| 1. |
- Frey, Brian, et al.
(author)
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Brailletouch : Mobile Texting for the Visually Impaired
- 2011
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In: Proceedings of the 6th International Conference on Universal Access in Human-computer Interaction. - : ACM Digital Library. - 9783642216657 ; , s. 19-25
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Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- BrailleTouch is an eyes-free text entry application for mobile devices. Currently, there exist a number of hardware and software solutions for eyes-free text entry. Unfortunately, the hardware solutions are expensive and the software solutions do not offer adequate performance. BrailleTouch bridges this gap. We present our design rationale and our explorative evaluation of BrailleTouch with HCI experts and visually impaired users.
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| 2. |
- Frey, Brian, et al.
(author)
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From Texting App to Braille Literacy
- 2012
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In: CHI ’12 Extended Abstracts on Human Factors in Computing Systems. - New York, NY, USA : Association for Computing Machinery (ACM). - 9781450310161 ; , s. 2495-2500
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Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We report the results of a pilot study that explores potential uses for BrailleTouch in the instruction of braille literacy for the visually impaired. BrailleTouch is an eyes-free text entry application for smart phones. We conducted individual semi-structured interviews and a focus group with four domain expert participants.
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| 3. |
- Gómez, Paula, et al.
(author)
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Activity Shapes : towards a spatiotemporal analysis in architecture
- 2014
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In: DEARQ. - 2011-3188 .- 2215-969X. ; :26
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Computational spatial analyses play an important role in architectural design processes, providing feedback about spatial configurations that may inform design decisions. Current spatial analyses convey geometrical aspects of space, but aspects such as space use are not encompassed within the analyses, although they are fundamental for architectural programming. Through this study, we initiate the discussion of including human activity as an input that will change the focus of current computational spatial analyses toward a detailed understanding of activity patterns in space and time. We envision that the emergent insights will serve as guidelines for future evaluation of design intents motivated by spatial occupancy, since we –designers– mentally constructing a model of the situation and activities on it (Eastman, 2001).
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| 4. |
- GOMEZ ZAMORA, Paula, et al.
(author)
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ACTIVITY SHAPES : Analysis methods of video-recorded human activity in a co-visible space
- 2012
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In: Eighth International Space Syntax Symposium. - Santiago de Chile : PUC. - 9789563458626
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Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The aim of this research is to develop two methods to help us understand the fundamental distinctionsamong human activities in terms of spatial occupancy. To characterize the features of the distribution ofhuman activities in a space (and over time), we introduce the concept of “activity shapes.” To obtain adistinctive analysis of activity shapes, we ran an experiment in which a group of six adults shared a fully covisiblespace and sequentially performed three specific activities characterized as eccentric, concentric, ordistributed. We video recorded the three scenarios using overhead cameras that allowed us to closely mapparticipants’ positions on the floor layout, obtaining the data in two formats: 1) a sequence of images fromthe overhead videos, automatically stored and pre‐computed to extract and aggregate motion; and 2) adataset of individuals’ identification and positions over time, manually annotated after repeatedobservations of the videos. Using the images sequence, we qualitatively analyzed the activity shapes usingViz‐A‐Vis, a tool for visualizing of activity through computer vision (Romero et al., 2008; 2011). Using thedataset, we performed two analyses: 1) the geometry and the topology of the activity shapes; and 2) theirspatiotemporal configurations, introducing the use of statistical analysis of space occupancy patterns. Whileit is not possible to generalize to all activity conditions from these three samples, we discovered sometendencies in the activity shapes. Our findings revealed several main distinctions in terms of geometry,topology, dispersion, gravitation, and clustering; supporting the development of the methods presented inthis work and directions of future implementation of these analyses in more complex spaces and scenariosthat complement space syntax analysis.
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| 5. |
- Kinnaird, Peter, et al.
(author)
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Connect 2 Congress : Visual Analytics for Civic Oversight
- 2010
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In: CHI ’10 Extended Abstracts on Human Factors in Computing Systems. - New York, NY, USA : ACM Digital Library. ; , s. 2853-2862
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Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Strong representative democracies rely on educated, informed, and active citizenry to provide oversight of the government. We present Connect 2 Congress (C2C), a novel, high temporal-resolution and interactive visualization of legislative behavior. We present the results of focus group and domain expert interviews that demonstrate how different stakeholders use C2C for a variety of investigative activities. The evaluation provided evidence that users are able to support or reject claims made by candidates and conduct free-form, low-cost, exploratory analysis into the legislative behavior of representatives across time periods.
