo, completo y usable. ABSTRACT. The SONRIE system (Sistema de terapia, basadO en KiNect, paRa nIños con parálisis cErebral), performed as a final project by Miss Estefanía Sampedro, was developed in order to allow the rehabilitation process of the facial muscles of children with Cerebral Palsy (CP). SONRIE consists of a gaming platform which aims to achieve a therapeutic improvement in the orofacial musculature on children diagnosed with CP aged between 4 and 12 years. The application scenario of the SONRIE system are the integration schools that have students diagnosed with this disorder. The possibility of rehabilitation of facial muscles through treatments based on the use of telematics systems, together with the use of new technologies (Virtual Reality, Augmented Reality and Serious Games) is a great innovation in the neuro-rehabilitation environment, understood as the therapy process that optimizes the participation of a person in the society, reaching an optimum level of welfare. The work done in this final project aims to scale the SONRIE system, through the analysis, design and development of a framework in charge of facilitating, extending and validating the proper use of the SONRIE system in school environments, through the integration of new technologies. The platform developed in this project, can provide dynamism and persistence to the gaming platform, offering to the SONRIE users (mainly physiotherapists and rehabilitators who work in school settings) a therapy system for children with CP accessible via web. In this final project are described the software components developed in order to provide a web environment that scales the SONRIE system, making it an effective, complete and usable therapy system.

Analysis of quality of experience in 3D video systems

Esta tesis presenta un estudio exhaustivo sobre la evaluación de la calidad de experiencia (QoE, del inglés Quality of Experience) percibida por los usuarios de sistemas de vídeo 3D, analizando el impacto de los efectos introducidos por todos los elementos de la cadena de procesamiento de vídeo 3D. Por lo tanto, se presentan varias pruebas de evaluación subjetiva específicamente diseñadas para evaluar los sistemas considerados, teniendo en cuenta todos los factores perceptuales relacionados con la experiencia visual tridimensional, tales como la percepción de profundidad y la molestia visual. Concretamente, se describe un test subjetivo basado en la evaluación de degradaciones típicas que pueden aparecer en el proceso de creación de contenidos de vídeo 3D, por ejemplo debidas a calibraciones incorrectas de las cámaras o a algoritmos de procesamiento de la señal de vídeo (p. ej., conversión de 2D a 3D). Además, se presenta el proceso de generación de una base de datos de vídeos estereoscópicos de alta calidad, disponible gratuitamente para la comunidad investigadora y que ha sido utilizada ampliamente en diferentes trabajos relacionados con vídeo 3D. Asimismo, se presenta otro estudio subjetivo, realizado entre varios laboratorios, con el que se analiza el impacto de degradaciones causadas por la codificación de vídeo, así como diversos formatos de representación de vídeo 3D. Igualmente, se describen tres pruebas subjetivas centradas en el estudio de posibles efectos causados por la transmisión de vídeo 3D a través de redes de televisión sobre IP (IPTV, del inglés Internet Protocol Television) y de sistemas de streaming adaptativo de vídeo. Para estos casos, se ha propuesto una innovadora metodología de evaluación subjetiva de calidad vídeo, denominada Content-Immersive Evaluation of Transmission Impairments (CIETI), diseñada específicamente para evaluar eventos de transmisión simulando condiciones realistas de visualización de vídeo en ámbitos domésticos, con el fin de obtener conclusiones más representativas sobre la experiencia visual de los usuarios finales. Finalmente, se exponen dos experimentos subjetivos comparando varias tecnologías actuales de televisores 3D disponibles en el mercado de consumo y evaluando factores perceptuales de sistemas Super Multiview Video (SMV), previstos a ser la tecnología futura de televisores 3D de consumo, gracias a una prometedora visualización de contenido 3D sin necesidad de gafas específicas. El trabajo presentado en esta tesis ha permitido entender los factores perceptuales y técnicos relacionados con el procesamiento y visualización de contenidos de vídeo 3D, que pueden ser de utilidad en el desarrollo de nuevas tecnologías y técnicas de evaluación de la QoE, tanto metodologías subjetivas como métricas objetivas. ABSTRACT This thesis presents a comprehensive study of the evaluation of the Quality of Experience (QoE) perceived by the users of 3D video systems, analyzing the impact of effects introduced by all the elements of the 3D video processing chain. Therefore, various subjective assessment tests are presented, particularly designed to evaluate the systems under consideration, and taking into account all the perceptual factors related to the 3D visual experience, such as depth perception and visual discomfort. In particular, a subjective test is presented, based on evaluating typical degradations that may appear during the content creation, for instance due to incorrect camera calibration or video processing algorithms (e.g., 2D to 3D conversion). Moreover, the process of generation of a high-quality dataset of 3D stereoscopic videos is described, which is freely available for the research community, and has been already widely used in different works related with 3D video. In addition, another inter-laboratory subjective study is presented analyzing the impact of coding impairments and representation formats of stereoscopic video. Also, three subjective tests are presented studying the effects of transmission events that take place in Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) networks and adaptive streaming scenarios for 3D video. For these cases, a novel subjective evaluation methodology, called Content-Immersive Evaluation of Transmission Impairments (CIETI), was proposed, which was especially designed to evaluate transmission events simulating realistic home-viewing conditions, to obtain more representative conclusions about the visual experience of the end users. Finally, two subjective experiments are exposed comparing various current 3D displays available in the consumer market, and evaluating perceptual factors of Super Multiview Video (SMV) systems, expected to be the future technology for consumer 3D displays thanks to a promising visualization of 3D content without specific glasses. The work presented in this thesis has allowed to understand perceptual and technical factors related to the processing and visualization of 3D video content, which may be useful in the development of new technologies and approaches for QoE evaluation, both subjective methodologies and objective metrics.

