This dissertation describes the development and optimisation of a set of touchscreen tasks for the assessment of motivation and reinforcement processes in mice. Changes in motivational state and reinforcement sensitivity are characteristic of depressive symptoms in a number of neuropsychiatric and neurodegenerative conditions. However, the efficacy of current therapeutic strategies is limited. Thus, the development of methods for studying these processes is important both to facilitate investigation of underlying mechanisms and subsequently develop targeted therapeutics. Part 1 describes the optimisation and application of fixed and progressive ratio tasks for the assessment of motivational state in mice. First, a comparison of multiple reinforcers under fixed and progressive ratio schedules is described. Given the limitations of performance measures derived from performance across the entire session, these experiments are complemented by the use of response rate analysis, which reveals dissociations between standard measures and rate of responding. Next, these tasks are applied to a model of maternal high fat diet (hfd), revealing selective alterations in motivated behaviour. Finally, the motivational state of the TgR406W mouse model of frontotemporal dementia, a condition frequently characterised by depressive symptoms, is investigated. It is shown that the motivational state of TgR406W mice is age dependent, with apparent early apathy-like behaviour and a late disinhibition in responding. This is accompanied by deficits in attentional performance as measured by a 3-choice serial reaction time task. Thus, part 1 demonstrates the applicability of the battery of touchscreen tasks for assessment of motivation to diverse mouse models. Part 2 describes the development and validation of touchscreen tasks for the assessment of reinforcement-related choice in mice. First, it is demonstrated that C57BL/6 mice systematically discount a preferred reinforcer in a delay discounting procedure. Subsequently, choice behaviour is modified by systemic treatment of dopaminergic drugs and a reinforcer pre-feeding procedure. Next, procedures for the assessment of learning and choice, dependent on the integration of positive and negative feedback, are described. Specifically, the valence-probe visual-discrimination (VPVD) task is an adapted version of the standard visual discrimination with the addition of a probabilistic stimulus that is reinforced 50% of the time. This modification allows for assessment of the impact of positive and negative feedback on discrimination learning. In addition, a spatial within-session probabilistic reversal learning procedure was adapted for the touchscreen apparatus. The effect of serotonin 2C receptor manipulation on these tasks is presented. Serotonin 2C receptor antagonism is shown to disrupt discrimination learning and result in diminished sensitivity to positive feedback. Conversely, 2C receptor agonism results in changes in feedback sensitivity consistent with heightened sensitivity to positive feedback and diminished sensitivity to negative feedback. Taken together, these results show that these tasks can be used to interrogate reinforcement-related behavioural profiles in experimental mice. Finally, the implications of these tasks with respect to investigation of motivation, reinforcement sensitivity and adaptive decision-making in rodent models, and their relevance to MDD in humans is discussed.

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This is a research focusing on stimulating the comfort and safety when it comes to payment for travelling with the trains and the busses in the Swedish county Skane. The question at the issue is; can we create a system that doesn’t require the responsibility of carrying a particular tool? Can we give the passengers the possibility to control their accounts to register in a more independent way than today with Skanetrafiken? And can this be done by using fingerprint technology? My goal is mainly to observe today’s monthly and discount-card system in Skane and around the world, discover the disadvantages and design a new system as solution. The new payment system is called SmartExpress. It involves fingerprint recognition and will hopefully fit in today’s technology and have useful possibilities that will come in handy for the next generations.

This research was part of a program sponsored by the Army Electronics Research and Development Command. The program goals are to develop a generic input/output device based on a 4- x 8-in electroluminescent flat panel display coupled with a touch sensitive input device. The primary purpose of this dissertation was to evaluate the six major manufacturers' implementation of the three most common technologies for touch screens. The evaluation was based on operator performance. The three technologies represented in the research were IR beam matrix switches, conductive membrane switches, and transparent capacitance switches. A secondary goal of the research was to establish a link between measurable hardware parameters of any touch sensitive device (TSO) and operator performance. These parameters were then used to build models of operator performance under a variety of conditions. The primary goal of technology evaluation was approached through two experiments based on two generic types of tasks typical of current and expected TSD applications. These experiments compared six different TSDs from different manufacturers across varying conditions of lighting, viewing angle, and touch target dimensions. The secondary goal of TSD performance modeling was accomplished through careful measurement of many image quality and touch sensing characteristics of the six TSDs and subsequent construction of stepwise linear regression models of user performance. These models were built using the performance data collected in the first part of the evaluation. Results from the performance comparison revealed that across tasks and conditions, one device of the IR beam technology was found to be the best performer. Another device of the same technology was equivalent in reading aspects of performance but inferior with respect to touch inputting performance. This performance difference was hypothesized to be due to differences between these two devices in touch sensor parallax. The linear regression modeling effort resulted in the identification of several hardware parameters which are important to TSD user performance. Additionally, models of performance under specific conditions were developed which accounted for most of the variation observed in the performance data. / Ph. D.

