A macro facility for interactive display

This paper describes how a user of a graphical display unit, e.g. a designer or draftsman, etc. can create procedures at the console which will perform geometric constructions and calculations. These procedures may be recorded, and subsequently recalled and executed, using data values supplied by the user This system may be regarded as an extension to the IBM program Graphic Part Programmer (GPP) Number 360D–23.4.003.¹ The basic system utilized is the contruction part of this program which has been extended to provide drafting facilities. No programming courses are needed as no language is involved, and the only prior experience necessary is that needed to become familiar with the drafting system.     

User interest modeling for social TV-recommender systems based on audiovisual consumption

This paper presents an innovative consumption-modeling system applied to digital TV, able to infer the user interest regarding the TV contents. The user interest inferred is used to feed content recommender systems, and it has been tested in real scenarios involving real users. The modeling system uses as input the TV consumption data and performs an algorithm based on a Hidden Markov Model and Bayesian inference techniques to infer the said user interest. Real data have been picked up in real time to feed our modeling, and the final results have been checked comparing with user’s tastes, which have been expressed through a set of questionnaires and the whole system has been tested in a TV broadcasting scenario with real users. Conclusions show that our system improves the reliability from classic user interest modeling systems (they are mainly based on explicit opinion based methods, which can be intrusive for general users and could show certain deceptive results, as it is described in this paper).     

Exploring Issues of User Model Transparency and Proactive Behaviour in an Office Environment Control System

It is important that systems that exhibit proactive behaviour do so in a way that does not surprise or frustrate the user. Consequently, it is desirable for such systems to be both personalised and designed in such a way as to enable the user to scrutinise her user model (part of which should hold the rules describing the behaviour of the system). This article describes on-going work to investigate the design of a prototype system that can learn a given user’s behaviour in an office environment in order to use the inferred rules to populate a user model and support appropriate proactive behaviour (e.g. turning on the user’s fan under appropriate conditions). We explore the tension between user control and proactive services and consider issues related to the design of appropriate transparency with a view to supporting user comprehensibility of system behaviour. To this end, our system enables the user to scrutinise and possibly over-ride the ‘IF-THEN’ rules held in her user model. The system infers these rules from the context history (effectively a data set generated using a variety of sensors) associated with the user by using a fuzzy-decision-tree-based algorithm that can provide a confidence level for each rule in the user model. The evolution of the system has been guided by feedback from a number of real-life users in a university department. A questionnaire study has yielded supplementary results concerning the extent to which the approach taken meets users’ expectations and requirements.     

Systematic modeling and model handling for manpower planning systems

The primary purpose of this paper is to show an efficient way of handling models and model data in a decision support system, in which it is usual to consider several variants of a model. The model data primarily consist of model-defining data, but the same approach may be used for the generated results as well. By efficient handling is meant the handling by the computer as well as by the user. For the user it is particularly important that new models can be conveniently defined as variants of existing models. The approach is introduced within the context of a decision support system for manpower planning based on Markov models. In the mean time the same approach has been used for the implementation of other decision support systems and has been found to be more generally applicable.     

GRDB: A general purpose relational database system

This article discusses the design and development of GRDB (General Purpose Relational Data Base System) which has been implemented on a DEC-1090 system in Pascal. GRDB is a general purpose database system designed to be completely independent of the nature of data to be handled, since it is not tailored to the specific requirements of any particular enterprise. It can handle different types of data such as variable length records and textual data. Apart from the usual database facilities such as data definition and data manipulation, GRDB supports User Definition Language (UDL) and Security definition language. These facilities are provided through a SEQUEL-like General Purpose Query Language (GQL). GRDB provides adequate protection facilities up to the relation level. The concept of “security matrix” has been made use of to provide database protection. The concept of Unique IDentification number (UID) and Password is made use of to ensure user identification and authentication. The concept of static integrity constraints has been used to ensure data integrity. Considerable efforts have been made to improve the response time through indexing on the data files and query optimisation. GRDB is designed for an interactive use but alternate provision has been made for its use through batch mode also. A typical Air Force application (consisting of data about personnel, inventory control, and maintenance planning) has been used to test GRDB and it has been found to perform satisfactorily.     

