Interfaces for collaborative work
Technology has been advancing rapidly over the last few decades. Along with this advancement, it also brings about convenient and efficient working environments for most working personnel.
Collaborative work - personnel from different environments coming together
Firstly, to begin, a collaborative working environment denotes a space which supports people (e.g. e-professionals) in their individual and co-operational work. The research in collaborative working environment also span across organizational, social and technical issues. In order to have smooth and efficient collaborative work between working professionals, they have to use technological gadgets for communication between one another, what we will call here as interfaces for collaborative work. To name a few, existing interfaces being frequently used today consist of e-mail, video conferencing and collaborative workspace.
We can begin analyzing a specific interface used frequently for collaborative work nowadays, namely video conferencing. It’s well known that video conferencing helps greatly in communication between professionals from different working environments, and one of the best benefits to reap from this technology is that the users being invited for the video conference do not need to physically bring their files to the actual venue of the conference, thus saving time on transportation.
The current standard video conferencing features include real-time playback videos and audios, as well as the improving in convenience for all people involved in the meeting as mentioned earlier. Of course, with gradual improvement in IT in the past decade, video and audio quality gradually became better for the audiences to better utilse the features from video conferencing and comprehend what the other party is trying to convey over the other side of the world.
However, the improvement of technology has went up a notch, such that video conferencing now is able to add a touch of realism to it by creating 3D holograms for the host and also for the clients at the other side of the video conference. The video below will sh what this great improvement in technology is about:
Of course, this phenomenal improvement in technology is not going to stop there. With the creation of 3D holograms, more features can also be added to it, such as hologram menus/keyboards for the host and clients to interact with one another. Virtual tables and chairs could probably be created as well to create an augmented reality of a real conference room.
Link:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collaborative_working_environment
Creative Support Tools
A picture paints a thousand words but creating a picture is not easy; it takes a lot of time and efforts on it.
Sadly other than the time and efforts, the arts tools and materials needed are also relatively expensive, and usually we tend to wait around for inspiration before we begin working on it to save on cost but
“Inspiration is absolutely unnecessary and somehow deceptive. You feel you need this great idea before you can get down to work, and I find that’s almost never the case” – Chuck Close
Chuck actually encourages us not to start with a clear idea of the picture that we wanted to create; rather let the painting evolves slowly as we work on it. Simply, a mark will become a person; the person will be changed into a plant and the plant eventually perhaps changed into an animal. The paintings keep evolving until we are happy with the final composition. But by doing it, we will definitely need to use a lot of papers, paints and if we ever make a mistake, the hole in pocket will become even BIGGER.
But with Tools like T.E.D.D.Y, I/O Brush and sketching programs/apps like SketchBook Pro, we can actually work on the images that we wanted to achieve on the computer before we transfer over to the canvas in a less inexpensive and efficient manner as we can perform a lot of actions like:
1) rescaling images and to make images transparent, facilities that are not easily available in physical collages with paper and scissors.
2) cut and paste, fill areas with colour and use other tools and techniques allows us to try out possible changes in composition; a plus in saving up the time waiting for the paint to dry.
3) easily undo any event on the screen promotes spontaneity and a willingness to go beyond the safe stage when investigating changes to the painting which in terms save up the needs to buy more costly materials that might end up in the trash bin.
An example can be shown in the video below featuring SketchBook Pro:
Thus, we can actually see how all the various technologies/software that can actually help in improving our daily life; allowing us to do what we already do to become better and more often in places and more quickly. Not forgetting save up more money, a big advantage!
Credits:
For Pictures: Universtuffs
Development and usage of Augmented Reality
Augmented reality has taken a huge step from its predecessor years ago; the difference is that they are not just the usual 3D graphics we get to see inside our computers, but rather a more vivid and realistic representation of our real life objects in the real world. Virtual reality existed before augmented reality, the system where it tried to represent real world objects with computer graphics, albeit with some imperfections, while augmented reality now tries to bridge the gap between reality and how the computer actually represents the images to look as close to the real world objects as possible. Various computer rendered images from augmented reality such as holograms are testament to how far it has been improved.
Even in today’s context, the application of Augmented Reality has been prevalent in various technological sectors. We will be specifically looking into areas such as the usage of augmented reality for industrial/military training.
From the lecture, we have seen how some industries such as oil refinery companies try to make use of augmented reality to prepare the personnel for certain scenarios that might happen during their daily work. One such scenario would be fire drills. The usual fire drills conducted in the past were without the use of augmented reality, and sometimes people just went through the motion of evacuating the site without understanding the essence of the drills. However, with augmented reality, this may help to make the scenario more realistic (such as adding virtual fires to the oil rigs) such that the personnel will be able to react better to the situation, rather than facing a mock situation where there are not any imminent dangers. Overall, the use of augmented reality can actually help in the efficiency in preparing personnel for their work due to the realistic environments provided by the software.
