Auditory alarm annoyance plagues clinicians, which results in alarms desensitization and ultimately affects patient care. Contributing to this problem are the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) 60601-1-8 alarms, a standardized set of melodic alarms used to convey information to clinicians in intensive care units. By design, IEC alarms employ flat amplitude (i.e., amplitude invariant) envelopes and are not reflective of naturally occurring sounds with percussive amplitude (i.e., decaying) envelopes. We present a series of three experiments evaluating the effect of amplitude envelope manipulation (i.e., incorporating percussive envelope) on memory and annoyance in IEC alarms synthesized using pure tones (experiment 1), complex tones (experiment 2) and assessing annoyance pre and post memory assessment (experiment 3). For the memory assessment, participants were assigned to learn either the flat alarms or percussive alarms. During the memory assessment, participants were informed of the alarm–referent pairings (study phase), practised identifying alarms (training phase), had a short break, and tested on their ability to identify alarms (evaluation phase). The annoyance assessment was a two alternative forced choice task where participants identified which alarm they perceived to be more annoying from a pair of alarms differing in either envelope-type or alarm-type. Across all experiments there was no difference in alarm learnability between those learning either flat or percussive alarms during the memory assessment. Annoyance assessments revealed that all participants chose the flat alarms to be more annoying than the percussive alarms, independent of the memory assessment condition. These results showcase the potential of using percussive alarms to reduce alarm annoyance without harming learnability, a cost-efficient manipulation. / Thesis / Master of Science (MSc) / Alarms in intensive care units are perceived as annoying, ultimately negatively affecting both clinicians and patients. These alarms are mandated by the International Electrotechnical Commission to have sustained or flat amplitude envelopes (i.e., referring to the change in loudness over time), which does not reflect naturally occurring stimuli that typically have decaying or percussive amplitude envelopes. The current experiments assessed the effect of percussive envelopes on alarm learnability and annoyance. We showed in a series of experiments that there is no difference in learning alarms with flat or percussive envelopes. However, we showed that alarms with percussive envelopes are perceived to be less annoying than alarms with flat envelopes. These results offer one potential solution to reduce alarm annoyance in intensive care units without harming the learnability of these alarms.

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An Intrusion Detection System (IDS) is one of the major techniques for securing information systems and keeping pace with current and potential threats and vulnerabilities in computing systems. It is an indisputable fact that the art of detecting intrusions is still far from perfect, and IDSs tend to generate a large number of false IDS alarms. Hence human has to inevitably validate those alarms before any action can be taken. As IT infrastructure become larger and more complicated, the number of alarms that need to be reviewed can escalate rapidly, making this task very difficult to manage. The need for an automated correlation and reduction system is therefore very much evident. In addition, alarm correlation is valuable in providing the operators with a more condensed view of potential security issues within the network infrastructure. The thesis embraces a comprehensive evaluation of the problem of false alarms and a proposal for an automated alarm correlation system. A critical analysis of existing alarm correlation systems is presented along with a description of the need for an enhanced correlation system. The study concludes that whilst a large number of works had been carried out in improving correlation techniques, none of them were perfect. They either required an extensive level of domain knowledge from the human experts to effectively run the system or were unable to provide high level information of the false alerts for future tuning. The overall objective of the research has therefore been to establish an alarm correlation framework and system which enables the administrator to effectively group alerts from the same attack instance and subsequently reduce the volume of false alarms without the need of domain knowledge. The achievement of this aim has comprised the proposal of an attribute-based approach, which is used as a foundation to systematically develop an unsupervised-based two-stage correlation technique. From this formation, a novel SOM K-Means Alarm Reduction Tool (SMART) architecture has been modelled as the framework from which time and attribute-based aggregation technique is offered. The thesis describes the design and features of the proposed architecture, focusing upon the key components forming the underlying architecture, the alert attributes and the way they are processed and applied to correlate alerts. The architecture is strengthened by the development of a statistical tool, which offers a mean to perform results or alert analysis and comparison. The main concepts of the novel architecture are validated through the implementation of a prototype system. A series of experiments were conducted to assess the effectiveness of SMART in reducing false alarms. This aimed to prove the viability of implementing the system in a practical environment and that the study has provided appropriate contribution to knowledge in this field.