3D Icons and Architectural CAD

3D computer input has been a recurring challenge to engineers developing effective CAD systems. The approach adopted in this paper attempts to address a specific type of 3D input which is applicable to architecture and some engineering design tasks. In these processes, the object being designed is often an assembly of defined components. In a conventional graphics based CAD system these components are usually represented by graphical Icons which are displayed on the graphics screen and are arranged by the user. The system described here consists of 3D modelling elements which the user physically assembles to form his design. Each modelling element contains an element processor consisting of a machine readable label, data paths and control logic. The CAD system interrogates the elements. The logic within the element processors and the data paths are then used to interrogate other adjacent elements in the model. This system can therefore be considered as a "user generated""machine readable" modelling system. In an architectural application this provides the user with a system of 3D Icons with which to model and evaluate the built environment.     

A general-purpose software measurement tool

A software measurement tool designed for the users of PRIME, an interactive system being developed, is presented. The tool, called SMT, allows its user to instrument a program, modify a pre-existing instrumentation and specify how the collected data are to be reduced by typing in a few simple commands. The user can also write his own measurement routines, which specify the actions to be taken at event detection time, and submit them to the SMT; after checking their correctness, the SMT deals with them as with its built-in, standard measurement routines. The design goals of a general-purpose tool like the SMT are discussed, and the prototype version of the tool, which has been implemented, is described from the two distinct viewpoints of a user and of a measurement-tool designer. An example of the application of the prototype to a measurement problem is illustrated, the reasons why not all of the design goals have been achieved in the implementation of the prototype are reviewed, and some of the foreseeable extensions of the SMT are described.     

Towards automatic evaluation of multimodal user interfaces

The evaluation of the usability and the learnability of a computer system may be performed with predictive models during the design phase. It may be done on the executable code as well as by observing the user in action. In the latter case, data collected in vivo must be processed. The goal is to provide software supports for performing this difficult and time consuming task.

The paper presents an early analysis of, and experience relating to, the automatic evaluation of multimodal user interfaces. With this end in view, a generic Wizard of Oz platform has been designed to allow the observation and automatic recording of subjects' behavior while they interact with a multimodal interface. It is then shown how recorded data can be analyzed to detect behavioral patterns, and how deviations of such patterns from a data-flow-oriented task model can be exploited by a software usability critic.     

Modular interactive analysis-design of prestressed concrete structural elements

A computer system for interactive analysis-design of pretensioned prestressed concrete members has been developed adding another working tool to the designer's collection of design aids. The interactive concept allows the designer to interact with the computer, making decisions that might be impractical or impossible to include in a program but allowing the computer to carry out rigorous computations. The process of designing pretensioned prestressed concrete members is organized into distinct phases. In order to produce an optimum design, various phases of the design process may have to be carried out numerous times depending on the effect of the design variables that are changed during the process. The modular interactive design system allows each module to be examined in any order and in any frequency after initial data has been input. This flexibility has been obtained by treating each module as a subroutine called by a control module. The system is designed to communicate with the designer in a conversational mode. Instructions are given to the user before requiring a response and the user has before him sufficient information to make necessary decisions. The present system can be used for the analysis-design of simple span beams and one-way slabs, with or without cantilever end spans, and of structures where the dead load is carried by simple beam action and superimposed dead and live loads are carried by continuous beam action where mild steel is provided to develop continuity over interior supports. The system is designed to be used on a minicomputer.     

An integrated verification and testing environment

A verification and testing environment that includes static analysis, symbolic execution, and dynamic analysis capabilities is presented. Tool integration and co-operation are promoted through use of an intermediate program representation and a system data manager. A substantial user interface aids application of the tools. Their use is guided by a verification and testing methodology on which the system's design is based. The environment has been engineered to support the production of flight control software written in HAL/S. The environment itself is written in Pascal and is designed to be portable. Several development experiences are described. The environment demonstrates that a strong, unified verification and testing environment can be built; it serves as a basis for future investigations.     

