The research addresses current shortcomings of autonomous service robots operating in domestic environments by considering the concept of a semi-autonomous robot that would be supported by human remote operators whenever the robot cannot handle a task autonomously. The main research objective was to investigate how to design the human-robot interaction for a robotic system to assist elderly people with physical tasks at home according to this conceptual idea. The research procedure followed the principles of human-centered design and is structured into four phases: In the first phase, the context of use of the system to be designed was determined. A focus group study yielded characteristics and attitudes of several potential user groups. A survey determined the demands of elderly people and informal caregivers for services a semiautonomous assistive robot may provide. An ethnographic study investigated the living conditions of elderly people and determined technical challenges for robots operating in this type of environment. Another ethnographic study investigated the work environment in teleassistive service centers and determined the feasibility of extending their range of services to incorporate robotic teleassistance. In the second phase, two studies were carried out to understand the interaction requirements. The first study determined common types of failure of current autonomous robots and required human interventions to resolve such failure states. The second study investigated how the human assistance could be provided considering a range of potential interaction devices. In the third phase, a human-robot interaction concept with three user groups and dedicated user interfaces was designed. The concept and user interfaces were refined in an iterative process based on the results of evaluations with prospective users and received encouraging results for user satisfaction and user experience. In the fourth and final phase the utility of two specific user interface features was investigated experimentally. The first experiment investigated the utility of providing remote operators with global 3D environment maps during robot navigation and identified beneficial usage scenarios. The second experiment investigated the utility of stereoscopic display for remote manipulation and robot navigation. Results suggested temporal advantages under stereoscopic display for one of three investigated task types and potential advantages for the other two. / Forskningen behandlar problem med autonoma robotar som agerar i hemmiljö. Specifikt studeras konceptet semi-autonoma robotar, vilket innebär att robotarna stöds av mänskliga operatörer när de inte klarar uppgifter på egen hand. Syftet med forskningen är att undersöka design av människa-robotinteraktion för robotsystem som stöder äldres behov av hjälp med fysiska uppgifter i hemmiljö. Forskningen är användarcentrerad och har strukturerats i fyra faser: I den första fasen undersöktes användarkontexten för systemet. I en fokusgruppsstudie utforskades karakteristika och attityder för flera potentiella användargrupper. Kraven på en semi-autonom robot för att assistera äldre och informella vårdgivare fastställdes. En enkätstudie undersökte levnadsvillkor hos äldre för att utforska tekniska utmaningar dessa omgivningar ställer på robotar. En etnografisk studie undersökte arbetskontexten på servicecenter för teleassistans och undersökte genomförbarhet i att utöka tjänsteutbudet till att även inkludera teleassisterade robotar. I den andra fasen utfördes två studier för att få kunskap om interaktionskrav. Den första studien fastställde vanliga typer av fel som inträffar med nuvarande typer av autonoma robotar och de typer av mänsklig assistans som krävs för att hantera dessa fel. Den andra studien undersökte hur mänsklig assistans kan utformas givet en repertoar av potentiella interaktionsanordningar. I den tredje fasen utformades ett interaktionskoncept för människa-robot interaktionen för tre användargrupper med dedicerade gränssnitt. Koncepten och användargränssnitten förfinades i en iterativ process baserat på resultat från utvärderingar med tänkta användare, och resulterade i uppmuntrande resultat vad gäller användarnas uppskattning och tillfredsställelse. I den fjärde och sista fasen studerades nyttan hos två specifika gränssnitt experimentellt. Det första experimentet undersökte nyttan med att ge operatörer på distans globala 3D-kartor under robotnavigeringen och identifierade användarscenarier där detta kan utnyttjas. Det andra experimentet undersökte nyttan med en stereoskopisk display för att manipulera och navigera roboten på distans. Resultaten visar på temporala fördelar med stereoskopisk display för en av tre undersökta uppgiftstyper och potentiella fördelar för de andra två.

SARAs have been established to achieve dual objectives of improving efficiency and controlling corruption in tax administrations. Key question for this research include: why some SARAs have failed to effectively control opportunities for corruption and what should be done about it? To explore these questions, this thesis has set out an Anti-Corruption SARA Framework. The novel contribution of this thesis lies in developing the new lens (analytical framework) which causes us to see the topic of SARAs against corruption quite differently (due to differentiating between motivations and opportunities for corruption). In order to analyze the validity of the framework, a two-staged analysis of SARAs, labelled as the macro and micro analysis, was conducted for SARAs and Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) in Pakistan. In the macro level of analysis (through secondary literature analysis), it was found that SARAs made partial progress to control corruption by focusing more on controlling motivations for corruption (through personnel autonomy) and lesser focus on controlling opportunities for corruption (through effective accountability). In the micro analysis (through semi-structured interviews and secondary literature), it was found that FBR remained ineffective in controlling both motivations and opportunities for corruption despite focusing more on controlling motivations for corruption (through personnel autonomy) and lesser focus on controlling opportunities for corruption (through effective accountability). In both macro and micro analyses, continued interference from Ministries of Finance (MoF) was found to undermine not only effective accountability for SARAs and FBR, but also undermining control of opportunities for corruption. Findings of both macro and macro level of analysis resulted in three main recommendations. These findings pointed towards a recommendation of reforming SARAs into an organizational form which is far more disaggregated from the parent ministry, such that SARAs have no accountability link with MoFs in the presence of other effective oversight bodies. It is recommended that SARA countries should develop this understanding about importance of balancing both autonomy and accountability mechanisms to be fully effective against corruption for controlling both motivations and opportunities for corruption. Thirdly, research findings point towards a case of converting FBR into a SARA in the form of Pakistan Revenue Authority, such that it is free from any direct oversight by the MoF, and in contrast should be subjected to effective oversight by other oversight bodies, such as already existing Cabinet Committee for Federal Revenue.

