A Qualitative Design Approach for Exploring the Use of Medication and Health Care Devices among Elderly Persons

An academia–industry collaborative research project regarding design for elderly persons was initiated to investigate their living needs and potential design opportunities for new technologies and products. In the first year, a qualitative design approach for exploring their use of medication and health care devices was proposed. First, a user study was conducted using self‐reporting, observation, and interview methods. Four personas representing different lifestyle patterns of elderly persons were then derived from the user study data. Finally, four designers were invited to present and synthesize their design ideas for those personas. Results showed that the user study could reveal considerable information and that the persona method was effective for designers to communicate their ideas and concentrate on user requirements. The study findings suggested that, for design for elderly persons, social and affective factors can be considered with decline in age‐related abilities. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Customised text entry devices for motor-impaired users

The standard QWERTY keyboard is the principal text entry device for word processing and computer-based communications. For many motor-impaired individuals, and in particular those without intelligible speech, the low text entry rates they can typically achieve is a major problem. For some, the QWERTY design is completely inappropriate. Alternative designs that can appreciably increase these rates would greatly enhance their ability to communicate. This paper considers and compares several approaches to the design of text entry devices for motor-impaired users. A general method for customising (i e, optimising) these designs is employed, and consideration is given to designs requiring significantly fewer input switches than the 26 or more keys required by QWERTY. Use is made of language statistics in the design procedure, and the increased availability of inexpensive, powerful computers is directly exploited.     

Speaky for robots: the development of vocal interfaces for robotic applications

The currently available speech technologies on mobile devices achieve effective performance in terms of both reliability and the language they are able to capture. The availability of performant speech recognition engines may also support the deployment of vocal interfaces in consumer robots. However, the design and implementation of such interfaces still requires significant work. The language processing chain and the domain knowledge must be built for the specific features of the robotic platform, the deployment environment and the tasks to be performed. Hence, such interfaces are currently built in a completely ad hoc way. In this paper, we present a design methodology together with a support tool aiming to streamline and improve the implementation of dedicated vocal interfaces for robots. This work was developed within an experimental project called Speaky for Robots. We extend the existing vocal interface development framework to target robotic applications. The proposed solution is built using a bottom-up approach by refining the language processing chain through the development of vocal interfaces for different robotic platforms and domains. The proposed approach is validated both in experiments involving several research prototypes and in tests involving end-users.     

产品设计中自动化“度”的感性研究

文章指出当今产品设计领域中部分设计师乃至学者误把"自动化设计"当成"人性化设计",错误地认为一件产品其自动化程度越高,其就越有利于提高人们的生存质量。严重违背了设计伦理。通过介绍了几种感性工程学研究方法对自动化设计"度"的感性研究。得知产品自动化设计中只有正确把握住了自动化的"度",这种设计才是"人性化设计",只有这样才能提高人们的生存质量。     

Focus groups as a requirements gathering method with adults with severe speech and physical impairments

Technological supports have the potential to greatly improve the quality of life and independence of adults with severe speech and physical impairments (SSPI). In particular, augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) devices can enable people with little or no speech to communicate with others. However, the rate of rejection of AAC devices is estimated to be as high as 53.3%. It is suggested that a major reason for this rejection is a lack of user-centred design in the development of these devices. As part of a wider study looking at involving adults with SSPI in all stages of user-centred design, this paper looks at the use of focus groups in requirements gathering with this user group.     

Augmentative and alternative communication devices for aphasia: the emerging role of “smart” mobile devices

Recent advances in mobile technology offer new directions for augmentative and alternative communication (AAC); however, it remains unclear whether they meet the needs of individuals with aphasia. This paper reports on research seeking to understand this changing landscape. A Web-based survey of aphasia-oriented clinicians helped illuminate device adoption trends. Observations of group therapy sessions featuring high-tech AAC use and focus groups with the clinicians from those sessions provided further nuance and insight into usage and adoption. It was shown that “smart” mobile devices are garnering acceptance as a promising platform for high-tech AAC; however, contrary to the authors’ expectations, these devices are not being paired with mobile versions of traditional picture dictionaries. Rather, clinicians reported appropriating generic applications to complement other (non-high-tech) communication strategies, suggesting new opportunities for design.     