Modelling ecological cognitive rehabilitation therapies for building virtual environments in brain injury

Brain Injury (BI) has become one of the most common causes of neurological disability in developed countries. Cognitive disorders result in a loss of independence and patients? quality of life. Cognitive rehabilitation aims to promote patients? skills to achieve their highest degree of personal autonomy. New technologies such as virtual reality or interactive video allow developing rehabilitation therapies based on reproducible Activities of Daily Living (ADLs), increasing the ecological validity of the therapy. However, the lack of frameworks to formalize and represent the definition of this kind of therapies can be a barrier for widespread use of interactive virtual environments in clinical routine.

Aprendizaje integrado en arquitectura con modelos virtuales : implementación de metodología BIM en la docencia universitaria

Los procesos de diseño y construcción en Arquitectura han mostrado un desarrollo de optimización históricamente muy deficiente cuando se compara con las restantes actividades típicamente industriales. La aspiración constante a una industrialización efectiva, tanto en aras de alcanzar mayores cotas de calidad así como de ahorro de recursos, recibe hoy una oportunidad inmejorable desde el ámbito informático: el Building Information Modelling o BIM. Lo que en un inicio puede parecer meramente un determinado tipo de programa informático, en realidad supone un concepto de “proceso” que subvierte muchas rutinas hoy habituales en el desarrollo de proyectos y construcciones arquitectónicas. La inclusión y desarrollo de datos ligados al proyecto, desde su inicio hasta el fin de su ciclo de vida, conlleva la oportunidad de crear una realidad virtual dinámica y actualizable, que por añadidura posibilita su ensayo y optimización en todos sus aspectos: antes y durante su ejecución, así como vida útil. A ello se suma la oportunidad de transmitir eficientemente los datos completos de proyecto, sin apenas pérdidas o reelaboración, a la cadena de fabricación, lo que facilita el paso a una industrialización verdaderamente significativa en edificación. Ante una llamada mundial a la optimización de recursos y el interés indudable de aumentar beneficios económicos por medio de la reducción del factor de incertidumbre de los procesos, BIM supone un opción de mejora indudable, y así ha sido reconocido a través de la inminente implantación obligatoria por parte de los gobiernos (p. ej. Gran Bretaña en 2016 y España en 2018). La modificación de procesos y roles profesionales que conlleva la incorporación de BIM resulta muy significativa y marcará el ejercicio profesional de los futuros graduados en las disciplinas de Arquitectura, Ingeniería y Construcción (AEC por sus siglas en inglés). La universidad debe responder ágilmente a estas nuevas necesidades incorporando esta metodología en la enseñanza reglada y aportando una visión sinérgica que permita extraer los beneficios formativos subyacentes en el propio marco BIM. En este sentido BIM, al aglutinar el conjunto de datos sobre un único modelo virtual, ofrece un potencial singularmente interesante. La realidad tridimensional del modelo, desarrollada y actualizada continuamente, ofrece al estudiante una gestión radicalmente distinta de la representación gráfica, en la que las vistas parciales de secciones y plantas, tan complejas de asimilar en los inicios de la formación universitaria, resultan en una mera petición a posteriori, para ser extraída según necesidad del modelo virtual. El diseño se realiza siempre sobre el propio modelo único, independientemente de la vista de trabajo elegida en cada momento, permaneciendo los datos y sus relaciones constructivas siempre actualizados y plenamente coherentes. Esta descripción condensada de características de BIM preconfiguran gran parte de las beneficios formativos que ofrecen los procesos BIM, en especial, en referencia al desarrollo del diseño integrado y la gestión de la información (incluyendo TIC). Destacan a su vez las facilidades en comprensión visual de elementos arquitectónicos, sistemas técnicos, sus relaciones intrínsecas así como procesos constructivos. A ello se une el desarrollo experimental que la plataforma BIM ofrece a través de sus software colaborativos: la simulación del comportamiento estructural, energético, económico, entre otros muchos, del modelo virtual en base a los datos inherentes del proyecto. En la presente tesis