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Previous research has evaluated error correction procedures to assess their effectiveness, yet few studies have evaluated preferences for these procedures. An alternating treatments design was used to compare the effects of four error correction procedures: model, single response repetition (SRR), multiple response repetition (MRR), and single response repetition with an embedded distracter trial (SRR-D), on the acquisition of sight words for three adolescent males. Preference for the procedures was assessed by using a concurrent chains procedure consisting of forced choice and free choice presentations. Results demonstrated that all participants performed best with a specific error correction procedure. Participant 1 showed a moderate preference for his most effective error correction procedure. Participant 2 demonstrated a slight preference for the SRR procedure which did not correlate with his most effective error correction procedure, SRR-D, and participant 3 did not demonstrate preference for any of the procedures. These findings suggest that error correction procedures should be evaluated and individualized for each learner. Although a moderate preference for a procedure was demonstrated with only one participant, future research should continue to use and refine these procedures to incorporate learner preference in all teaching strategies. / Teaching & Learning

No / This paper investigates the effect of channel bandwidth on the accuracy of AOA estimation algorithms based on the detection of the direct path. The accurate detection of the Line of Sight (LOS) signal in a multipath environment is crucial for reliable direction finding. In this work, the estimation algorithms are applied to the LOS component in the time domain channel impulse response which is acquired by applying the inverse Fourier transform to the simulated channel transfer function in the desired bandwidth. Different channel bandwidths as well as two AOA estimation methods have been considered in the modelling to investigate the performance of the standard deviation of angle estimation error. It has been shown that increasing the bandwidth in all simulated channel scenarios improves the estimation accuracy. / Seven Technologies Group, KTP project grant No. 008734.

This dissertation proposes a new framework to Non-Field-of-view (NFOV) sound source localization and tracking in indoor environments. The approach takes advantage of sound signal information to localize target position through auditory sensors combination with other sensors within grid-based recursive estimation structure for tracking using nonlinear and non-Gaussian observations. Three approaches to NFOV target localization are investigated. These techniques estimate target positions within the Recursive Bayesian estimation (RBE) framework. The first proposed technique uses a numerical fingerprinting solution based on acoustic cues of a fixed microphone array in a complex indoor environment. The Interaural level differences (ILDs) of microphone pair from a given environment are constructed as an a priori database, and used for calculating the observation likelihood during estimation. The approach was validated in a parametrically controlled testing environment, and followed by real environment validations. The second approach takes advantage of acoustic sensors in combination with an optical sensor to assist target estimation in NFOV conditions. This hybrid of the two sensors constructs observation likelihood through sensor fusion. The third proposed model-based technique localizes the target by taking advantage of wave propagation physics: the properties of sound diffraction and reflection. This approach allows target localization without an a priori knowledge database which is required for the first two proposed techniques. To demonstrate the localization performance of the proposed approach, a series of parameterized numerical and experimental studies were conducted. The validity of the formulation and applicability to the actual environment were confirmed. / Ph. D.

Architecture often references the five senses through conveying moments and experiences that someone could have in a specific setting. The purpose of this thesis is to dive deeper into how the senses can be engaged and how they relate to the concept of wayfinding. This thesis explores how engaging the senses can assist in a person's physical and mental wayfinding, specifically through touch, sight, and smell. The building typology best suited to experiment with this was a community center because it is used by a myriad of different people of varying ages, height, mobility, etc. Multiple studies were conducted that centered around different textures, floral fragrances, and light quality. This is a story that takes you on a journey through a community center and narrates how the different senses are engaged, specifically with regards to wayfinding. In three different chapters you will feel the touch of a wall, follow a path of different fragrances, and see through different perspectives. / Master of Architecture / Architecture often references the five senses through conveying moments and experiences that someone could have in a specific setting. The purpose of this thesis is to dive deeper into how the senses can be engaged and how they relate to the concept of wayfinding. This thesis explores how engaging the senses can assist in a person's physical and mental wayfinding, specifically through touch, sight, and smell. The setting of this thesis is a community center because community centers are used by many different people of varying ages, height, mobility, etc. Multiple studies were conducted that centered around different textures, floral fragrances, and light quality. This is a story that takes you on a journey through a community center and narrates how the different senses are engaged, specifically with regards to wayfinding. In three different chapters you will feel the touch of a wall, follow a path of different fragrances, and see through different perspectives.

This thesis focuses on the problematics of examination of visual perception in children with visual impairment. There are three parts to this thesis. The first part is dedicated to visual perception. It starts by describing the physiological development of eyesight and the examinations of it in childhood. It is followed by a description of visual functions and functional vision assessment. It also deals with individual parts of visual perception and the support of their development. The second part describes the In-Sight test in detail, including the instructions to its use. The third part introduces the research: the diagnostics of visual perception in children with sight impairment through In-Sight test. Its core method is a foreign standardised In-Sight test. This test is used to evaluate visual operations in children with visual impairment and to perform a screening of theirs higher visual abilities in relation to the process of education. The aim of this thesis is to describe the usefulness of this test in this target group. The research also attempted to find new ways to use the test. An observation was made as to which areas the children found most difficult and which they found non-problematic, what actions can be taken to support them based on the results and whether it is feasible to...