No description available.

The introduction of autonomous vehicles in traffic is driven by expected gains in multiple areas, such as improvement of health and safety, better resource utilization, pollution reduction and greater convenience. The development of more competent algorithms will determine the rate and level of success for the ambitions around autonomous vehicles. In this thesis work an intersection management system for a mix of autonomous and manually driven vehicles is created. The purpose is to investigate the strategy to combine turn intention prediction for manually driven vehicles with scheduling of autonomous vehicle. The prediction method used is support vector machine (SVM) and scheduling of vehicles have been made by dividing the intersection into an occupancy grid and apply different safety levels. Real-life data comprising recordings of large volumes of traffic through an intersection has been combined with simulated vehicles to assess the relevance of the new algorithms. Measurements of collision rate and traffic flow showed that the algorithms behaved as expected. A miniature vehicle based on a prototype for an autonomous RC-car has been designed with the purpose of testing of the algorithms in a laboratory setting. / Införandet av autonoma fordon i trafiken drivs av förväntade vinster i flera områden, såsom förbättring av hälsa och säkerhet, bättre resursutnyttjande, minskning av föroreningar och ökad bekvämlighet. Utvecklingen av mer kompetenta algoritmer kommer att bestämma hastigheten och nivån på framgång för ambitionerna kring autonoma fordon. I detta examensarbete skapas ett korsningshanteringssystem för en blandning av autonoma och självkörande bilar. Syftet är att undersöka strategin att kombinera prediktion av hur manuellt styrda bilar kommer att svänga med att schemalägga autonoma bilar utifrån detta. Prediktionsmetoden som använts är support vector machine (SVM) och schemaläggning av bilar har gjorts genom att dela upp korsningen i ett occupancy grid och tillämpa olika säkerhetsmarginaler. Verklig data från inspelningar av stora volymer trafik genom en korsning har kombinerats med simulerade fordon för att bedöma relevansen av de nya algoritmerna. Mätningar av kollisioner och trafikflöde visade att algoritmerna uppträdde som förväntat. Ett miniatyrfordon baserat på en prototyp av en självkörande radiostyrd bil har tagits fram i syfte att testa algoritmerna i laboratoriemiljö.

This thesis called 'Socio-Pedagogical Assistance to Partially-Autonomous Patients and to Their Families" (as conducted at GARC Kladno, s.r.o.). aims to map the health and social situation of partially-autonomous patients (hereafter PAP) as a result of a chronic condition, a disability or geriatric conditions in the context of their actual living environment. The theoretical part deals with health and social challenges confronted by PAP focusing on social and individual rehabilitation in conducting daily life. It is divided into five parts. Part One describes health issues faced by PAP with emphasis on particular issues which affect this group. Part Two defines the basic terminology of disability and autonomy.Through work experience it was possible to provide first-hand observation of particular issues which affect this group, e.g. physical disability as a factor limiting autonomy. Both subjective and objective observations of this group can weigh heavily on the value of the outcome. Part Three places PAP in his environment and at the same time evaluates the role of the family members and various services available to PAP under the Social Services Act No. 108/2008 Coll. Part Four looks into rehabilitation services available to PAP and other assistance available to them. Particular methodologies...

<div><p>A variety of passenger car-trailer connections exist on the market. One specific type of the connections provides a tensile force measurement capability for the purpose of providing feedback for the semi-autonomous trailer’s control system. Semi-autonomous trailer is an innovative technology that can encourage drivers to use smaller vehicles for towing, which will contribute to restoration and improvement of urban infrastructure (NAE Grand Challenges for Engineering, 2020). The vehicle-semi-autonomous trailer connection’s safety concerns depend on multiple factors, but start with either a mechanical, or an electrical failure. The topic of safety of passenger car-semi-autonomous trailer connections is not well present in literature. The connections’ mechanical failures under load are in the focus of this work. The author addressed the following research question and the sub question. How do the existing “passenger car-trailer” connections with tensile force measurement capability compare to one another under load in terms of the possible failure? What is the failure mode of each of the compared connections? The author selected three prototypes from the literature, built three-dimensional (3D) models in SolidWorks 2018 and simulated the tests in the program’s add-on in accordance with the requirements of an industry standard on real-life testing of specific vehicle systems. The author compared the three prototypes by a number of different parameters. The research showed that none of the three existing prototypes are public road-ready in terms of safety. The study can be useful for future designers of passenger-car-semi-autonomous trailer connections.</p></div>