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| 6. |
- Kinnaird, Peter, et al.
(author)
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Focus Groups for Functional InfoVis Prototype Evaluation : A Case Study
- 2010
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Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- In this position paper, we describe our experience conducting a focus group for evaluating an Information Visualization system prototype. We concentrate on the method used and how it differs from traditional focus group methodology. Our position is that Information Visualization system prototypes provide exceptional grounds for customized focus group methodologies due to the exploratory nature of many of the tasks these systems are designed to support.
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| 7. |
- Nazneen, N., et al.
(author)
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Supporting Parents for In-home Capture of Problem Behaviors of Children with Developmental Disabilities
- 2012
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In: Personal and Ubiquitous Computing. - : Springer. - 1617-4909 .- 1617-4917. ; 16:2, s. 193-207
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Ubiquitous computing has shown promise in applications for health care in the home. In this paper, we focus on a study of how a particular ubicomp capability, selective archiving, can be used to support behavioral health research and practice. Selective archiving technology, which allows the capture of a window of data prior to and after an event, can enable parents of children with autism and related disabilities to record video clips of events leading up to and following an instance of problem behavior. Behavior analysts later view these video clips to perform a functional assessment. In contrast to the current practice of direct observation, a powerful method to gather data about child problem behaviors but costly in terms of human resources and liable to alter behavior in the subjects, selective archiving is cost effective and has the potential to provide rich data with minimal instructions to the natural environment. To assess the effectiveness of parent data collection through selective archiving in the home, we developed a research tool, CRAFT (Continuous Recording And Flagging Technology) and conducted a study by installing CRAFT in eight households of children with developmental disabilities and severe behavior concerns. The results of this study show the promise and remaining challenges for this technology. We have also shown that careful attention to the design of a ubicomp system for use by other domain specialists or non-technical users is key to moving ubicomp research forward.
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| 8. |
- Quintero, Juliana, et al.
(author)
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Ecological, biological and social dimensions of dengue vector breeding in five urban settings of Latin America: a multi-country study
- 2014
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In: BMC Infectious Diseases. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1471-2334. ; 14:1
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Abstract Background Dengue is an increasingly important public health problem in most Latin American countries and more cost-effective ways of reducing dengue vector densities to prevent transmission are in demand by vector control programs. This multi-centre study attempted to identify key factors associated with vector breeding and development as a basis for improving targeted intervention strategies. Methods In each of 5 participant cities in Mexico, Colombia, Ecuador, Brazil and Uruguay, 20 clusters were randomly selected by grid sampling to incorporate 100 contiguous households, non-residential private buildings (businesses) and public spaces. Standardized household surveys, cluster background surveys and entomological surveys specifically targeted to obtain pupal indices for Aedes aegypti, were conducted in the dry and wet seasons. Results The study clusters included mainly urban low-middle class populations with satisfactory infrastructure and –except for Uruguay- favourable climatic conditions for dengue vector development. Household knowledge about dengue and “dengue mosquitoes” was widespread, mainly through mass media, but there was less awareness around interventions to reduce vector densities. Vector production (measured through pupal indices) was favoured when water containers were outdoor, uncovered, unused (even in Colombia and Ecuador where the large tanks used for household water storage and washing were predominantly productive) and –particularly during the dry season- rainwater filled. Larval infestation did not reflect productive container types. All productive container types, including those important in the dry season, were identified by pupal surveys executed during the rainy season. Conclusions A number of findings are relevant for improving vector control: 1) there is a need for complementing larval surveys with occasional pupal surveys (to be conducted during the wet season) for identifying and subsequently targeting productive container types; 2) the need to raise public awareness about useful and effective interventions in productive container types specific to their area; and 3) the motivation for control services that-according to this and similar studies in Asia- dedicated, targeted vector management can make a difference in terms of reducing vector abundance.
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| 9. |
- Romero, Mario, 1973-, et al.