se describe un estudio de conjunto para explicitar tanto las cualidades como posibles reservas en el uso de procesos BIM, en el marco de una disciplina concreta: la docencia de la Arquitectura. Para ello se ha realizado una revisión bibliográfica general sobre BIM y específica sobre docencia en Arquitectura, así como analizado las experiencias de distintos grupos de interés en el marco concreto de la enseñanza de la en Arquitectura en la Universidad Europea de Madrid. El análisis de beneficios o reservas respecto al uso de BIM se ha enfocado a través de la encuesta a estudiantes y la entrevista a profesionales AEC relacionados o no con BIM. Las conclusiones del estudio permiten sintetizar una implantación de metodología BIM que para mayor claridad y facilidad de comunicación y manejo, se ha volcado en un Marco de Implantación eminentemente gráfico. En él se orienta sobre las acciones docentes para el desarrollo de competencias concretas, valiéndose de la flexibilidad conceptual de los Planes de Estudio en el contexto del Espacio Europeo de Educación Superior (Declaración de Bolonia) para incorporar con naturalidad la nueva herramienta docente al servicio de los objetivos formativo legalmente establecidos. El enfoque global del Marco de Implementación propuesto facilita la planificación de acciones formativas con perspectiva de conjunto: combinar los formatos puntuales o vehiculares BIM, establecer sinergias transversales y armonizar recursos, de modo que la metodología pueda beneficiar tanto la asimilación de conocimientos y habilidades establecidas para el título, como el propio flujo de aprendizaje o learn flow BIM. Del mismo modo reserva, incluso visualmente, aquellas áreas de conocimiento en las que, al menos en la planificación actual, la inclusión de procesos BIM no se considera ventajosa respecto a otras metodologías, o incluso inadecuadas para los objetivos docentes establecidos. Y es esta última categorización la que caracteriza el conjunto de conclusiones de esta investigación, centrada en: 1. la incuestionable necesidad de formar en conceptos y procesos BIM desde etapas muy iniciales de la formación universitaria en Arquitectura, 2. los beneficios formativos adicionales que aporta BIM en el desarrollo de competencias muy diversas contempladas en el currículum académico y 3. la especificidad del rol profesional del arquitecto que exigirá una implantación cuidadosa y ponderada de BIM que respete las metodologías de desarrollo creativo tradicionalmente efectivas, y aporte valor en una reorientación simbiótica con el diseño paramétrico y fabricación digital que permita un diseño finalmente generativo. ABSTRACT The traditional architectural design and construction procedures have proven to be deficient where process optimization is concerned, particularly when compared to other common industrial activities. The ever‐growing strife to achieve effective industrialization, both in favor of reaching greater quality levels as well as sustainable management of resources, has a better chance today than ever through a mean out of the realm of information technology, the Building Information Modelling o BIM. What may initially seem to be merely another computer program, in reality turns out to be a “process” concept that subverts many of today’s routines in architectural design and construction. Including and working with project data from the very beginning to the end of its full life cycle allows for creating a dynamic and updatable virtual reality, enabling data testing and optimizing throughout: before and during execution, all the way to the end of its lifespan. In addition, there is an opportunity to transmit complete project data efficiently, with hardly any loss or redeveloping of the manufacture chain required, which facilitates attaining a truly significant industrialization within the construction industry. In the presence of a world‐wide call for optimizing resources, along with an undeniable interest in increasing economic benefits through reducing uncertainty factors in its processes, BIM undoubtedly offers a chance for improvement as acknowledged by its imminent and mandatory implementation on the part of governments (for example United Kingdom in 2016 and Spain in 2018). The changes involved in professional roles and procedures upon incorporating BIM are highly significant and will set the course for future graduates of Architecture, Engineering and Construction disciplines (AEC) within their professions. Higher Education