The area of Human-Robot Interaction deals with problems not only related to robots interacting with humans, but also with problems related to humans interacting and controlling robots. This dissertation focuses on the latter and evaluates multi-sensory (vision, hearing, touch, smell) feedback interfaces as a means to improve robot-operator cognition and performance. A set of four empirical studies using both simulated and real robotic systems evaluated a set of multi-sensory feedback interfaces with various levels of complexity. The task scenario for the robot in these studies involved the search for victims in a debris-filled environment after a fictitious catastrophic event (e.g., earthquake) took place. The results show that, if well-designed, multi-sensory feedback interfaces can indeed improve the robot operator data perception and performance. Improvements in operator performance were detected for navigation and search tasks despite minor increases in workload. In fact, some of the multi-sensory interfaces evaluated even led to a reduction in workload. The results also point out that redundant feedback is not always beneficial to the operator. While introducing the concept of operator omni-directional perception, that is, the operator’s capability of perceiving data or events coming from all senses and in all directions, this work explains that feedback redundancy is only beneficial when it enhances the operator omni-directional perception of data relevant to the task at hand. Last, the comprehensive methodology employed and refined over the course of the four studies is suggested as a starting point for the design of future HRI user studies. In summary, this work sheds some light on the benefits and challenges multi-sensory feedback interfaces bring, specifically on teleoperated robotics. It adds to our current understanding of these kinds of interfaces and provides a few insights to assist the continuation of research in the area.

The purpose of this thesis is to explore to what extent different styling elements can be used within a retail store and how sensorial cues can affect customers buying behaviour by creating a multi-sensory brand-experience. Further, this project aims at contributing to the development of new knowledge regarding a multi-sensory brand-experience through the performance of an experiment. A quantitative research method with a deductive research approach has been used for this study, where theoretical concepts have been described and from which a number of hypotheses have derived as means to test the theoretical framework. In order to test our hypotheses, a research strategy in the form of experiments has been performed in the computer department at Media Markt, Kalmar. General assumptions have then been drawn from the analysis of the results in order to provide sound recommendations for marketers regarding sensory marketing in general and foremost the multi-sensory brand-experience.   The result of our study shows that it is beneficial for marketers to use styling elements and sensorial cues as means to connect with customers and enhance their emotional response. The study also shows that a combination of the sensorial cues of sight and sound together contributes to an experience that is positive and memorable for the customers. Additionally, the results of this study shows that a combination of these sensory cues leads to a change in customers behaviour and create approach behaviour through awareness of products that otherwise could be missed.

Un simulateur de conduite dynamique est un outil permettant, entre autres, d’étudier les processus d’intégration multi-sensorielle pour la perception du mouvement et la production du comportement de conduite. Néanmoins, les limitations mécaniques des simulateurs, qui imposent des stratégies dynamiques pour simuler le réel, peuvent avoir un impact défavorable sur la perception et le comportement du conducteur. Cette problématique est particulièrement vraie pour la prise de virages qui demeure une situation difficile à reproduire de façon réaliste notamment à cause des variations importantes d’accélérations latérales. Dans ce contexte, cette thèse présente des travaux de recherches permettant de mieux comprendre les processus d’intégration multi-sensorielle (rôle des informations inertielles et visuelles) pour la perception du mouvement en virages et de caractériser l’évolution d’un percept en fonction des conditions de simulation.En conclusion, il a été démontré que la perception des accélérations latérales est basée sur des processus non-linéaires. Le rôle des informations visuelles et inertielles semble donc dépendre des individus et du contexte (notamment du niveau des accélérations latérales) dans lequel ces stimulations sont produites. Sur la base de l’ensemble de ces résultats, des nouvelles pistes d’amélioration du simulateur dynamique SHERPA² de PSA sont proposées. Il est préconisé notamment d’employer un gain du mouvement latéral dégressif avec l’augmentation du niveau d’accélération latérale. / A dynamic driving simulator is a tool, among others, allowing the study of multisensory integration for motion perception and production of driving behavior. Nevertheless, the mechanical limitations of the simulators which impose dynamic strategies to simulate the real can have an adverse negative impact on the driver perception and its behavior. This issue is particularly true for cornering which remains a difficult situation to reproduce in a realistic way, because of massive lateral accelerations variations. In this context, this thesis presents research works allowing to understand the processes of multisensory integration (role of inertial and visual information) for the motion perception in cornering and to characterize the evolution of a percept as a function of simulation conditions.In conclusion, it has been demonstrated that the perception of lateral accelerations is based on non-linear processes. The roles of visual and inertial information seem to depend on the individuals and on the context (notably the level of lateral accelerations) in which these stimulations are produced. Base on of the overall results, new ways for improvement of the dynamic driving simulator SHERPA2 are proposed. It is notably preconized to employ a lateral motion gain digressive with the increase of lateral acceleration.