(author)
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Augmenting PBL with large public presentations : A case study in interactive graphics pedagogy
- 2014
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In: ITICSE 2014 - Proceedings of the 2014 Innovation and Technology in Computer Science Education Conference. - New York, New York, USA : ACM Press. - 9781450328333 ; , s. 15-20
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Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We present a case study analyzing and discussing the effects of introducing the requirement of public outreach of original student work into the project-based learning of Advanced Graphics and Interaction (AGI) at KTH Royal Institute of Technology. We propose Expo-Based Learning as Project-Based Learning augmented with the constructively aligned goal of achieving public outreach beyond the course. We promote this outreach through three challenges: 1) large public presentations; 2) multidisciplinary collaboration; and 3) professional portfolio building. We demonstrate that the introduction of these challenges, especially the public presentations, had lasting positive impact in the intended technical learning outcomes of AGI with the added benefit of learning team work, presentation skills, timeliness, accountability, self-motivation, technical expertise, and professionalism.
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| 10. |
- Romero, Mario, 1973-, et al.
(author)
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BrailleTouch : Designing a Mobile Eyes-free Soft Keyboard
- 2011
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In: Proceedings of the 13th International Conference on Human Computer Interaction with Mobile Devices and Services. - New York, NY, USA : ACM Digital Library. ; , s. 707-709
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Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Texting is the essence of mobile communication and connectivity, as evidenced by today's teenagers, tomorrow's workforce. Fifty-four percent of American teens contact each other daily by texting, as compared to face-to-face (33%) and talking on the phone (30%) according to the Pew Research Center's Internet & American Life Project, 2010. Arguably, today's technologies support mobile text input poorly, primarily due to the size constraints of mobile devices. This is the case for everyone, but it is particularly relevant to the visually impaired. According to the World Health Organization, 284 million people are visually impaired worldwide. In order to connect these users to the global mobile community, we need to design effective and efficient methods for eyes-free text input on mobile devices. Furthermore, everyone would benefit from effective mobile texting for safety and speed. This design brief presents BrailleTouch, our working prototype solution for eyes-free mobile text input.
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| 11. |
- Romero, Mario, 1973-, et al.
(author)
-
Designing and Evaluating Embodied Sculpting : a Touching Experience
- 2014
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Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We discuss the design and evaluation of embodied sculpting, the mediated experience of creating a virtual object with volume which users can see, hear, and touch as they mold the material with their body. Users’ digitized bodies share the virtual space of the digital model through a depth-sensor camera. They can use their hands, bodies, or any object to shape the sculpture. As they mold the model, they see a real-time rendering of it and receive sound and haptic feedback of the interaction. We discuss the opportunities and challenges of both designing for haptic embodiment and evaluating it through haptic experimentation.
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| 12. |
- Romero, Mario, 1973-, et al.
(author)
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Evaluating Video Visualizations of Human Behavior
- 2011
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In: Proceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems. - New York, NY, USA : ACM. ; , s. 1441-1450
-
Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Previously, we presented Viz-A-Vis, a VIsualiZation of Activity through computer VISion [17]. Viz-A-Vis visualizes behavior as aggregate motion over observation space. In this paper, we present two complementary user studies of Viz-A-Vis measuring its performance and discovery affordances. First, we present a controlled user study aimed at comparatively measuring behavioral analysis preference and performance for observation and search tasks. Second, we describe a study with architects measuring discovery affordances and potential impacts on their work practices. We conclude: 1) Viz-A-Vis significantly reduced search time; and 2) it increased the number and quality of insightful discoveries.
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| 13. |
- Romero, Mario, 1973-
(author)
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Flat is the New Pitch-Black : Discussing Blind use of Touchscreens
- 2014
-
Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The increasingly ubiquitous touchscreen, from the smart phone to the treadmill, is a significant hurdle for blind individuals who cannot rely on their sense of touch for decoding its interface. Advances in smart phone screen readers, such as the iPhone’s Voice Over, have enabled blind users to effectively navigate touchscreens. While Voice Over efficiently outputs information, text input remained a challenge. To address this, we previously introduced BrailleTouch, a soft braille keyboard for efficient blind text entry on touchscreens. In this position paper, we present the tailored touch-based user experience design and evaluation techniques we developed for BrailleTouch which we have not previously discussed.
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| 14. |
- Romero, Mario, 1973-, et al.