A sight disadvantaged person is an individual whose sight impairment influences in a way the performance of daily activities and cannot by sufficiently solved using common optical correction. The typhlopedia / the ofthalmopedia is a special education branch focused of education, trainig and development of sight disadvanced persons. The general awareness on typhlopedia and the right approach towards the sight disadvantaged persons was investigated and the current attitude of the general public towards to sight disadvantaged persons was mapped. Tha inquiry method (data collection technique using questionnaire/ questionnaire method) was used. The research was carried out in a common Czech city (České budějovice). Generally, two hypothesis were postulated. The first hypothesis was defined as the public awareness on typhlopedia and the right approach towards the sight disadvantaged persons being average (to insufficient). The other hypothesis was that the public attitude towards the sight disadvantaged persons is positive. Finally, the both hypothesis were conformed.

Thesis (MScEng (Electrical and Electronic Engineering))--Stellenbosch University, 2008. / A singing transcription system transforming acoustic input into MIDI note sequences is presented. The transcription system is incorporated into a pronunciation-independent sight-singing tutor system, which provides note-level feedback on the accuracy with which each note in a sequence has been sung. Notes are individually modeled with hidden Markov models (HMMs) using untuned pitch and delta-pitch as feature vectors. A database consisting of annotated passages sung by 26 soprano subjects was compiled for the development of the system, since no existing data was available. Various techniques that allow efficient use of a limited dataset are proposed and evaluated. Several HMM topologies are also compared, in analogy with approaches often used in the field of automatic speech recognition. Context-independent note models are evaluated first, followed by the use of explicit transition models to better identify boundaries between notes. A non-repetitive grammar is used to reduce the number of insertions. Context-dependent note models are then introduced, followed by context-dependent transition models. The aim in introducing context-dependency is to improve transition region modeling, which in turn should increase note transcription accuracy, but also improve the time-alignment of the notes and the transition regions. The final system is found to be able to transcribe sung passages with around 86% accuracy. Finally, a note-level sight-singing tutor system based on the singing transcription system is presented and a number of note sequence scoring approaches are evaluated.

Range-based localization is a widely used technique for position estimation where distances are measured to anchors, nodes with known positions, and the position is analytically estimated. It offers the benefits of providing high localization accuracy and involving simple operation over multiple deployments. Examples are the Global Positioning System (GPS) and network-based cellular handset localization. Range-based localization is promising for a range of applications, such as robot deployment in emergency scenarios or monitoring industrial processes. However, the presence of clutter in some of these environments leads to a severe degradation of the localization accuracy due to non-line-of-sight (NLOS) signal propagation. Moreover, current literature in NLOS-mitigation techniques requires that the NLOS distances constitute only a minority of the total number of distances to anchors. The key ideas proposed in the dissertation are: 1) multi-hop localization offers significant advantages over single-hop localization in NLOS-prone environments; and 2) it is possible to further reduce position errors by carefully placing intermediate nodes among the clutter to minimize multi-hop distances between the anchors and the unlocalized node. We demonstrate that shortest path distance (SPD) based multi-hop localization algorithms, namely DV-Distance and MDS-MAP, perform the best among other competing techniques in NLOS-prone settings. However, with random node placement, these algorithms require large node densities to produce high localization accuracy. To tackle this, we show that the strategic placement of a relatively small number of nodes in the clutter can offer significant benefits. We propose two algorithms for node placement: first, the Optimal Placement for DV-Distance (OPDV) focuses on obtaining the optimal positions of the nodes for a known clutter topology; and second, the Adaptive Placement for DV-Distance (APDV) offers a distributed control technique that carefully moves nodes in the monitored area to achieve localization accuracies close to those achieved by OPDV. We evaluate both algorithms via extensive simulations, as well as demonstrate the APDV algorithm on a real robotic hardware platform. We finally demonstrate how the characteristics of the clutter topology influence single-hop and multi-hop distance errors, which in turn, impact the performance of the proposed algorithms.

This study explores the human and technical limitations of looking and seeing. It proposes a model for design that expands technical sight toward harmony with our human notion. It proposes a model for design that expands technical sight toward harmony with our human notion. This study is guided by the phenomenological experience of being expressed primarily by Heidegger as well as neuro-physiological research on the mind and body relationship by Ramachandran, Sacks Nicolelis and Damasio. It examines, in two paths, the technical developments that seek to alter or enhance our ways of looking and seeing. The first path is an assessment of ways of looking with optics-based cameras that includes how cameras might be set to look, how they behave in looking and how they translate that look into an image on display. The second path is an assessment of the image in varying states of readiness which include the capture state, state of rendering (for view) and state of display. The study uncovers the various ways that images are translated to be seen, and how sight and ocular vision might be detached in the process of imprinting what is seen in the imagination. It includes key examples of modern image device capabilities, makes suggestions about how the framework of this study can be applied in specific cases and predicts the state of image devices in the future.