Thesis (BTech (Surface Design))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2010 / The purpose of this research is to generate a social outreach project by raising funds as well as getting sponsors to enhance the living environment at an institution for deaf girls. The focus is on Huis Soekie, a hostel which accommodates 17 deaf girls between the ages of 11 and 15. It is one of eight hostels situated at the De La Bat School for the Deaf in the rural town of Worcester. Frank Vodvarka and Joice Manice Malnar's work about Multi-Sensory design was used as inspiration to establish creative ways in which to enhance the living environment of institutionalized deaf girls. The living room of the hostel was chosen as focus area, since interaction among deaf people is important and the girls spend most of their time in it. To contribute to a more relaxing environment in this living room, secondary research was done on how nature together with the correct choice of colours can have a positive effect on humans' emotions. The living area of the hostel therefore has a central narrative and theme portraying nature as inspiration. All of the products that were designed for this space also incorporate elements of multi-sensory design. This type of design should be beneficial to the Deaf, because their other four senses are better developed than those of able people. This should also enhance their experience of the products.

A prática regular de exercícios físicos, no envelhecimento, mostra-se útil para trazer benefícios em todos os aspectos da vida dos idosos, e em especial, ao controle postural destes indivíduos que com a senescência, tendem a diminuir tal capacidade. O objetivo deste estudo foi verificar e analisar as alterações promovidas por dois tipos de programas de exercícios sobre o controle postural de indivíduos idosos saudáveis. O desenho do estudo foi um ensaio clínico simples-cego e aleatorizado com braços paralelos. Participaram da pesquisa 46 idosos (69,5±5,4 anos) divididos aleatoriamente em dois grupos de exercícios: multissensoriais (GMS) (com ênfase na estimulação proprioceptiva geral) e resistido (GR) (para os principais grupos musculares do corpo). As sessões de aproximadamente 1 hora de duração, ocorreram duas vezes por semana num período de 12 semanas no setor de condicionamento físico do Instituto de Medicina Física e Reabilitação (IMREA) do Hospital das Clínicas da Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade de São Paulo. A avaliação do equilíbrio dinâmico foi feita por meio do teste Timed up and go (TUG). A avaliação do equilíbrio estático, pela plataforma de força e teste de apoio unipodal. Para avaliação das atividades funcionais dependentes do controle postural, foi usada a bateria de testes de Guralnik e escala de equilíbrio funcional de Berg. Também se realizou avaliação isocinética da articulação do tornozelo. Não foram observados efeitos adversos graves. Ao verificar os testes clínicos, apenas o TUG e bateria de testes de Guralnik apresentaram melhoras significativas após a intervenção pelo GMS, sendo que somente a melhora do TUG foi significante em relação ao GR. Quanto à oscilação corporal, apenas o GMS apresentou diminuição significativa da oscilação do centro de pressão na posição unipodal com olhos abertos nos sentidos: ântero-posterior e láteromedial e o GR apresentou apenas diminuição da velocidade de deslocamento do centro de pressão neste mesmo apoio; porém não houve diferenças entre os grupos. O GR apresentou melhora do pico de torque em 3 e o GMS em 6 (dos 8 grupos musculares avaliados) grupos musculares e apenas o GMS melhorou o trabalho dos dorsiflexores e flexores plantares, porém as diferenças entre os grupos não foram significativas. Embora os resultados apresentados pelo GMS tenham sido mais expressivos do que os do GR, os resultados deste estudo permitem afirmar que somente a questão do equilíbrio dinâmico apresentada pelo GMS foi melhor do que a do GR / The practice of regular exercise in aging is helpful to bring benefits in all aspects older peoples life, especially on senescence individuals postural control that tend to reduce such capacity. The aim of this study was to verify and to analyze the changes promoted by two types of exercise programs on postural control in healthy elderly. The study design was a clinical singleblind, randomized parallel-arm. The participants were 46 older (69.5 ± 5.4 years) and were randomly divided into two exercises groups: multi-sensory (GMS) (with emphasis on general proprioceptive stimulation) and resistance (GR) (for the major muscle groups of the body). The sessions of approximately 1 hour long, occurred twice a week over 12 weeks in the fitness department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Institute (IMREA) of the Faculty of Medicine Hospital, University of Sao Paulo. The evaluation of dynamic balance was made by means of the Timed up and go (TUG). The evaluation of static balance, the force platform and one-leg-stance test support. To evaluate the functional activities dependent on the postural control, we used the battery of tests Guralnik battery and balance scale of Berg. We also held isokinetic evaluation of the ankle joint. There were no serious adverse effects. By checking the trials, only the TUG and battery of tests Guralnik present significant improvements after the intervention by the GMS, and only the improvement of the TUG was significant in relation to GR. Relate to the body sway, only GMS was significantly decreased from the displacement of center of pressure in one-leg position with eyes open in the directions: anteroposterior and lateromedial and GR showed only slowing the rate of displacement of center of pressure in this same support, but not were no differences between groups. The GR showed improvement in peak torque at 3 and GMS in 6 (of 8 muscle groups evaluated) muscle groups and only the GMS has improved the work of the dorsal and plantar flexors, but the differences between the groups were not significant. Although the results presented by the GMS have been more significant than the GR, the results of this study have revealed that only the issue of dynamic balance presented by GMS was better than the GR