Users are often frustrated when a touch screen monitor inaccurately records their touches. Enlarging touch sensitive regions improves touch accuracy, but few specific guidelines are available in the literature. A controlled field experiment determined the effect of target location and visual target size on user accuracy and empirically derived quantitative guidelines for determining touch target size based. on target location. The experiment was conducted in a grocery store using a piezo-electric monitor in a public access kiosk. Participants pressed the screen as target squares appeared one at a time. Visual target size, horizontal viewing location, and screen sector of target were varied. X and Y offset between the target center and the touch location were recorded. Results showed Significant differences caused by target sector in X offsets among columns and in Y offsets among rows, but no differences caused by target size. Results showed that persons tended to touch below the target, with touch distance increasing as the location of the target moved down the screen. To a lesser extent, persons tended to touch toward the sides of the screen. Using collected data for each of nine screen sectors, graphs were prepared showing the relationship between touch target size and expected accuracy under harsh conditions. These empirically derived, quantitative guidelines will help designers plan for the worst case and create screens that decrease user errors and frustration. / Master of Science

Submitted by Sandra Pereira (srpereira@ufrrj.br) on 2016-10-19T12:48:57Z No. of bitstreams: 1 2016 - Alexandre Rodrigues de Assis.pdf: 4979327 bytes, checksum: 5e0ad89b3f3293076de6fcf16e11f879 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-10-19T12:48:57Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 2016 - Alexandre Rodrigues de Assis.pdf: 4979327 bytes, checksum: 5e0ad89b3f3293076de6fcf16e11f879 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015-11-30 / The continuous and accentuated development of the digital technologies has provided challenging situations in the educational field. In this context, the use of mobile devices can represent a beneficial time for reflections on the creation of favorable environments for mathematical learning. Particularly the touchscreen devices can contribute to the formation of a new learning space. This research aimed to design, implement and analyze isometries activities using tablet on an ongoing teachers training - in Normal Mode - in Middle Level. The research with characteristics of Design was guided by the following questions: i) how are the touchscreen performances in the resolution of the proposed tasks?; and ii) how do the students handle doing rotations in GeoGebra touch and in Geometric Constructer? As data collection instruments were used (a) researcher records, (b) students' records for the proposed activities, (c) icons sheet, (d) recording audio and video, and (e) recording of touches made in tablet screen using Screen Recorder Pro. The study field was conducted with 10 students of the 1st year in a public school in the metropolitan region of Rio de Janeiro. Besides theoretical reflections we conducted the analysis of episodes that emerged from implementations with GeoGebra touch and Geometric Constructer. By a survey with characteristics of Design and marked theoretical referential in vigotskianas conceptions, we conducted theoretical reflections about the gestures and touchscreen manipulation and we illustrate the analysis of interactions that emerged from implementations with GeoGebra touch and Geometric Constructer. The results indicate that the use of tablets, linked to the development of tasks considering the specificities of the software contributes to the construction of mathematical concepts and cognitive development. The analysis also revealed that touchscreen manipulation contributed to perform rotations using two or three fingers and performances that refer to the composition of isometric transformations, providing the (re)construction of meanings. / O cont?nuo e acentuado desenvolvimento das tecnologias digitais tem propiciado situa??es desafiadoras no ?mbito educacional. Nesse ?mbito, o uso de aparatos m?veis pode representar um momento prof?cuo para reflex?es sobre a cria??o de ambientes favor?veis ao aprendizado matem?tico. Particularmente, os dispositivos touchscreen podem contribuir para a constitui??o de um novo espa?o de aprendizagem. Esta pesquisa teve como objetivos elaborar, implementar e analisar atividades de isometrias, utilizando tablet, em um curso de forma??o de professores - na Modalidade Normal - em N?vel M?dio. A pesquisa com caracter?sticas de Design foi orientada pelos seguintes questionamentos: i) como s?o as performances de touchscreen na resolu??o das tarefas propostas?; e ii) como os discentes manipulam fazendo rota??es no GeoGebra touch e no Construtor Geom?trico? Como instrumentos de coleta de dados foram utilizados (a) registros do pesquisador, (b) registros dos alunos para as atividades propostas, (c) folha de ?cones, (d) grava??es em ?udio e em v?deo, e (e) grava??o dos toques realizados na tela do tablet utilizando Screen Recorder Pro. O trabalho de campo foi desenvolvido com 10 alunos do 1? ano em uma escola p?blica estadual da regi?o metropolitana no Rio de Janeiro. Al?m de reflex?es te?ricas realizamos a an?lise de epis?dios que emergiram de implementa??es com o GeoGebra touch e Construtor Geom?trico. Mediante uma pesquisa com caracter?sticas de Design e referencial te?rico balizado em concep??es vigotskianas, realizamos reflex?es te?ricas acerca dos gestos e manipula??es touchscreen e ilustramos a an?lise de intera??es que emergiram de implementa??es com o GeoGebra touch e Construtor Geom?tricor. Os resultados indicam que o uso de tablets, vinculada ? elabora??o de tarefas considerando as especificidades do software, contribui para constru??o de conceitos matem?ticos e desenvolvimento cognitivo. As an?lises tamb?m revelaram que manipula??es touchscreen contribuiram para realizar rota??es utilizando dois ou tr?s dedos e performances que remetem ? composi??o de transforma??es isom?tricas, propiciando a (re)elabora??o de significados