Atualmente, os avanços tecnológicos, principalmente nas áreas de controle e automação, facilitam a inclusão de alarmes em sistemas de supervisão de plantas industriais. É possível incluir um número quase que ilimitado de alarmes com variação de tipos para cada ponto de medição de um processo. Consequentemente, o volume de informações cresce significativamente e isso pode ser prejudicial, uma vez que limita a habilidade do operador no gerenciamento de anomalias e pode exceder sua capacidade de realizar ações eficazes durante o funcionamento do processo. Este trabalho apresenta um estudo sobre modelagem semântica de contexto e utiliza uma base histórica de informações de eventos para análise de padrões. Dessa forma, o intuito é, por meio dos dados de contexto, obter conhecimento útil para inferência e determinação da situação. Uma aplicação real onde são investigados eventos ocorridos em uma planta de uma usina térmica de geração de energia elétrica é usado como estudo de caso para aplicar as ideias desenvolvidas bem como para validar a proposta. Decorrente desse estudo, é proposta uma ontologia de domínio específico implementada a partir de um modelo semântico de contexto. Por fim, é apresentada uma implementação de regras semânticas. / Nowadays, technological advance, especially in the areas of control and automation, make it easy alarm inclusion in supervision of industrial plant systems. You can include a number almost unlimited of alarms with different types for each measurement point of a process. Consequently, the volume of information grows significantly and this can be harmful since it limits the ability of the operator in managing anomalies and may exceed its ability to carry out effective actions during operation of the process. This work presents a study of semantic modeling of context and uses historical bases event information to identify patterns. Thus, the intention is use this context data to obtain useful knowledge for inference and define the situation. A real application where events of a thermal power plant for electricity generation are investigated is used as a case study to apply the ideas developed and to validate the proposal. As a Result of this study, it is proposed a specific domain ontology implemented from a semantic model of context. Finally, it is presented an implementation of semantic rules.