must respond to such needs with swiftness by incorporating this methodology into their educational standards and providing a synergetic vision that focuses on the underlying educational benefits inherent in the BIM framework. In this respect, BIM, in gathering data set under one single virtual model, offers a uniquely interesting potential. The three‐dimensional reality of the model, under continuous development and updating, provides students with a radically different graphic environment, in which partial views of elevation, section or plan that tend characteristically to be difficult to assimilate at the beginning of their studies, become mere post hoc requests to be ordered when needed directly out the virtual model. The design is always carried out on the sole model itself, independently of the working view chosen at any particular moment, with all data and data relations within construction permanently updated and fully coherent. This condensed description of the features of BIM begin to shape an important part of the educational benefits posed by BIM processes, particularly in reference to integrated design development and information management (including ITC). At the same time, it highlights the ease with which visual understanding is achieved regarding architectural elements, technology systems, their intrinsic relationships, and construction processes. In addition to this, there is the experimental development the BIM platform grants through its collaborative software: simulation of structural, energetic, and economic behavior, among others, of the virtual model according to the data inherent to the project. This doctoral dissertation presents a broad study including a wide array of research methods and issues in order to specify both the virtues and possible reservations in the use of BIM processes within the framework of a specific discipline: teaching Architecture. To do so, a literature review on BIM has been carried out, specifically concerning teaching in the discipline of Architecture, as well as an analysis of the experience of different groups of interest delimited to Universidad Europea de Madrid. The analysis of the benefits and/or limitations of using BIM has been approached through student surveys and interviews with professionals from the AEC sector, associated or not, with BIM. Various diverse educational experiences are described and academic management for experimental implementation has been analyzed. The conclusions of this study offer a synthesis for a Framework of Implementation of BIM methodology, which in order to reach greater clarity, communication ease and user‐friendliness, have been posed in an eminently graphic manner. The proposed framework proffers guidance on teaching methods conducive to the development of specific skills, taking advantage of the conceptual flexibility of the European Higher Education Area guidelines based on competencies, which naturally facilitate for the incorporation of this new teaching tool to achieve the educational objectives established by law. The global approach of the Implementation Framework put forth in this study facilitates the planning of educational actions within a common perspective: combining exceptional or vehicular BIM formats, establishing cross‐disciplinary synergies, and sharing resources, so as to purport a methodology that contributes to the assimilation of knowledge and pre‐defined competencies within the degree program, and to the flow of learning itself. At the same time, it reserves, even visually, those areas of knowledge in which the use of BIM processes is not considered necessarily an advantage over other methodologies, or even inadequate for the learning outcomes established, at least where current planning is concerned. It is this last category which characterizes the research conclusions as a whole, centering on: 1. The unquestionable need for teaching BIM concepts and processes in Architecture very early on, in the initial stages of higher education; 2. The additional educational benefits that BIM offers in a varied array of competency development within the academic curriculum; and 3. The specific nature of the professional role of the Architect, which demands a careful and balanced implementation of BIM that respects the traditional teaching methodologies that have proven effective and creative, and adds value by a symbiotic reorientation merged with parametric design and digital manufacturing so to enable for a finally generative design.