The video below shows how augmented reality can be used by the military aircraft repairmen for training purposes, and another video which showcases mitary planning:
Since HCI development over these few years have always been improving in terms of motion sensory and image mapping technologies to enhance the feel between the users with the machines, further realistic development in HCI for augmented reality may probably involve the human sense of touch (i.e. the materialization of a hologram into a solid 3D object in real life instead of just displayed graphics)
Links:
http://www.eonreality.com/news_releases.php?ref=news/news_releases&sid=469
http://www.arcane-technologies.com
Robotic Interfaces
With our previous discussion and update about the development of HCI, humans have developed technologies much further in the interaction between us and machines. What we will be focusing on will be in the aspect of robotic interfaces, such as in cases whereby the users interact with mechanic units like robots.
This new way (or rather, improvised way) of interacting with machines also has got some similarities with other interacting methods mentioned in the earlier posts, such as the use of motion sensory devices. This phenomenon is probably belonging to the newer generation of robotic interfaces where they integrate technologies with other HCI gadgets instead of relying solely on its robotic capabilities. However, this aspect is still under research and yet to be fully implemented. The video below will show how this interaction works.
Of course, robotic interfaces also include our traditional robot models (or partial robotic armature) that humans programme. This aspect of robotic interface has been rapidly improved over the years by engineers and is much better compared to the first generation robots that humans designed. One of the latest robotic series, known as the Nao(robot), is being used frequently in the modern era, inclusive of academic and research purposes. This series of robots has also replaced the Sony Aibo robot(the robotic dog) to be used in robotic design and competitions as well.
When we humans think of robotic interfaces, some of us may think of humanoid robots almost immediately. However, the first designed robot looks far from what a humanoid robot is perceived, as it was only just a mechanical armature designed solely for the handling of metallic car parts during the manufacturing process of cars.
There are also many applications of robotic interfaces being used in certain professions and operations nowadays, such as in surgery (medical science) or car assembly as mentioned earlier (manufacturing).The video below shows an example of a robotic interface used in medical science, such as surgery.
However, these devices are designed to aid professionals’ work well in their jobs and are sometimes pre-programmed for optimal efficiency. The key progress to robotic interface may lie in the integration of technology between mechanical engineering and other key technological development, such as motion sensory devices or remote controlling devices. For instance, in certain medical procedures, tubes with pinhole cameras are inserted into the patients’ bodies while the surgeons use the robotic interface (i.e controlling the robot and viewing the interface on the screen) to analyze the patients’ conditions. If newer technologies such as remote controls are integrated, the surgeons may not need to insert tubes into the patients’ bodies, but they will still be able to control the minute pinhole camera device from the operating table.
Link:
http://www.capitalcentury.com/1961.html
http://mashable.com/2011/09/20/humanoid-robot-charges-up-takes-a-load-off-videos/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nao_(robot)
youtube
Project Proposal – Soccer Management System
1. Introduction
Singapore vs Iraq @ Jalan Besar Stadium
Our group aims to present a portal which simplifies the booking of soccer fields which offers soccer players a simplified alternative to book their soccer games.
2. Background Research
Problems
SSC’s online portal allows booking of pitches. However, the present trend is that most games are organised through a middleman due to a:
- Lack of awareness of existing online portal
- Lack of contacts such as opposition teams and referees
- Messy interface
- Crucial Information such as address and pitch type not displayed upfront
SSC's icanbook.com.sg booking portal
To elaborate, Icanbook.com.sg provides the user with an entire choice of schools which might actually not be avaible for booking during his selected timeslots.
Users
- Casual Players
- Semi-professional and Amateur Players
- Referees
3. Proposed System
Our team proposes an interactive web portal which will allow uses to book pitches using a web browser or any mobile devices which supports flash.
Design Aspects
- Efficiency – Users will be able to book their field in a short amount of time
- Learnability – New users to the system will be able to use the portal
- Satisfaction – Users will be given the required information without the need to do additional research for information such as location of the pitch.
Conceptual Model
Sketch
Our team’s prezi presentation has been embedded below:
<div><style type=”text/css” media=”screen”>.prezi-player { width: 550px; } .prezi-player-links { text-align: center; }</style><object id=”prezi_ycf7r-xkbrgr” name=”prezi_ycf7r-xkbrgr” classid=”clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000″ width=”550″ height=”400″><param name=”movie” value=”http://prezi.com/bin/preziloader.swf”/><param name=”allowfullscreen” value=”true”/><param name=”allowscriptaccess” value=”always”/><param name=”bgcolor” value=”#ffffff”/><param name=”flashvars” value=”prezi_id=ycf7r-xkbrgr&lock_to_path=1&color=ffffff&autoplay=no&autohide_ctrls=0″/><embed id=”preziEmbed_ycf7r-xkbrgr” name=”preziEmbed_ycf7r-xkbrgr” src=”http://prezi.com/bin/preziloader.swf” type=”application/x-shockwave-flash” allowfullscreen=”true” allowscriptaccess=”always” width=”550″ height=”400″ bgcolor=”#ffffff” flashvars=”prezi_id=ycf7r-xkbrgr&lock_to_path=1&color=ffffff&autoplay=no&autohide_ctrls=0″></embed></object><div><p><a title=”
soccer management system
” href=”http://prezi.com/ycf7r-xkbrgr/proposal-soccer-management-system/”>proposal – soccer management system</a> on <a href=”http://prezi.com”>Prezi</a></p></div></div>
HCI – The Next Decade
For decades our options for interacting with the digital world have been limited to keyboards, mouse, and joysticks. But now with the emergent of new technology, our interaction with the digital world has started to change. As can see, we have already get to see some advances in interfaces – from controlling computers using the traditional keyboard and mouse to now having surfaces that allow fingertip control of on-screen objects such as the smartphones and Apple’s Ipad2.