The touchscreen user interface is an inherently dynamic device that is becoming ubiquitous. The touchscreen’s ability to adapt to the user’s needs makes it superior to more traditional haptic devices in many ways. Most touchscreen devices come with a very large array of sensors already included in the package. This gives engineers the means to develop human-machine interfaces that are very intuitive to use. This thesis presents research that was done to develop a best touchscreen interface for driving an industrial crane for novice users. To generalize the research, testing also determined how touchscreen interfaces compare to the traditional joystick in highly dynamic tracking situations using a manual tracking experiment. Three separate operator studies were conducted to investigate touchscreen control of cranes. The data indicates that the touchscreen interfaces are superior to the traditional push-button control pendent and that the layout and function of the graphical user interface on the touchscreen plays a roll in the performance of the human operators. The touchscreen interface also adds great promise for allowing users to navigate through interactive textbooks. Therefore, this thesis also presents developments directed at creating the next generation of engineering textbooks. Nine widgets were developed for an interactive mechanical design textbook that is meant to be delivered via tablet computers. Those widgets help students improve their technical writing abilities, introduce them to tools they can use in product development, as well as give them knowledge in how some dynamical systems behave. In addition two touchscreen applications were developed to aid the judging of a mechanical design competition.

ITC/USA 2009 Conference Proceedings / The Forty-Fifth Annual International Telemetering Conference and Technical Exhibition / October 26-29, 2009 / Riviera Hotel & Convention Center, Las Vegas, Nevada / Telemetry data recorders are not immune to the effects that a number of disruptive technologies have had on the telemetry industry. Data recorder designs today make use of data buses, storage types and graphical user interfaces that are constantly evolving based on the advances of personal computer and consumer electronics technologies. Many of these recorders use embedded designs that integrate disruptive technologies such as PCI Express for realtime data and signal processing, SATA interfaces for data storage and touchscreen technologies to provide an intuitive operator interface. Solid state drives also play a larger role in the latest recorder designs. This paper will explore the effects of these technologies on the latest telemetry recorders in terms of the benefits to the users, cost of implementation, obsolescence management, and integration considerations. The implications of early adoption of disruptive technologies will also be reviewed.

Au cours de la dernière décennie, les écrans tactiles sont devenus un standard des interfaces homme-machine. Cependant, malgré leurs nombreux atouts, ils manquent encore de sensations tactiles : quelque soit le contenu visuel, ils restent plats, lisses, rigides et immobiles sous le doigt. Dans cet ouvrage, nous examinons les moyens permettant aux écrans tactiles de nous toucher en retour, et de produire des sensations tactiles variées associées à des images. Premièrement, nous proposons un nouveau format de données haptiques qui fournit une description haptique générique d'un objet virtuel indépendamment de la technologie de rendu. Ce format est destiné à s’intégrer aisément dans les processus de création de contenu audiovisuel, et à être facilement manipulé par des non-spécialistes dans des contextes multidisciplinaires. Ensuite, nous abordons le challenge de produire des sensations haptiques variées avec une complexité technique limitée, grâce à notre nouvelle approche appelée "KinesTouch". Nous proposons en particulier un nouvel effet de frottement basé sur des déplacements latéraux augmentant ou diminuant la vitesse de glissement entre le doigt et l'écran. Enfin, nous présentons "Touchy", une méthode appliquant les principes pseudo-haptiques aux interactions sur écran tactile. Nous proposons un ensemble d'effets pseudo-haptiques traduisant visuellement des propriétés telles que de la rugosité, de la rigidité ou du frottement par les vibrations, les déformations et la trajectoire d'un curseur circulaire affiché sous le doigt de l'utilisateur. Nous appliquons également ces effets à des scènes 3D et traitons des différences entre les méthodes de rendu de contenu 2D ou 3D. / Touchscreens have largely spread out over the last decade and have become one of the most ordinary human-machine interface. However, despite their many assets, touchscreens still lack of tactile sensations: they always feel flat, smooth, rigid and static under the finger, no matter the visual content. In this work, we investigate how to provide touchscreens with the means to touch us and express a variety of image-related haptic features. We first propose a new format for haptic data which provides a generic haptic description of a virtual object without prior knowledge on display hardware. This format is meant to be seamlessly integrated in audiovisual content creation workflows, and to be easily manipulated by non-experts in multidisciplinary contexts. Then, we address the challenge of providing a diversity of haptic sensations with lightweight actuation, with the novel approach called “KinesTouch”. We propose in particular a novel friction effect based on large lateral motion that increases or diminishes the sliding velocity between the finger and the screen. Finally, we introduce “Touchy”, a method to apply pseudo-haptic principles to touchscreen interactions. We present a set of pseudo-haptic effects which evoke haptic properties like roughness, stiffness or friction through the vibrations, stretches, dilatations and compressions of a ring-shaped cursor displayed under the user’s finger. We extend these effects to 3D scenes, and discuss the differences between 2D and 3D content enhancement.

