Method and apparatus for haptic control

The present invention provides remote interfacing utilising haptic technology. In a first aspect there is provided a haptic grasping interface comprising a plurality of finger interaction points, with actuators connected at one end to an actuator control mechanism. The mechanism is mounted remotely from the grasping interface, inverse to the finger interaction points, for manipulation of these points. The grasping points comprise pulleys which route the actuators through a cable tension and transmission system. A second aspect provides haptic augmentation to an operator, which indicates to the operator the state of a control input to a controlled device. A third aspect provides a means of simulating motion where haptic feedback is provided to a user in correspondence with the movement of the user within a pod environment.

Method and apparatus for haptic control

The present invention provides remote interfacing utilising haptic technology. In a first aspect there is provided a haptic grasping interface comprising a plurality of finger interaction points, with actuators connected at one end to an actuator control mechanism. The mechanism is mounted remotely from the grasping interface, inverse to the finger interaction points, for manipulation of these points. The grasping points comprise pulleys which route the actuators through a cable tension and transmission system. A second aspect provides haptic augmentation to an operator, which indicates to the operator the state of a control input to a controlled device. A third aspect provides a means of simulating motion where haptic feedback is provided to a user in correspondence with the movement of the user within a pod environment.

Method and apparatus for haptic control

The present invention provides remote interfacing utilising haptic technology. In a first aspect there is provided a haptic grasping interface comprising a plurality of finger interaction points, with actuators connected at one end to an actuator control mechanism. The mechanism is mounted remotely from the grasping interface, inverse to the finger interaction points, for manipulation of these points. The grasping points comprise pulleys which route the actuators through a cable tension and transmission system. A second aspect provides haptic augmentation to an operator, which indicates to the operator the state of a control input to a controlled device. A third aspect provides a means of simulating motion where haptic feedback is provided to a user in correspondence with the movement of the user within a pod environment.

Method and apparatus for haptic control

The present invention provides remote interfacing utilising haptic technology. In a first aspect there is provided a haptic grasping interface comprising a plurality of finger interaction points, with actuators connected at one end to an actuator control mechanism. The mechanism is mounted remotely from the grasping interface, inverse to the finger interaction points, for manipulation of these points. The grasping points comprise pulleys which route the actuators through a cable tension and transmission system. A second aspect provides haptic augmentation to an operator, which indicates to the operator the state of a control input to a controlled device. A third aspect provides a means of simulating motion where haptic feedback is provided to a user in correspondence with the movement of the user within a pod environment.

Clinical pharmacy input for hospital inpatients according to disease state

This study measured the clinical activities performed and times taken by hospital pharmacists to provide medication monitoring services to individual medical and surgical patients. Linking these data to hospital Patient Administration Systems showed how clinical pharmacy manpower needs are guided by patient partition, disease complexity and Diagnosis Related Group classification.

Evaluation of thermal and visual comfort in offices considering realistic input data and user behaviour in building simulation

Thermal and visual comfort play a very important role regarding the satisfaction of occupants with their working environments. The most effective method to achieve thermal comfort in offices is to reduce cooling loads in order to avoid additional energy-consuming devices for cooling. Building simulation software can be a helpful tool for optimisation, and typically standard values for the influencing parameters are used in order to ensure compliance to norms and regulations.

In practice many of those parameters turn out to be different compared to the simulation assumptions and the reasons may be the chosen room or building related properties as well as the user behaviour influenced by the task and the corporate culture of the company.

This paper investigates exemplary for the climate of Hamburg, Germany and a naturally ventilated typical office room, the optimisation potential of the building- and user-related parameters for thermal comfort, daylighting and view when using realistic input data for building simulation. The study has been conducted with the EnergyPlus based simulation software “Primero-Komfort” [1].

Quantification of allochthonous nutrient input into freshwater bodies by herbivorous waterbirds

1. Waterbirds are considered to import large quantities of nutrients to freshwater bodies but quantification of these loadings remains problematic. We developed two general models to calculate such allochthonous nutrient inputs considering food intake, foraging behaviour and digestive performance of waterbirds feeding in terrestrial habitats: an intake model (IM), mainly based on an allometric relationship for energy requirements and a dropping model (DM), based on allometric relationships for defaecation.

2. Reviewed data of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) content of herbivorous food varied according to diet type (foliage, seeds and roots), season and fertilization. For model parameterization average foliage diet contained 38.20 mg N g⁻¹ and 3.21 mg P g⁻¹ (dry weight), whereas mean faeces composition was 45.02 mg N g⁻¹ and 6.18 mg P g⁻¹.