Ensino da avaliação perceptivoauditiva da voz por meio de um ambiente virtual de aprendizagem

A avaliação vocal é realizada predominantemente por meio da avaliação perceptivoauditiva, sendo dependente de conhecimentos teóricos prévios e de treinamento prático e dinâmico. Entretanto, ainda são escassas as iniciativas educacionais que se utilizam das novas tecnologias para o ensino da avaliação perceptivoauditiva da voz. A utilização de estratégias com novas tecnologias de informação e comunicação, hoje tão presentes e familiarizadas no meio universitário, apresentam o intuito de facilitar e otimizar o processo de ensino e aprendizagem. Desta forma, este estudo teve o propósito de elaborar e avaliar um curso a distância em um ambiente virtual de aprendizagem sobre essa temática. Elaborou-se um curso a distância sobre a avaliação perceptivoauditiva da voz organizado em quatro módulos principais: 1. Noções básicas de anatomia e fisiologia da fonação; 2. Ouvindo vozes; 3. Avaliação perceptivoauditiva da voz e 4. Aplicabilidade da avaliação perceptivoauditiva da voz, além de um adicional com vídeos sobre curiosidades e sugestão de material complementar para estudo. O ambiente virtual de aprendizagem (AVA) também apresentou diversas ferramentas educacionais como textos, imagens ilustrativas, videoaulas, vídeos, arquivos de áudio, atividades práticas individuais, fóruns, além de recursos de interatividade entre alunos e tutora. Este material foi antecipadamente avaliado por três especialistas que avaliaram o material positivamente como uma inovadora e importante ferramenta educacional que poderá ser utilizada na formação de estudantes na área de voz. Foram convidados a participar do curso a distância, 133 alunos do 1o ao 4o ano de um curso de graduação em Fonoaudiologia de uma Universidade do interior paulista. Concordaram em participar 33 estudantes e desses, nove concluíram o curso. Os alunos responderam a avaliações de conteúdo nos momentos pré e pós-curso, de forma presencial e a avaliações de cada módulo, realizadas por meio de questões específicas e atividades práticas, no próprio site. Ao término do curso os alunos também responderam a uma avaliação motivacional do AVA. Observou-se diferença estatisticamente significante na média de acertos nas provas pré e pós-curso dos alunos, nas questões teóricas (p= 0,031), nas práticas (p=0,000) e no total (p=0,002), demonstrando que o material elaborado foi capaz de aumentar o conhecimento dos estudantes a respeito de seu tema. O AVA apresentou alto índice de satisfação motivacional e foi avaliado por todos os participantes como um curso impressionante, de acordo com o instrumento de avaliação motivacional utilizado. Conclui-se que foi possível elaborar um ambiente virtual de aprendizagem (AVA), em formato de curso a distância, sobre a temática da avaliação perceptivoauditiva da voz e que o material elaborado apresenta um importante potencial de ensino e aprendizagem sobre esse tema.