Further advancement in the display technologies might soon shape our life and one possibility could be the way we read magazine and newspapers. We could have paper-like digital screens to distribute content. For example, “paper” used in books and magazines may be digitised on any surfaces (for example, mirrors) or foldable screens that we can put in our pockets. We could also have cheap and easily-accessed digital storage allows electronically record and store more aspects of our lives – allowing us to share information and interact with people across the globe. This hyperconnectivity liberates us from fixed telephone lines, desks and offices.
If all these are possible, our future will be like this:
However, we have to keep in mind that such advanced technology can be a double-edged sword. True enough it brings us a lot of convenience but it could lead to the loss of having physical books and newspaper as we move closer to the more interactive digital world.
References:
Gaines, Brian R. “HCI in the Next Millennium: Supporting the World Mind” Retrieved on 03 September 2011 from http://pages.cpsc.ucalgary.ca/~gaines/reports/MFIT/HCIMill/index.html
Microsoft Corporation “Being Human Human Computer Interaction in the Year 2020” Retrieved on 03 September 2011 from
http://research.microsoft.com/en-us/um/cambridge/projects/hci2020/
Evolution of Interactive I/O devices-then, now and future
Since computers were invented, humans have always been in constant research of Human-Computer Interaction, and how to go about improving the process of interactivity. Computer gadgets and peripherals, one of the many technologies developed from HCI research, were thus born to improve the ease of interaction between humans and computers.
Ever wondered how the computing pioneers ever interacted with the computers (or machines) in the past? These pictures and descriptions below will show you.
The Mouse
The first mouse invented was a lot more different than the one we have today. What it comprised of was a wooden shell, housing the 2 metallic wheels inside it. The concept of the mouse then was quite similar to the modern day mouse in terms of navigation by the user. The first mouse inventor, Douglas Engelbart mentioned it in the patent application as an “X-Y position indicator for a display system, somewhat similar to how the cursor works on our computer screen when we are using the mouse now. It was nicknamed the mouse because the tail came out the end.
The very first computer mouse-how it looks like
Gradually, more buttons and functions were added to the first generation mouse, such as the right click button. The design, look and feature of the mouse were also improved ergonomically to look sleek.
The older version of the mouse made by IBM in the 1990s era.
The next generation of mouse has also started to develop after the initial improved design and release of the computer mice in the 1980s and 1990s. More functionalities were then added, such as mouse wheel and side buttons. The navigation mechanics of the traditional mouse were also modified from the ball bearing system to the laser optical mouse we have today. Mice for different purposes and platforms were eventually developed as well, i.e. the gaming mouse for example.
An example of a gaming mouse:The Keyboard/typewriter
Before keyboards and computers were invented, typewriters were the most commonly used tool for documenting words on paper. The first typewriter was invented and then patented by Christopher Latham back in 1866.
One of the first few typewriters
Technological developments then gradually improved on the design of first generation typewriters, slowly transitioning it into the keyboard we know of today. In 1930, the teletype machine was developed by combining the technology of the typewriter with the telegraph. The telegraph is a communication system that transmits electronic signals over wires from location to location that translated into a message.
A Teleprinter - looks similar to a typewriter
Computer punched cards were also developed elsewhere as I/O devices with machines. The earliest keyboard prototype was developed based on the punch card and teletype technologies.
A computer punch card
However, the design and interactivity of the keyboard cannot be simply accomplished by combining punched card and teletype technologies. With the development of Video Display Terminals (what we layman can understand as a screen or display, such as computer screen) and electric keyboards, keyboards were thus able to send signals faster to the computer and save time. The development of VDTs was crucial since it allows users to create and edit text easily when they are displayed on the screen.
More Interactive I/O devices
Of course, after the early developments of the keyboard and mouse, other gadgets have also been invented in the research of HCI, which include motion senso, voice recognition and touch screen devices. Perhaps in the near future, development of these devices will emphasise more on motion sensing and touch screen rather than the traditional input from keys and buttons(such as our keyboard and mouse)
Microsoft Kinect - an example of a motion sensory device
Perhaps, we might be looking at something like this, but much more advanced in the near future:
Links:
Mouse: http://inventors.about.com/library/weekly/aa081898.htm
Keyboard: http://inventors.about.com/od/computerperipherals/a/computer_keyboa.htm
Welcome to our blog!
Welcome to our blog! We are a group of 4 students taking module CS3240 in NUS. In this blog, we will be discussing about various design phenomenon and history of HCI, and also other interesting stuff as well. Stay tuned!
hciteam17 