Amaia Méndez Zorrilla

A stress sensor based on Galvanic Skin Response (GSR) controlled by ZigBee.

Sometimes, one needs to control different emotional situations which can lead the person suffering them to dangerous situations, in both the medium and short term. There are studies which indicate that stress increases the risk of cardiac problems. In this study we have designed and built a stress sensor based on Galvanic Skin Response (GSR), and controlled by ZigBee. In order to check the devices performance, we have used 16 adults (eight women and eight men) who completed different tests requiring a certain degree of effort, such as mathematical operations or breathing deeply. On completion, we appreciated that GSR is able to detect the different states of each user with a success rate of 76.56%. In the future, we plan to create an algorithm which is able to differentiate between each state.

Serious Game based on first aid education for individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) using android mobile devices

Within the group of individuals with ASD there are a number of people who interact well with the new technologies, which makes them the main beneficiaries of this project. The project described in this paper consists of designing and implementing a multimedia application within the framework of Serious Games. The main aim is to create a system composed of a set of Serious Games oriented to first aid education: what to do in certain situations, basic knowledge about healthcare, medical specialties… all employing the use of new technologies such as the Android operating system implemented on mobile phones or tablets. Not only technological results have been analyzed, but the opinions of users and specialists taking part in the applications validation and initial testing have also been taken into account.

Can game-based therapies be trusted? Is game-based education effective? A systematic review of the Serious Games for health and education

This review sets out the lines of development and research currently being conducted into Serious Games which pursue some form of benefit in the field of personal health. Although video games are traditionally associated with software developments, developing them in the social and health-care field involves studying the associated hardware and paying attention to aspects related to interaction with the game. Serious Games for Health cover matters related to education and the treatment of illnesses, awareness enhancement and psychological treatment, as well as training doctors in surgical techniques, for example. This chapter includes a review of relevant Serious Game developments over the last ten years and examines new trends.

Computer game to learn and enhance speech problems for children with autism

This paper presents a game for kids with autism. The system provides a solution to the learning and enhancement of habitual language in kids and teenagers with an autism spectrum using a simple and easy game focused on their personal needs and characteristics. This game is composed by two separated applications: the management application and physical game. The results are represented as a bar chart with the % score of the correct pronunciation of each word. These results can be exported and stored so as to keep a temporal register of final users progression.

Mobile communication for intellectually challenged people: a proposed set of requirements for interface design on touch screen devices

The use of certain applications for touch-based mobile devices can prove to be difficult for intellectually challenged people. By performing tests and gathering user feedback, great difficulty has been detected in the use of various applications due to their complicated interfaces.The authors propose a set of guidelines, aimed at developers, to help design more accessible interfaces when developing applications for intellectually challenged, so this might increase the overall ease of use of mobile devices.

Blue-white veil and dark-red patch of pigment pattern recognition in dermoscopic images using machine-learning techniques

The proposed work presents a method for the computer-aided detection in dermoscopic images of two of the most significant patterns in the diagnosis of melanoma, the blue-white veil (an irregular, structureless area of confluent blue pigmentation with an overlying white “ground-glass” haze) and dark-red patch of pigment. The development has been made with the help of supervised machine learning techniques, in a two steps process: firstly, obtaining the conditions that must satisfy the pixels, and secondly, obtaining the features that the image of the skin lesion should have, in relation to the region and the image itself. Tested over a database of 887 images, it has been obtained a results of 89.06% correctly detected. Moreover, as a part of the proposed method itself (derived from the close relationship with the blue-white veil) has been developed a method for obtaining the pixel rules for the dark-red patch of pigment pattern (“a patch of dark red pigmentation”) recognition. Tested over 80 images, it has been obtained a results of 95.14% correctly detected.

Wireless Prototype Based on Pressure and Bending Sensors for Measuring Gate Quality

This paper presents a technological solution based on sensors controlled remotely in order to monitor, track and evaluate the gait quality in people with or without associated pathology. Special hardware simulating a shoe was developed, which consists of three pressure sensors, two bending sensors, an Arduino mini and a Bluetooth module. The obtained signals are digitally processed, calculating the standard deviation and establishing thresholds obtained empirically. A group of users was chosen with the aim of executing two modalities: natural walking and dragging the left foot. The gait was parameterized with the following variables: as far as pressure sensors are concerned, one pressure sensor under the first metatarsal (right sensor), another one under the fifth metatarsal (left) and a third one under the heel were placed. With respect to bending sensors, one bending sensor was placed for the ankle movement and another one for the foot sole. The obtained results show a rate accuracy oscillating between 85% (right sensor) and 100% (heel and bending sensors). Therefore, the developed prototype is able to differentiate between healthy gait and pathological gait, and it will be used as the base of a more complex and integral technological solution, which is being developed currently.