This thesis project aims to bring together knowledge and methods from embodied interaction design in order to help architects expand their current repertoire of sketching tools and methods. As argued by Bernard Tschumi (1996) and Juhani Pallasmaa (2012), architecture is a sight-dominated design field, and architects are faced with the paradox of having to design embodied, multisensory experiences with visual means and from a disembodied perspective.  Situated in the genre of physical computing, the outcome of this thesis is the prototype of a sensor-based tool for sketching with sound and kinesthesia. The prototype is primarily targeted to architects, but may also be of interest to professionals from other fields who are involved in space-making, such as interaction designers, artists, scenographers, and interior designers, among others. The findings of this thesis intend to contribute to the field of interaction design, and especially the subfield of embodied interaction. This thesis addresses the aforementioned problem domain, which was first identified when I practiced the profession of architecture, and then further understood during this project, namely during literature review and user research. Building upon three main areas of theory, this project finds its grounding in embodied interaction theory, phenomenological concepts, as well as a contemporary view of the soma as a united self of mind and body. Fieldwork was a very important part of the process, and methods such as interviews, surveys, and cultural proves were employed to ground the project in user research. Ideation mainly consisted of sketching with embodied methods. Lastly, the user testing of a Wizard-of-Oz prototype was essential in assessing and evaluating the final design.

This thesis is concerned with the recent trends within church gatherings where it is reported that there are growing numbers of 15-35 year olds missing from many evangelical churches. This is the generation commonly labelled as postmodern, and is even associated with the most up to date reaction of post-post modernism. The startling facts around this missing generation are explored in this thesis. This investigation looks at the present status of church services (Chapter 2) where the research identifies this problem of attendance of the younger generation at church gatherings, as well as the danger of the irrelevance of the church in its postmodern context. From here the study moves to suggest the basis of authority (Chapter 3), which is the biblical model for church gatherings. Once this foundation is established we move to detect the specific gaps between the current status (Chapter 4) and the biblical model. This leaves the application (Chapter 5) of what the church needs to do to get back to the original scriptural shape, and to be relevant to the postmodern era in which it finds itself. Due to the nature of the topic, the thesis discusses the characteristics of emerging generations, and what it means to be relevant to postmodern society in the way that a church gathering worships, preaches and styles itself. Other elements of liturgy are examined, such as the Lord’s Supper. In this manner, this thesis moves the reader to a point where they are able to see that the church at large needs to make some drastic changes to the way that it designs its gatherings. The author is careful to show that being relevant to culture is an endless quest, and that church leaders are wise to understand that this pursuit must be secondary to the main issue of seeking Jesus Christ and sticking to the power of the unchanging gospel. This must come before trendy worship music, flashy lights, big loud sound systems and professionally designed web pages. All these are simply smoke and no flames if the church is simply passionate about the superficial surface stylistic features of its gatherings. Therefore, in moving towards relevant church services for the postmodern era, the author takes the reader on a journey where he encourages the church to take some bold steps into adapting and “redesigning the packaging” of Christian ministry in church gatherings. Church meetings cannot just be about being social, creative and communal. They must be defined by the biblical framework that calls for a spiritual gathering of believers that come to worship together as God ordained, to participate in a reverent, powerful, experiential, participative, creative, multi-sensory meeting where they meet with God. / Dissertation (MA(Theol))--University of Pretoria, 2009. / Practical Theology / unrestricted