Inclusion of immersive virtual learning environments and visual control systems to support the learning of students with Asperger syndrome

This paper presents the use of immersive virtual reality systems in the educational intervention with Asperger students. The starting points of this study are features of these students' cognitive style that requires an explicit teaching style supported by visual aids and highly structured environments. The proposed immersive virtual reality system, not only to assess the student's behavior and progress, but also is able to adapt itself to the student's specific needs. Additionally, the immersive reality system is equipped with sensors that can determine certain behaviors of the students. This paper determines the possible inclusion of immersive virtual reality as a support tool and learning strategy in these particular students' intervention. With this objective two task protocols have been defined with which the behavior and interaction situations performed by participant students are recorded. The conclusions from this study talks in favor of the inclusion of these virtual immersive environments as a support tool in the educational intervention of Asperger syndrome students as their social competences and executive functions have improved.

Comparing Common Data Environment Platforms for Student Collaborative Working: A Case Study from Ulster University

PAS1192-2 (2013) outlines the “fundamental principles of Level 2 information modeling”, one of these principles is the use of what is commonly referred to as a Common Data Environment (CDE). A CDE could be described as an internet-enabled cloudhosting platform, accessible to all construction team members to access shared project information. For the construction sector to achieve increased productivity goals, the next generation of industry professionals will need to be educated in a way that provides them with an appreciation of Building Information Modelling (BIM) working methods, at all levels, including an understanding of how data in a CDE should be structured, managed, shared and published. This presents a challenge for educational institutions in terms of providing a CDE that addresses the requirements set out in PAS1192-2, and mirrors organisational and professional working practices without causing confusion due to over complexity. This paper presents the findings of a two-year study undertaken at Ulster University comparing the use of a leading industry CDE platform with one derived from the in-house Virtual Learning Environment (VLE), for the delivery of a student BIM project. The research methodology employed was a qualitative case study analysis, focusing on observations from the academics involved and feedback from students. The results of the study show advantages for both CDE platforms depending on the learning outcomes required.

Record of undergraduates’ activities in virtual learning environments

Virtual learning environments (VLEs) have witnessed a high evolution, namely regarding their potentialities, the tools and the activities they provide. VLEs enable us to access large quantities of data resulting from both students and teachers’ activities developed in those environments. Monitoring undergraduates’ activities in VLEs is important as it allows us to showcase, in a structured way, a number of indicators which may be taken into account to understand the learning process more deeply and to propose improvements in the teaching and learning strategies as well as in the institution’s virtual environment. Although VLEs provide several data sectorial statistics, they do not provide knowledge regarding the institution’s evolution. Therefore, we consider the analysis of the activity logs in VLEs over a period of five years to be paramount. This paper focuses on the analysis of the activities developed by students in a virtual learning environment, from a sample of undergraduate students, approximately 7000 per year, over a period of five academic years, namely from 2009/2010 to 2013/2014. The main aims of this research work are to assess the evolution of activity logs in the virtual learning environment of a Portuguese public higher education institution, in order to fill possible gaps and to hold out the prospect of new forms of use of the environment. The results obtained from the data analysis show that overall, the number of accesses to the virtual learning environment increased over the five years under study. The most used tools were Resources, Messages and Assignments. The most frequent activities developed with these tools were respectively consulting information, sending messages and submitting assignments. The frequency of accesses to the virtual learning environment was characterized according to the number of accesses in the activity log. The data distribution was divided into five frequency categories named very low, low, moderate, high and very high, determined by the percentiles 20, 40, 60, 80 and 100, respectively. The study of activity logs of virtual learning environments is important not only because they provide real knowledge of the use that undergraduates make of these environments, but also because of the possibilities they create regarding the identification of a need for new pedagogical approaches or a reinforcement of previously consolidated approaches.

Impacts fonctionnels du traumatisme craniocérébral léger sur la vision et l'équilibre postural chez l'adulte