Introdução: O processo de envelhecimento mundial traz consigo mudanças no perfil epidemiológico e no aumento da demanda por cuidado e autocuidado. A teleassistência como proposta tecnológica de monitoramento à distância pode contribuir com o envelhecimento no lugar e qualidade de vida de idosos que residem sozinhos. Objetivos: Identificar se há sensação de segurança por parte dos idosos que residem sozinhos e de sua rede de suporte com o uso dos alarmes pessoais; identificar as causas e frequências do acionamento do alarme; identificar junto ao idoso e sua rede de suporte a percepção de utilidade e facilidade dos alarmes; identificar junto aos idosos se houve dificuldades no manuseio do equipamento; identificar junto a rede de suporte pessoal se houve mudanças a partir da implantação do sistema de teleassistência. Materiais e Métodos: Pesquisa longitudinal, exploratória, do tipo intervenção, de caráter quantitativo e qualitativo. Casuística: 20 participantes, sendo 10 idosos acima de 70 anos, que residem sozinhos e 10 pessoas da rede de suporte pessoal indicadas pelo idoso participante. Instrumentos de coleta utilizados: (1) Questionário de Aceitação de Tecnologias; (2) Questionário de Aceitação de Teleassistência; (3) Questionário socioeconômico; (4) Ecomapa; (5) Entrevista com questões abertas e múltipla escolha no início e término da pesquisa. Os dados coletados foram analisados pelo método de Análise de conteúdo de acordo com Bardin (2011), a partir das seguintes categorias de análise pré-estabelecidas: percepção de segurança, uso do equipamento e motivos do acionamento. Resultados: Participaram 10 idosos (8 mulheres e 2 homens), com média de idade de 79 anos, 8 anos de estudo, a maioria aposentada, viúvos e que residem sozinhos. A rede de suporte pessoal dos participantes é composta em sua maioria (n=9) por cuidadores informais, do sexo feminino e com nível superior completo. No que se refere à percepção de segurança, os idosos destacam a segurança, a proteção, a tranquilidade, o acompanhamento e a certeza de ajuda se necessário. Após seis meses de uso do sistema de monitoramento de teleassistência, alguns idosos (n=4) alteraram sua percepção de segurança quando notaram que o equipamento não estava adequado às suas necessidades sensoriais e a falta de informações sobre o uso do equipamento. A rede de suporte pessoal refere sentimento de segurança em face à assistência rápida e desoneração temporária da tarefa. Após o período de uso do equipamento, a rede de suporte pessoal dos idosos acima de 75 anos relatou sentir mais tranquilidade e segurança se comparadas à rede de suporte pessoal dos idosos abaixo desta faixa etária e com menor perda de capacidade funcional. Quanto ao uso do equipamento, o alarme pessoal foi considerado como de fácil entendimento e manuseio, porém houve variação no seu uso durante as AVDs e dificuldades de adaptação ao modelo e design do acionador portátil. No âmbito dos motivos de acionamento do dispositivo móvel, este fora principalmente usado como busca de apoio emocional dos idosos para com as atendentes do serviço, ao invés de solicitação por urgências médicas. Conclusão: O alarme pessoal traz segurança e tranquilidade para os idosos usuários e também sua rede de suporte. A percepção de utilidade pode ser alterada em face a não adequação do equipamento em relação às alterações sensoriais do idoso e falta de alcance em diferentes ambientes da residência, assim como o não reconhecimento de necessidade pelos idosos mais funcionais. O sistema de monitoramento teve impacto positivo para os idosos que os acionavam não intencionalmente por motivo de sentirem-se sozinhos. Considera-se que a teleassistência pode ser um importante aliado ao processo de \"envelhecimento no lugar\" e contribuir para a segurança e qualidade de vida dos idosos que residem sozinhos. / Introduction: The global aging process brings with it changes in the epidemiological profile and the increased demand for care and self-care. The telecare technology as proposed monitoring distance can contribute to aging in place and quality of life of elderly people living alone. Objectives: To identify whether the use of personal alarms provide sense of security to the elderly who live alone and his support network; identify aspects of the causes and frequency of alarm activation; identify with the elderly and their network support the perception of usefulness and ease of alarms; identify with the elderly if there were difficulties in handling the equipment; identify with the support network possible changes from the implementation of telecare system. Materials and Methods: Longitudinal research, exploratory type intervention, qualitative. Casuistry: 20 participants, 10 seniors over 70 who live alone and 10 people support network indicated by the participating elderly. Instruments used: (1) Mini-Mental State Examination; (2) Geriatric Depression Scale; (3) Functional Activities Questionnaire Pfeffer. (4) Technology Acceptance Questionnaire; (5) Telecare Acceptance Questionnaire; (6) Socioeconomic Questionnaire; (7) Ecomap; (8) Interview with open questions and multiple-choice at the beginning and end of the research. The collected data were analyzed by the method of content according to Bardin Analysis (2011), from the following pre-established categories of analysis: perception of safety, use of equipment and reasons activation. Results: A total of 10 elderly patients (8 women and 2 men) with a mean age of 79 years, 8 years of study, the most retired, widowed and living alone. The RS of participants is composed mostly (n = 9) by informal caregivers, female and college degrees. With regard to the perception of security, the elderly emphasize security, protection, tranquility, monitoring and help sure if necessary. After six months of use of telecare monitoring system, some elderly (n = 4) changed their perception of safety when they noticed that the equipment was not suited to their sensory needs and the lack of information on the use of the equipment. The RS refers sense of security in the face of rapid assistance and temporary relief of the task. After the period of use of the equipment, the elderly of the RS over 75 reported feeling more relaxed and safe compared to RS elderly below this age and with less loss of functional capacity. Regarding the use of the equipment, personal alarm was considered easy to understand and handling, but there was variation in its use during daily life activities and difficulties in adapting to the portable drive model and design. In the context of the driving reasons mobile device, this was mostly used as search elderly emotional support for attendants to the service, rather than request for medical emergencies. Conclusion: The personal alarm brings security and peace of mind to elderly users, and support network. The perception of usefulness can be changed in the face of unsuitability of equipment in relation to the elderly sensory changes and lack of scope in different environments of the residence, as well as nonrecognition of the need for more functional elderly. The monitoring system had a positive impact for the elderly that They used unintentionally by reason of feeling alone. It is considered that telecare can be an important ally in the process of \"aging in place\" and contribute to the safety and quality of life of the elderly living alone.