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This study explores the musical practice of designing a soundscape with the theoretical and methodological starting points of world building and soundscape ecology. Artistically, this exploration consists of the creation of three recordings each one portraying different narratives within the imagined and designed environment with theme of Human impact on the Swedish forest’s biodiversity. Methods and theories of world building elements are used to conceptualize the environment, while the approaches of soundscape ecology are used to portray this conceptualization during the recording process and when analyzing the results. The music was co-created in the studio through improvisation and the use of what I call multi- sensory material. The improvisational and material practice stemmed from my focus on the interrelationship between the conceptualized environment and the physical studio environment. A collaborative effort was made to portray and explore the sonic possibilities of the environment by evoking associations and reflections on the ecological interaction, meaning that between organisms and their environment. The purpose of this study is to examine the experience and value of designing a soundscape with world building and soundscape ecology as theoretical and methodological starting points. I believe many music creators hear their music as soundscapes and I want to contribute with knowledge to this phenomenon by theorizing the elements that compose a dynamic soundscape. The name of the thesis “Hearing the Forest for the Trees” is a reference to the idiomatic expression “seeing the forest for the trees”, meaning missing the greater picture by focusing too much on details. The expression relates to the knowledge gained in this project regarding the importance of conceptualizing the soundscape’s environment in order to create sound interaction with intention, and getting a wider perspective on how to design a rich sounding soundscape. / Denna uppsats utforskar den musikaliska praktiken i att designa ett ljudlandskap med teoretiska och metodologiska utgångspunkter från världsbyggande och ljudlandskapsekologi. Konstnärligt består detta utforskande av skapandet av tre inspelningar som var och en porträtterar olika berättelser inom den tänkta och designade miljön med temat: mänsklig påverkan på den svenska skogens biologiska mångfald. Metoder och teorier för världsbyggande används för att konceptualisera miljön, medan ljudlandskapsekologi används för att skildra denna konceptualisering under inspelning och senare analys. Musiken skapades tillsammans med musikerna genom improvisation och användandet av multisensoriskt material i studion. Improvisations- och materialpraktiken grundades ur mitt fokus på förhållandet mellan den konceptualiserade miljön och den fysiska studiomiljön. Genom samarbete skildrades och utforskades miljöns ljudmöjligheter genom att väcka associationer och reflektioner kring den ekologiska interaktionen, dvs den mellan organismer och deras miljö. Mitt huvudsakliga syfte i detta projekt är att utforska upplevelsen av och värdet i att designa ett ljudlandskap med världsbyggande och ljudlandskapsekologiska teorier och metoder som utgångspunkter. Jag tror att många musiker och producenter ser på sin musik som ljudlandskap och jag vill bidra med kunskap till detta fenomen genom att teoretisera de element som utgör ett ljudlandskap. Namnet på uppsatsen "Höra skogen för alla träd" är en referens till det idiomatiska uttrycket ”inte se skogen för alla träd”, vilket betyder att missa helhetsbilden genom att fokusera för mycket på detaljer. Uttrycket relaterar till den kunskap som erhållits i detta projekt om vikten av att konceptualisera ett ljudlandskaps miljö för att skapa ljudinteraktion med intention, och få ett bredare perspektiv på att designa ett rikt ljudlandskap.

This study examines the effects of the Breakthrough to Literacy (BTL) reading program on first grade African American males in two urban elementary schools in southeastern Virginia. The BTL computer enhanced reading program includes computer assisted instruction as a major component that research from the National Reading Panel (NRP) indicates is beneficial in the education of African American males (NRP, 2000). This is a comparative study utilizing quantitative methodology to report the reading outcomes of African American males in grade one and their teacher's perceptions of the BTL program. The study measures reading outcomes as well as teachers' perceptions of the BTL program. The treatment group consisted of the first grade populations from schools A and B who received the BTL treatment in kindergarten (2006-2007) and first grade (2007-2008). The treatment group was compared to schools C and D, the control group, who received the BTL treatment in kindergarten (2006-2007) only. The data were gathered to determine if there were mean gains from the treatment and control groups through pre and posttests. Frequency, mean, and standard deviation were calculated for each variable. Inferential statistics were used to determine mean differences and comparisons among both groups' reading results. To determine if there was a difference in the reading outcomes of African American males who received the BTL treatment as compared to other racial/ethnic groups and gender, ANOVAs were utilized. Overall results indicated higher level performance by the treatment group. The study also incorporated survey methodology to determine the utility of the BTL program on first grade students in the year 2007-2008 from a teacher's perspective. The teachers in the BTL treatment group were administered the Children's Software Evaluation Instrument Surveys (Children's Software Revue, 2008). Out of a 5-point Likert scale, teachers rated the overall value of the BTL program as good (Overall rating 4.0). The teachers also gave overall ratings of good (4.0) and excellent (5.0) in the following areas: Childproof; Ease of Use; Entertaining; Design Feature; and Educational. / Ph. D.