Le traumatisme craniocérébral léger (TCCL) a des effets complexes sur plusieurs fonctions cérébrales, dont l’évaluation et le suivi peuvent être difficiles. Les problèmes visuels et les troubles de l’équilibre font partie des plaintes fréquemment rencontrées après un TCCL. En outre, ces problèmes peuvent continuer à affecter les personnes ayant eu un TCCL longtemps après la phase aiguë du traumatisme. Cependant, les évaluations cliniques conventionnelles de la vision et de l’équilibre ne permettent pas, la plupart du temps, d’objectiver ces symptômes, surtout lorsqu’ils s’installent durablement. De plus, il n’existe pas, à notre connaissance, d’étude longitudinale ayant étudié les déficits visuels perceptifs, en tant que tels, ni les troubles de l’équilibre secondaires à un TCCL, chez l’adulte. L’objectif de ce projet était donc de déterminer la nature et la durée des effets d’un tel traumatisme sur la perception visuelle et sur la stabilité posturale, en évaluant des adultes TCCL et contrôles sur une période d’un an. Les mêmes sujets, exactement, ont participé aux deux expériences, qui ont été menées les mêmes jours pour chacun des sujets. L’impact du TCCL sur la perception visuelle de réseaux sinusoïdaux définis par des attributs de premier et de second ordre a d’abord été étudié. Quinze adultes diagnostiqués TCCL ont été évalués 15 jours, 3 mois et 12 mois après leur traumatisme. Quinze adultes contrôles appariés ont été évalués à des périodes identiques. Des temps de réaction (TR) de détection de clignotement et de discrimination de direction de mouvement ont été mesurés. Les niveaux de contraste des stimuli de premier et de second ordre ont été ajustés pour qu’ils aient une visibilité comparable, et les moyennes, médianes, écarts-types (ET) et écarts interquartiles (EIQ) des TR correspondant aux bonnes réponses ont été calculés. Le niveau de symptômes a également été évalué pour le comparer aux données de TR. De façon générale, les TR des TCCL étaient plus longs et plus variables (plus grands ET et EIQ) que ceux des contrôles. De plus, les TR des TCCL étaient plus courts pour les stimuli de premier ordre que pour ceux de second ordre, et plus variables pour les stimuli de premier ordre que pour ceux de second ordre, dans la condition de discrimination de mouvement. Ces observations se sont répétées au cours des trois sessions. Le niveau de symptômes des TCCL était supérieur à celui des participants contrôles, et malgré une amélioration, cet écart est resté significatif sur la période d’un an qui a suivi le traumatisme. La seconde expérience, elle, était destinée à évaluer l’impact du TCCL sur le contrôle postural. Pour cela, nous avons mesuré l’amplitude d’oscillation posturale dans l’axe antéropostérieur et l’instabilité posturale (au moyen de la vitesse quadratique moyenne (VQM) des oscillations posturales) en position debout, les pieds joints, sur une surface ferme, dans cinq conditions différentes : les yeux fermés, et dans un tunnel virtuel tridimensionnel soit statique, soit oscillant de façon sinusoïdale dans la direction antéropostérieure à trois vitesses différentes. Des mesures d’équilibre dérivées de tests cliniques, le Bruininks-Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency 2nd edition (BOT-2) et le Balance Error Scoring System (BESS) ont également été utilisées. Les participants diagnostiqués TCCL présentaient une plus grande instabilité posturale (une plus grande VQM des oscillations posturales) que les participants contrôles 2 semaines et 3 mois après le traumatisme, toutes conditions confondues. Ces troubles de l’équilibre secondaires au TCCL n’étaient plus présents un an après le traumatisme. Ces résultats suggèrent également que les déficits affectant les processus d’intégration visuelle mis en évidence dans la première expérience ont pu contribuer aux troubles de l’équilibre secondaires au TCCL. L’amplitude d’oscillation posturale dans l’axe antéropostérieur de même que les mesures dérivées des tests cliniques d’évaluation de l’équilibre (BOT-2 et BESS) ne se sont pas révélées être des mesures sensibles pour quantifier le déficit postural chez les sujets TCCL. L’association des mesures de TR à la perception des propriétés spécifiques des stimuli s’est révélée être à la fois une méthode de mesure particulièrement sensible aux anomalies visuomotrices secondaires à un TCCL, et un outil précis d’investigation des mécanismes sous-jacents à ces anomalies qui surviennent lorsque le cerveau est exposé à un traumatisme léger. De la même façon, les mesures d’instabilité posturale se sont révélées suffisamment sensibles pour permettre de mesurer les troubles de l’équilibre secondaires à un TCCL. Ainsi, le développement de tests de dépistage basés sur ces résultats et destinés à l’évaluation du TCCL dès ses premières étapes apparaît particulièrement intéressant. Il semble également primordial d’examiner les relations entre de tels déficits et la réalisation d’activités de la vie quotidienne, telles que les activités scolaires, professionnelles ou sportives, pour déterminer les impacts fonctionnels que peuvent avoir ces troubles des fonctions visuomotrice et du contrôle de l’équilibre.