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Collision warning systems represent a promising means to reduce rear-end crash involvement. However, these systems experience failures in the real-world that may promote driver distrust and diminish drivers' willingness to comply with warnings. Recent research suggests that not all false alarms (FAs) are detrimental to drivers. However, very few studies have examined how different alarms influence different driving populations. The purpose of this research was to examine how younger, middle-aged, and older drivers (with and without UFOV impairments) evaluated and responded to four different alarm contexts - false alarm (FA), nuisance alarm (NA), unnecessary alarm (UA) and true alarm (TA) - when they did and did not receive warnings. FA contexts represent out-of-path conflict scenarios where it is difficult for the driver to identify the source of the alarm. NA contexts represent out-of-path conflict scenarios that occur in a predictable manner that allows drivers to identify the source of the alarm. UA contexts are transitioning host conflict scenarios where the system issues an alert but the situation resolves itself before the driver needs to intervene. TA contexts represent in-host conflict scenarios where the situation requires the driver to intervene to avoid a collision. The results suggest that alarm context does matter. Compared to response data that differentiates FA and NA from UA and TA, subjective data shows greater sensitivity and differentiates between all four alarm contexts (FA Younger drivers indicated a high degree of confidence in their own ability across the different conditions. While they adopted a similar response pattern as middle-aged drivers during the TA contexts, these drivers responded less frequently than middle-aged and older drivers during the UA context. Diminished hazard perception ability and the tendency to consider these situations less hazardous likely account for the fewer responses made during these situations by younger drivers. Older drivers with and without UFOV impairments indicated similar hazard ratings for UA and TA contexts, yet drivers with UFOV impairments responded less frequently in both alarm contexts. Diminished hazard perception ability, slower simple response times, and degraded contrast sensitivity likely account for the fewer and slower responses. Interestingly older drivers with impairments did respond more frequently when warned during the TA context. They also rated FAs and NAs more positively than the other driver groups. The results of this study suggest applying signal detection theory without concern for the alarm context and driver characteristics is insufficient for understanding how different alarms influence operators and that subjective data can inform design. Researchers are encouraged to combine multiple perspectives that incorporate of both an engineering and human perspective.

<p>The present development of the demography of elderly people in the western world will generate a shortage of caregiver’s for elderly people in the near future. There are major risk that the lack of qualified caregivers will result in deterioration in the quality of elderly care. One possible </p><p>solution is the use of modern information and communication technology (ICT) to enable staff to work more efficiently. However, if ICT system is introduced into the elderly care it must done in a way which is acceptable from a humane perspective while at the same time increasing the efficiency of the personal that working in elderly care centers. This thesis investigates the </p><p>technical feasibility of using a wireless mesh network for a social alarm system, in the elderly care. The System as such is not intended to replace the staff at an elderly care center but instead is intended to reduce staff workloads while providing more time for elderly care.</p>

The present development of the demography of elderly people in the western world will generate a shortage of caregiver’s for elderly people in the near future. There are major risk that the lack of qualified caregivers will result in deterioration in the quality of elderly care. One possible solution is the use of modern information and communication technology (ICT) to enable staff to work more efficiently. However, if ICT system is introduced into the elderly care it must done in a way which is acceptable from a humane perspective while at the same time increasing the efficiency of the personal that working in elderly care centers. This thesis investigates the technical feasibility of using a wireless mesh network for a social alarm system, in the elderly care. The System as such is not intended to replace the staff at an elderly care center but instead is intended to reduce staff workloads while providing more time for elderly care.

Thesis (M.S.) -- Worcester Polytechnic Institute. / Keywords: speech intelligibility; voice alarm communication system; common intelligibility scale (CIS); speech transmission index (STI). Includes bibliographical references (p. 80-82).