A Rate Index for Augmentative and Alternative Communication

Individuals with severe speech disability can benefit from the use of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) speech output assistive technology. The recent development of tools and methods for measuring AAC performance through the collection and analysis of language samples has advanced the clinical practice of this field. The definition of a new summary measure for characterizing performance of AAC systems in use is presented. The summary measure, here named rate index, is the average communication rate (in words per minute) divided by the selection rate (in bits per second) for the language sample. Thus the unit of measure for the rate index is words per bit. The rate index provides for the comparison of communication rates adjusted for differences in selection rates. Rate index comparisons can be made between individuals using similar or different systems or for one individual under different conditions. The clinical value of the rate index is the identification of opportunity for improved communication performance. Demonstrated rate index data also can serve as evidence to be used in the selection of AAC systems. The language sample data reported in this paper were collected using automated language activity monitoring (LAM).     

Mediating intimacy in long-distance relationships using kiss messaging

Intimate interactions between remotely located individuals are not well supported by conventional communication tools, mainly due to the lack of physical contact. Also, haptic research has not focused on the use of a kiss as a mode of interaction that maintains intimacy in long distance relationships. In this study, we designed and developed a haptic device called Kissenger (Kiss-Messenger) for this issue. Kissenger is an interactive device that provides a physical interface for transmitting a kiss between two remotely connected people. Each device is paired with another and the amount of force and shape of the kiss by the user is sensed and transmitted to another device that is replicated using actuators. Kissenger is designed to augment already existing remote communication technologies. Challenges in the design and development of the system are addressed through an iterative design process involving constant evaluation by users after each stage. The devices are evaluated through a short- and a long-term user study with remotely located couples. The results point to an initial acceptance of the device with feedback from the users on directions to improve the overall experience. This study discusses potential issues that designers should be aware of when prototyping for remote intimate interactions.     

Present-ing the user: constructing the persona

Abstract

During the last few years personas has become an established design technique within the IT-design field. Using personas has proven itself as a valuable approach for designers to switch between a developer's perspective and a user's perspectivein the design process. The technique is claimed to help designers in keeping a clear focus and shaping a consistent user-interface by making ‘the user’ present in the design work. In this paper we report on a number of projects where we have elaborated on the persona approach for collaborative design. With the goalof creating ‘user presence’ in the design process, we have developed an approach building on a combination of ethnographic exploration, participatory inquiry, and collaborative design. This paper carries two interrelated points: the grounding of personasin existing practice; and the notion that ‘the user’ is created as an ongoing process throughout the design work.     

Rule inferencing and object-orientation for boundary elements mesh design

In this paper, object orientation and rule inferencing are used to automate the design of boundary element meshes. The work is part of an effort to develop an object-oriented integrated environment for the damage tolerance design of aircraft stiffened panels and other parts such as fuselage lap-joints. An inference domain class library has been developed. Inference domain objects are used to create symbolic representations for the structural configuration and for production rules that describe the mesh design strategy. An objectoriented inference engine is utilized to apply this rule set to the knowledge base where the symbolic representation of the structural configuration is stored. The technique was implemented using the C++ programming language.     

解码产品设计过程——外观与结构

解构主义最大的特点是反中心,反权威,反二元对抗,反非黑即白的理论解构看重的是差异和重复,不是对立和矛盾。各个产品公司在设计过程中都反映了结构设计的重要性,一个产品的诞生时间花费较多的就是结构,出问题较多的也是结构,但最后追究责任时,大部分都是外观设计师,因为设计出来的产品结构不能开模。在产品设计过程中设计师并非仅仅是产品外观设计师准确的说是工业设计师,即从事产品设计这项工作不能只停留在漂亮的设计效果图纸上,还要学习掌握结构、材料、生产工艺等,要清楚产品设计的全过程。在产品设计过程中外观设计与结构设计是非对抗的无绝对权威的。     

Designing appliances for mobile commerce and retailtainment

In the emerging world of the new consumer and the `anytime, anywhere' mobile commerce, appliances are located at the collision point of the retailer and consumer agendas. The consequence of this is twofold: on the one hand appliances that were previously considered plain and utilitarian become entertainment devices and on the other, for the effective design of consumer appliances it becomes paramount to employ multidisciplinary expertise. In this paper, we discuss consumer perceptions of a retailtainment commerce system developed in collaboration between interactivity designers, information systems engineers, hardware and application developers, marketing strategists, product development teams, social scientists and retail professionals. We discuss the approached employed for the design of the consumer experience and its implications for appliance design.     