A conceptual model of personalized virtual learning environments

The Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) is one of the fastest growing areas in educational technology research and development. In order to achieve learning effectiveness, ideal VLEs should be able to identify learning needs and customize solutions, with or without an instructor to supplement instruction. They are called Personalized VLEs (PVLEs). In order to achieve PVLEs success, comprehensive conceptual models corresponding to PVLEs are essential. Such conceptual modeling development is important because it facilitates early detection and correction of system development errors. Therefore, in order to capture the PVLEs knowledge explicitly, this paper focuses on the development of conceptual models for PVLEs, including models of knowledge primitives in terms of learner, curriculum, and situational models, models of VLEs in general pedagogical bases, and particularly, the definition of the ontology of PVLEs on the constructivist pedagogical principle. Based on those comprehensive conceptual models, a prototyped multiagent-based PVLE has been implemented. A field experiment was conducted to investigate the learning achievements by comparing personalized and non-personalized systems. The result indicates that the PVLE we developed under our comprehensive ontology successfully provides significant learning achievements. These comprehensive models also provide a solid knowledge representation framework for PVLEs development practice, guiding the analysis, design, and development of PVLEs. (c) 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Intelligent agent supported personalization for virtual learning environments

Virtual learning environments (VLEs) are computer-based online learning environments, which provide opportunities for online learners to learn at the time and location of their choosing, whilst allowing interactions and encounters with other online learners, as well as affording access to a wide range of resources. They have the capability of reaching learners in remote areas around the country or across country boundaries at very low cost. Personalized VLEs are those VLEs that provide a set of personalization functionalities, such as personalizing learning plans, learning materials, tests, and are capable of initializing the interaction with learners by providing advice, necessary instant messages, etc., to online learners. One of the major challenges involved in developing personalized VLEs is to achieve effective personalization functionalities, such as personalized content management, learner model, learner plan and adaptive instant interaction. Autonomous intelligent agents provide an important technology for accomplishing personalization in VLEs. A number of agents work collaboratively to enable personalization by recognizing an individual's eLeaming pace and reacting correspondingly. In this research, a personalization model has been developed that demonstrates dynamic eLearning processes; secondly, this study proposes an architecture for PVLE by using intelligent decision-making agents' autonomous, pre-active and proactive behaviors. A prototype system has been developed to demonstrate the implementation of this architecture. Furthemore, a field experiment has been conducted to investigate the performance of the prototype by comparing PVLE eLearning effectiveness with a non-personalized VLE. Data regarding participants' final exam scores were collected and analyzed. The results indicate that intelligent agent technology can be employed to achieve personalization in VLEs, and as a consequence to improve eLeaming effectiveness dramatically.

Enhancing experiential learning via virtual environments

Research indicates Virtual Reality (VR) is delivering on it's promised potential to provide enhanced training and education outcomes. A significant research project, at the University of Queensland, has constructed a number of virtual contexts in which the phenomena experienced by patients who have psychosis are reproduced for use in psychiatry education. Symptoms of psychosis reproduced include delusions, hallucinations and thought disorder. The new software enables psychiatry students to experience the inner world of a patient with psychosis. Lecturers in psychiatry report VR has the potential to enhance student's abilities to actually 'feel' the types of emotions and physiological reactions a hallucination precipitates in a patient. The current work of the project and stages of software development will be demonstrated. The virtual environments provide a new method of delivering experiential learning opportunities to higher education classrooms.