(author)
-
Supercomputers Keeping People Warm in the Winter
- 2014
-
Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We present the design and evaluation of the heat recovery system for KTH's Lindgren, Stockholm's fastest supercomputer, a Cray XE6. Lindgren came into service in 2010 and has since been primarily used for complex numeric simulations of fluid mechanics and computational chemistry and biology. The heat exchange system collects the wasted heat from Lindgren's 36,384 CPU cores and transfers it via the standard district heating and cooling system to a neighboring building which houses the Chemistry laboratories. We analyze the impact of Lindgren's heat recycle system as a function of outside temperature and we estimate the system's carbon emission savings. Since the original installation of Lindgren in 2010, it has become common practice to use water cooling systems for supercomputers, as water is a better heat transfer medium than air. We discuss the relevant design lessons from Lindgren as they relate to practical and sustainable waste heat recovery designs for today's platforms. Finally, we estimate that the recovered heat from Lindgren reduced the carbon emissions by nearly 50 tons over the 2012-13 winter, the sample period of our analysis.
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| 15. |
- Shin, Grace, et al.
(author)
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VizKid : A Behavior Capture and Visualization System of Adult-child Interaction
- 2011
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In: Proceedings of the 1st International Conference on Human Interface and the Management of Information. ; , s. 190-198
-
Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We present VizKid, a capture and visualization system for supporting the analysis of social interactions between two individuals. The development of this system is motivated by the need for objective measures of social approach and avoidance behaviors of children with autism. VizKid visualizes the position and orientation of an adult and a child as they interact with one another over an extended period of time. We report on the design of VizKid and its rationale.
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| 16. |
- Southern, Caleb, et al.
(author)
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An Evaluation of BrailleTouch : Mobile Touchscreen Text Entry for the Visually Impaired
- 2012
-
In: Proceedings of the 14th International Conference on Human-computer Interaction with Mobile Devices and Services. - New York, NY, USA : Association for Computing Machinery (ACM). ; , s. 317-326
-
Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We present the evaluation of BrailleTouch, an accessible keyboard for blind users on touchscreen smartphones. Based on the standard Perkins Brailler, BrailleTouch implements a six-key chorded braille soft keyboard. Eleven blind participants typed for 165 twenty-minute sessions on three mobile devices: 1) BrailleTouch on a smartphone; 2) a soft braille keyboard on a touchscreen tablet; and 3) a commercial braille keyboard with physical keys. Expert blind users averaged 23.2 words per minute (wpm) on the BrailleTouch smartphone. The fastest participant, a touchscreen novice, achieved 32.1 wpm during his first session. Overall, participants were able to transfer their existing braille typing skills to a touchscreen device within an hour of practice. We report the speed for braille text entry on three mobile devices, an in depth error analysis, and the lessons learned for the design and evaluation of accessible and eyes-free soft keyboards.
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| 17. |
- Southern, Caleb, et al.
(author)
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Braille Touch : Mobile Touchscreen Text Entry for the Visually Impaired
- 2012
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In: Proceedings of the 14th International Conference on Human-computer Interaction with Mobile Devices and Services Companion. ; , s. 155-156
-
Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We present a demonstration of BrailleTouch, an accessible keyboard for blind users on a touchscreen smartphone (see Figure 1). Based on the standard Perkins Brailler, BrailleTouch implements a six-key chorded braille soft keyboard [1]. We will briefly introduce audience members to the braille code, and then allow them to hold the BrailleTouch prototype and enter text, with the aid of a visual chart of the braille alphabet.
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| 18. |
- Vines, John, et al.
(author)
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Designing For- and With- Vulnerable People
- 2013
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In: CHI ’13 Extended Abstracts on Human Factors in Computing Systems. - New York, NY, USA : ACM. ; , s. 3231-3234
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Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Ubiquitous technology, coupled with a surge in empirical research on people that engages people with multiple challenges in their lives, is increasingly revealing the potential for HCI to enrich the lives of vulnerable people. Designing for people with vulnerabilities requires an approach to participation that is sensitive to the risks of possible stigmatization and an awareness of the challenges for participant involvement. This workshop will bring together researchers and practitioners to explore the critical issues surrounding designing with and for vulnerable individuals. We aim to provoke discussion about how 'vulnerability' is defined in HCI, what methodological and ethical concerns are raised when working with specific cases, and ways of designing for future technologies that support vulnerable people in novel and sensitive ways.
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