Wayfinding: an approach using signposting techniques

Abstract One of the major problems that affects a person's ability to make effective use of an interactive program is the level at which its manipulation affects the intellectual process necessary to solve his current problem. For example, in a computer-aided circuit design system, the user often has to spend so much time manipulating the system or thinking about how he will manipulate the system next, that he is unable to direct his full attention to the actual design of his circuit.

Without the use of the computer, the mundane numerical calculations that need to be performed in order to do the design, interfere with the engineering design process. By assisting with these mundane. calculations and thus enabling the engineer to consider many more possible designs, the engineer should be able to fully concentrate on the design goals. Instead, however, he must sacrifice some of his mental effort to manipulating the system.

Programs which are developed to assist the user in doing highly innovative tasks (Benest and Fidler 1981) must be designed so that they provide an 'aura' that enables the user to realize almost subconsciously what is expected of him. Such a system would therefore be simple and straightforward to learn, simple and straightforward to use, promote confidence and exhibit an unhurried work environment. These laudable aims have been investigated during the development of the passive filter design program FIDES, which serves to provide a graphical demonstration of the man-machine interface techniques discussed in this paper.     

An integrated manufacturing planning assistant — IMPA

In this paper, we describe our development of a fully integrated manufacturing planning assistant (IMPA) system, which is able to: (1) interpret the finished part requirements directly from the designer's CAD systems or solid modelers without user intervention or special feature coding; (2) check the machinability of a designed part; (3) automatically generate a process plan, a tool path and an NC (numerically controlled) code, and (4) support interactive user modification of the resulting plans, tool paths and NC code. A demonstration version of the system was designed to provide automated assistance for the planning of machining processes on three-axes NC machine tools. The underlying architectural concepts and reasoning algorithms can be extended to more complex machines such as four-or-more-axes NC machines. CAD, CAE, and CAM including robotic, FMS (flexible manufacturing system) and NC machines are widely used in industry today. There is increasing interest in automation of factory control software Merchant, (1988); this includes automating the generation of the control programs — that is, in developing systems which will automatically produce the NC code for machining the part, given a model of the part, the shape of the raw material, and the machine specifications. With such systems, there are several difficulties in the manual preparation of an NC program code such as, long and tedious calculations, high risk of error in data preparation, etc., which need to be eliminated. This is a critical step toward the integration of CAD and CAM into a truly concurrent engineering and manufacturing environment.     

SOFTSUSY: A program for calculating supersymmetric spectra

SOFTSUSY is a program which accurately calculates the spectrum of superparticles in the Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model (MSSM). The program solves the renormalisation group equations with theoretical constraints on soft supersymmetry breaking terms provided by the user. Weak-scale gauge coupling and fermion mass data (including one-loop finite MSSM corrections) are used as a boundary condition, as well as successful radiative electroweak symmetry breaking. The program can also calculate a measure of fine-tuning. The program structure has been designed to easily generalize to extensions of the MSSM . This article serves as a self-contained guide to prospective users, and indicates the conventions and approximations used. Sample results are compared with similar calculations in the literature.     

Model theory approach to transaction processing system development

This paper presents a new approach, model theory approach, to small and medium scale transaction processing system (TPS) development. A TPS of this paper is an information system designed to process day-to-day business event data at operational level of an organization. The paper is not concerned with data base construction but with transaction processing.

The model theory approach is not a software engineering approach but a systems theory approach. In the approach a model of the target system, which is called a user model, is constructed in set theory using a formal system structure of a TPS. The user model is, then, compiled into an extended Prolog (extProlog) model. The extProlog is an extension of Prolog to meet requirements for management information system development. On compilation a standardized user interface (UI) called internal UI is attached. The extProlog model with the internal UI is, then, executed under control of another standardized UI called an external UI. Implementation is an integral part of the approach. Because the UIs are designed for the formalized (abstract) structure of a TPS, they can be standardized and are provided as black box components to system development. Because a systems developer is required to only build a user model in set theory based on a model theoretic structure in the approach, it is called a model theory approach. Advantages of this approach are that it provides a theoretical structure to information systems development so that systems development can be made an engineering discipline, and facilitates rapid systems development.     