浅析色彩在产品设计中的重要性——以第五代iPod touch为例

当今大众商品形式的多样化多是由合理多样的配色产生的,消费者的购买欲望也由此产生,这丰富着人们五颜六色的生活。色彩在从未停止过更新的电子消费产品领域中,起着个性和诉求的媒介作用。文章以iPod touch5系列便携式移动产品为案例,分析iPod touch5系列产品的色彩设计,介绍了最具代表性的新一代苹果产品在颜色设计上是如何考虑的,以及分析它是怎样利用自己的色彩魅力赢得了不可替代的消费地位,由此让大众意识到颜色是产品设计的重要组成部分。     

Review of trends from mobile learning studies: A meta-analysis

Two previous literature review-based studies have provided important insights into mobile learning, but the issue still needs to be examined from other directions such as the distribution of research purposes. This study takes a meta-analysis approach to systematically reviewing the literature, thus providing a more comprehensive analysis and synthesis of 164 studies from 2003 to 2010. Major findings include that most studies of mobile learning focus on effectiveness, followed by mobile learning system design, and surveys and experiments were used as the primary research methods. Also, mobile phones and PDAs are currently the most widely used devices for mobile learning but these may be displaced by emerging technologies. In addition, the most highly-cited articles are found to focus on mobile learning system design, followed by system effectiveness. These findings may provide insights for researchers and educators into research trends in mobile learning.     

电位器式传感器传动机构参数的优化设计

在电位器式传感器传动机构设计中,根据约束条件,初步确定膜盒组件特性、输出装置中电刷转角特性、齿轮放大机构的放大系数,然后对曲柄连杆机构参数进行优化设计的方法,经实践验证,能有效提高测量数据的准确性.优化参数的方法对同类机构设计都具有参考价值.     

A hypernetwork-based context-aware approach for design lesson-learned knowledge proactive feedback in design for manufacturing

Design lesson-learned knowledge (DLK) clearly describes various design quality problems exposed in past manufacturing stages, solutions and preventive measures. If knowledge management system could proactively feed DLK back into design process, many previous quality problems would be avoided, thus helping designers better implement design for manufacturing (DFM) in a smarter manner. However, since design quality problems are not pointed out in design process, problem-relevant information extracted from design contexts might be inaccurate. In this situation, traditional context-aware approach is prone to acquire design quality problems that designers do not need. Facing these challenges, a hypernetwork-based context-aware DLK proactive feedback approach is proposed to construct hypernetwork-based DLK representation model and predict possible design quality problems in the design process, thus providing corresponding DLK and helping designers reduce the reoccurrence of previous quality problems in DFM. Specifically, hypernetwork-based DLK representation model is first constructed, which consists of designer context network, task context network and DLK network. Based on this model, a context-aware collaborative reason strategy is constructed to predict possible design quality problems according to complex design contexts. To validate the proposed approach, a practical product development case on the shipbuilding design is implemented, and some comparative experiments are conducted. Experiment results show the proposed approach is effective and has a positive performance in DFM. It is anticipated this work opens up a promising way to help designers reuse DLK for reducing the reoccurrence of previous design quality problems in a smarter manner, thus better implementation of DFM.     

The NESPOLE! System for multilingual speech communication over the Internet

The NESPOLE! System is a speech communication system designed to support multilingual interaction between common users and providers of e-commerce services over the Internet. The core of the system is a distributed interlingua-based speech-to-speech translation system, which is supported by multimodal capabilities that allow the two parties participating in the communication to share Web pages and graphical content which can be annotated using gestures. We describe the unique features and considerations behind the design and implementation of this system, and evaluate these within the context of a constructed full prototype of the system that was developed for the domain of travel planning.     

Performance-directed energy management for storage systems

Energy consumption has become an important issue in the design of battery-operated mobile devices and sophisticated data centers. The storage hierarchy, which includes memory and disks, is a major energy consumer in such systems; especially for high-end servers at data centers. Much work has focused on energy control algorithms for storage systems that transition a device into a low power mode when a certain usage function exceeds a specified threshold. These algorithms are difficult to use in real systems, however, because designers must painstakingly and manually tune threshold values, and even then a performance guarantee is difficult. To address these limitations, we develop three algorithms: 1) a performance guarantee technique that designers can use with any underlying energy-control algorithm 2) a performance-directed control algorithm that periodically assigns a static configuration to different devices by solving an optimization problem 3) another performance-directed control algorithm that dynamically self-tunes according to an optimal set of thresholds