Algorithms Based on CWT and Classifiers to Control Cardiac Alterations and Stress Using an ECG and a SCR

This paper presents the results of using a commercial pulsimeter as an electrocardiogram (ECG) for wireless detection of cardiac alterations and stress levels for home control. For these purposes, signal processing techniques (Continuous Wavelet Transform (CWT) and J48) have been used, respectively. The designed algorithm analyses the ECG signal and is able to detect the heart rate (99.42%), arrhythmia (93.48%) and extrasystoles (99.29%). The detection of stress level is complemented with Skin Conductance Response (SCR), whose success is 94.02%. The heart rate variability does not show added value to the stress detection in this case. With this pulsimeter, it is possible to prevent and detect anomalies for a non-intrusive way associated to a telemedicine system. It is also possible to use it during physical activity due to the fact the CWT minimizes the motion artifacts.

Adaptive Tele-Therapies Based on Serious Games for Health for People with Time-Management and Organisational Problems: Preliminary Results

Attention Deficit with Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is one of the most prevalent disorders within the child population today. Inattention problems can lead to greater difficulties in completing assignments, as well as problems with time management and prioritisation of tasks. This article presents an intelligent tele-therapy tool based on Serious Games for Health, aimed at the improvement of time management skills and the prioritisation of tasks. This tele-system is based on the use of decision trees within Django, a high-level Python Web framework. The technologies and techniques used were selected so as to boost user involvement and to enable the system to be easily customised. This article shows the preliminary results of the pilot-phase in an experiment performed to evaluate the use of adaptive tele-therapies within a group of typically developing children and adolescents aged between 12 and 19 years old without ADHD. To do so, we relied on the collection of parameters and the conduct of surveys for assessing time management skills, as well as measuring system usability and availability. The results of a time management survey highlighted that the users involved in the trial did not use any specific or effective time management techniques, scoring 1.98 and 2.30 out of 5 points in this area for ages under 15 and over 16 years old, respectively. The final calculations based on the usability questionnaire resulted in an average score of 78.75 out of 100. The creation of a customisable tool capable of working with different skills, in conjunction with the replication of the current study, may help to understand these users’ needs, as well as boosting time management skills among teenagers with and without ADHD.

Elderly user experience to improve a Kinect-based game playability

When it comes to using computers, older people experience many barriers, which are a considerable hurdle to overcome in order to enable them to accept technological aids. Thus, computer interface design and development must support elderly end users by avoiding many usability issues which lead to negative impacts on them. This paper describes the combination of a computer game design for the elderly and its implementation with user experience considerations embedded in the process. In this way, a positive gaming experience is provided to the end user. This game uses the Kinect device, enabling users to interact intuitively with the computer without any intermediary controller, and its main purpose is to promote at the same time cognitive and physical activities for healthy living. Feedback was taken from physiotherapists’ written observations and user experience questionnaires, which allowed the game to be adapted to their needs, obtaining 86.25% satisfaction. The effectiveness of this study opens the door to new developments in ICT that not only improve quality of life but also reduce the existing digital divide for the elderly.When it comes to using computers, older people experience many barriers, which are a considerable hurdle to overcome in order to enable them to accept technological aids. Thus, computer interface design and development must support elderly end users by avoiding many usability issues which lead to negative impacts on them. This paper describes the combination of a computer game design for the elderly and its implementation with user experience considerations embedded in the process. In this way, a positive gaming experience is provided to the end user. This game uses the Kinect device, enabling users to interact intuitively with the computer without any intermediary controller, and its main purpose is to promote at the same time cognitive and physical activities for healthy living. Feedback was taken from physiotherapists’ written observations and user experience questionnaires, which allowed the game to be adapted to their needs, obtaining 86.25% satisfaction. The effectiveness of this study opens the door to new developments in ICT that not only improve quality of life but also reduce the existing digital divide for the elderly.