Designing an accessible low-cost interactive multi-touch surface

This paper presents an accessible interactive surface specifically designed for cerebral palsy users. The work context is an educational centre for disabled users, although the system presented can be used in other contexts. The main contributions are as follows: the table leaves enough leg room to fit in wheelchairs and has a half-circle radius cut-out in the top which lets users in wheelchairs sit closer to the tabletop. Table height can be easily adjusted to children or adults. The tabletop screen angle can be easily adjusted to adapt to different body postures and allow for user comfort. The tabletop does not compromise user safety as the surface is protected with strong Plexiglas. Furthermore, an assessment of accessibility has been carried out to analyse its appropriateness to fit users with different characteristics.     

An environmental assessment system for environmental technologies

A new model for the environmental assessment of environmental technologies, EASETECH, has been developed. The primary aim of EASETECH is to perform life-cycle assessment (LCA) of complex systems handling heterogeneous material flows. The objectives of this paper are to describe the EASETECH framework and the calculation structure. The main novelties compared to other LCA software are as follows. First, the focus is put on material flow modelling, as each flow is characterised as a mix of material fractions with different properties and flow compositions are computed as a basis for the LCA calculations. Second, the tool has been designed to allow for the easy set-up of scenarios by using a toolbox, the processes within which can handle heterogeneous material flows in different ways and have different emission calculations. Finally, tools for uncertainty analysis are provided, enabling the user to parameterise systems fully and propagate probability distributions through Monte Carlo analysis.     

PEDANT: A computerized support to program modularity under limited memory conditions

Experience with conventional methods of defining subroutines shows that analytical algorithms lose generality once programmed, and can only be applied in new circumstances after laborious reprogramming; one consequence of this is the disparate abundance of existing program-packages for mathematical statistics. Standard building-blocks in modular form are therefore required, which are capable of embodying individual algorithms such that they can then be applied freely by a user unfamiliar with programming languages. This generalized approach presupposes the availability of a flexible switchboard for data between each building-block. A system has been developed on this principle to facilitate the realization of composite technical calculations; it is based on a standard manner of supplying each conventionally programmed algorithm with data. The organization necessary for implementation in a typical batch operating-system (Siemens DOS) is explained: This involves well-defined data interfaces within each building-block supported by standard software, which organizes the data transfer.     

An interactive data visualization system

GRAFANA is an interactive program, which allows the user to produce drawings based on data stored on a disk file. The major advantage and originality of the system is that the user can interactively determine the visual effect of a drawing and immediately see it on the screen. Moreover, any drawing produced by GRAFANA can still be edited by a generalpurpose graphics editor. This system allows the user to obtain precisely the right drawing for any book, paper or report. GRAFANA has been implemented in MIRA-2D, a graphical Pascal extension. It is available for different machines and kinds of graphical devices.     

Automated conjecture making in number theory using HR,Otter and Maple

One of the main applications of computational techniques to pure mathematics has been the use of computer algebra systems to perform calculations which mathematicians cannot perform by hand. Because the data is produced within the computer algebra system, this becomes an environment for the exploration of new functions and the data produced is often analysed in order to make conjectures empirically. We add some automation to this discovery process by using the HR theory formation system to make conjectures about Maple functions supplied by the user. HR forms theories by inventing concepts, making conjectures empirically which relate the concepts and appealing to third party theorem provers and model generators to prove/disprove the conjectures. It has been used with success in number theory, graph theory and various algebraic domains such as group theory and ring theory.Experience has shown that HR produces too many conjectures which can be easily proven from the definitions of the functions involved. Hence, we use the Otter theorem prover to discard any theorems which can be easily proven, leaving behind the more interesting ones which are empirically plausible but not easily provable. We describe the core functionality of HR which enables it to form a theory, and the additional functionality implemented in order for HR to work with Maple functions. We present two experiments where we have applied HR’s theory formation in number theory. We discuss the modes of operation for the user and provide some of the results produced in this way. We hope to show that using HR, Otter and Maple in this fashion has much potential for the advancement of computer algebra systems.