3. Daily allochthonous nutrient input increased with body mass ranging from 0.29 g N and 0.03 g P in teals Anas crecca to 5.69 g N and 0.57 g P in mute swans Cygnus olor. Results from IM differed from those of DM from ducks to swans by 63–108% for N and by −4 to 23% for P. Model uncertainty was lowest for the IM and mainly caused by variation in estimates of food retention time (RT). In DM food RT and dropping mass determined model uncertainty in similar extent.

4. Exemplarily applying the models to Dutch wetlands resulted in mean annual contribution of herbivorous waterbirds to allochthonous nutrient loading of 382.8 ± 167.1 tonnes N a⁻¹and 34.7 ± 2.3 tonnes P a⁻¹, respectively, which corresponds to annual surface-water loadings of 1.07 kg N ha⁻¹ and 0.10 kg P ha⁻¹.

5. There was a distinct seasonal pattern with peak loadings in January, when bird abundances were highest. Lowest inputs were in August, when bird abundance and nutrient content in food was low and birds foraged less in terrestrial habitats. Three-quarters of all nutrient input was contributed by greater white-fronted goose Anser albifrons, greylag goose Anser anser, wigeon Anas penelope and barnacle goose Branta leucopsis alone.

6. We provide general, easy to use calculation methods for the estimation of allochthonous nutrient inputs by waterbirds, which are applicable to a range of waterbird species, a variety of potential diets and feeding behaviours, and across spatial scales. Such tools may greatly assist in the planning and execution of management actions for wetland nutrient budgets.

Deakin's e-book device loan trial

Powerpoint presentation presenting an overview of e-books and e-content at Deakin University, revolving around the e-readers trials that were done in 2010 at Deakin University Library.

Method and apparatus for haptic control

The present invention provides remote interfacing utilising haptic technology. In a first aspect there is provided a haptic grasping interface comprising a plurality of finger interaction points, with actuators connected at one end to an actuator control mechanism. The mechanism is mounted remotely from the grasping interface, inverse to the finger interaction points, for manipulation of these points. The grasping points comprise pulleys which route the actuators through a cable tension and transmission system. A second aspect provides haptic augmentation to an operator, which indicates to the operator the state of a control input to a controlled device. A third aspect provides a means of simulating motion where haptic feedback is provided to a user in correspondence with the movement of the user within a pod environment.

A procedural, minimal input, natural terrain plug-in for Blender

This project uses methods of terrain representation, creation and realism described in literature. We find that using a combination of Fractional Brownian Motion and procedural formation of rivers via squig curves to form initial terrain, with hydraulic erosion for post processing, we have full control over the style of terrain: from jagged mountains to flat regions; and the phase of river from tightly rock controlled to flood plain regions.

Design of a compact microfludic device for controllable cell distribution

A compact microfluidic device with 96 microchambers allocated within four circular units was designed and examined for cell distribution. In each unit, cells were distributed to the surrounding chambers radially from the center. The circular arrangement of the chambers makes the design simple and compact. A controllable and quantitative cell distribution is achievable in this device. This design is significant to the microfluidic applications where controllable distribution of cells in multipule microchambers is demanded.

Simulation of a device concept for noninvasive sensing of blood glucose levels

This paper introduces a method of modeling noninvasive glucose sensing for patients who suffer from diabetes mellitus. The proposed technique involves simulation of light propagation through biological tissue with an embedded photonic crystal. The proposed detection technique is Raman spectroscopy and the use of the photonic crystal enables the enhancement of Raman scattering by engineering the photon density of states. Further enhancement can be achieved using noble metal clusters which result in surface enhanced Raman scattering and has the ability to provide enhancements of up to a million times.

A head mountable deep brain stimulation device for laboratory animals

Deep brain stimulation has emerged as an effective method to treat certain medical conditions. Electrical charges are injected into the target tissue through a conducting electrode exciting the tissue. A variety of DBS devices have been developed based on different operation principles. Majority of these devices, however, employ complex circuitry and are bulky. In clinical trials, laboratory animals need to freely move around and perform activities whilst receiving brain stimulation for days. This paper presents a simple lightweight head mountable deep brain stimulation device that can be carried by the animal during the course of a clinical trial. The device produces continuous current pulses of specific characteristics. It employs passive charge balancing to minimize undesirable effects on the target tissue. The device is constructed and its performance tested.

A context-sensitive device to help people with autism cope with anxiety

We describe a smartphone application that helps people with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) cope with anxiety attacks. Our prototype provides a one-touch interface for indicating a panic level. The device's response-to instruct, soothe, and/or contact carers-is sensitive to the user's context, consisting of time, location, ambient noise, and nearby friends. Formative evaluation unearths a critical challenge to building assistive technologies for ASD sufferers: can regimented interfaces foster flexible behaviour? Our observations suggest that a delicate balance of design goals is required for a viable assistive technology.