O presente trabalho buscou investigar as contribuições da utilização de tecnologias touchscreen para o desenvolvimento do pensamento matemático. Mais especificamente, propôs uma investigação de singularidades no desenvolvimento dos hábitos do pensamento em atividades de Modelagem Geométrica implementadas a partir do uso da tecnologia touchscreen. No que se refere ao desenvolvimento de hábitos do pensamento, propostos por Paul Goldenberg, é entendido como uma ação que contribui diretamente para o desenvolvimento do pensamento matemático. A escolha de trabalhar com Modelagem Geométrica é explorada neste trabalho com a finalidade de possibilitar aos sujeitos envolvidos o estudo de fenômenos reais a partir do uso de ferramentas matemáticas. Quanto à interação touchscreen, nos baseamos na teoria da Cognição Corporificada que parte do princípio de que corpo e mente estão diretamente relacionados, ou seja, no gesto com a mão os estudantes tornam evidentes as suas intenções e pensamentos. Para realização da pesquisa, a metodologia escolhida foi o estudo de casos múltiplos (dois), mas com apenas uma unidade de análise. Configura um estudo exploratório, em virtude da escassez de estudos na área por tratar-se da integração de uma nova tecnologia ao ensino Como suporte tecnológico, a escolha pelo Sketchometry, software de geometria dinâmica disponível para smartphones, se justifica, visto que este possui um importante destaque no desenvolvimento da proposta de pesquisa, uma vez que, através do seu uso, é possível que os sujeitos elaborem e construam modelos geométricos de forma corporificada (interação touchscreen), o que é uma ação necessária para a compreensão do fenômeno investigado. Ao final da tese, mostramos que, no uso da tecnologia touchscreen, é possível identificar singularidades no desenvolvimento do pensamento do sujeito. Notou-se que a singularidade no desenvolvimento do pensamento está no início da implementação de um modelo geométrico. O aluno segue um caminho guiado por movimentos espontâneos e, desta forma, estabelece a construção e funcionamento de seu modelo. / The present work has aimed to investigate the contributions of the use of touchscreen technologies for the development of mathematical thinking. More specifically, it has proposed an investigation of singularities in the development of habits of thought in Geometric Modeling activities implemented through the use of touchscreen technology. With regard to the development of habits of thought, proposed by Paul Goldenberg, it is understood as an action that contributes directly to the development of mathematical thinking. The choice of working with Geometric Modeling has been explored in this work with the purpose of enabling the subjects involved to study real phenomena that can be investigated, assimilated and better understood from the use of mathematical tools. As for the touchscreen interaction, the work was based on the theory of Embodied Cognition which assumes that body and mind are directly related, which means that, students make evident their intentions and thoughts in gesture with the hand. The methodology chosen to carry out the research was the study of multiple cases (two), but with only one unit of analysis. The study has benn configured as an exploratory one, due to the scarcity of studies in the area, since it is the integration of a new technology in teaching As technological support, the choice of Sketchometry, dynamic geometry software available for smartphones, has been justified, because it has an important emphasis in the development of the research proposal, since, through its use, it is possible for the individuals to elaborate and construct geometric models of an embodied form (touchscreen interaction), which is a necessary action for the understanding of the investigated phenomenon. At the end of the thesis, it has been shown that it is possible to identify singularities in the development of the subject's thinking in the use of touchscreen technology. It has been noted that the uniqueness in the development of thought is at the beginning of the implementation of a geometric model. The student follows a path guided by spontaneous movements and establishes the construction and functioning of his/her model.