Cecilia Sik-Lanyi

Navigation methods of special needs users in multimedia systems

In todays information society, computer users frequently need to seek for information on home pages as well as to select among software functions. A well-designed interface is essential in order to find everything necessary and meet the requirements of both the average user and users with special needs. Proper placement of objects on the screen is important to decrease perception time. One of the well-known researchers of web ergonomics, Jakob Nielsen (2006) established in an eye-tracking experiment that users scan displayed homepages in an F shape. In the present project the task was to find similar shapes in a number of playful visual search games. Several multimedia tasks were developed for this investigation. Our experiments included normal users and users with intellectual disabilities. We tested whether the characteristic searching routes and navigation methods differed between normal users and those with intellectual disabilities. The results of this investigation can inform the design and position of graphical user interface elements.

Spectral discomfort glare sensitivity investigations.

The main concern of car headlamp manufacturers is to provide better visibility. Unfortunately by increasing the luminous intensity of the headlamp the risk of increasing discomfort glare for the other road users increases. One possibility to increase visibility and decrease glare could be the selection of a spectral power distribution for the headlamp such that it emits in wavelength regions (if such wavelengths exist) where luminous sensitivity is high, and glare sensitivity is low. For this the spectral discomfort glare sensitivity of humans under low photopic conditions has to be determined. Spectral discomfort glare sensitivity was determined using ten young observers, requesting the observers to select medium glare settings of monochromatic radiations based on the de Boer glare rating scale, both at near‐foveal and 10° extra‐foveal directions of the 2° diameter glare source. It was found that the spectral discomfort glare sensitivity function could not be described by a simple addition of the photopic spectral luminous efficiency function and the short wavelength cone fundamental, but that the contribution of the chromatic channels of human vision may also have to be considered.

Spectral discomfort glare sensitivity under low photopic conditions

Car headlamp manufacturers have to optimise the headlamp spectrum to produce maximum visibility and minimal glare. There are very few investigations on the best spectrum for mesopic visibility and even less data on the spectrum of discomfort glare. We have performed pilot measurements to determine the spectral discomfort glare sensitivity under situations similar to night‐driving conditions and conclude that it is not a simple additivity of the V(λ) and the V′ (λ) functions.

Analysing the 2D, 3D and Web User Interface Navigation Structures of Normal Users and Users with Mild Intellectual Disabilities

Design questions of home pages are examined by numerous visual search experiments as well. However, in the majority of experiments only one target object has to be searched. On web pages and on 2D and 3D scenes often more objects, more information have to be discovered. Spatial placement of objects has influential role on reaction times, how soon an object will be found. In our work more objects had to be found on home pages and on skill-improving game programs by normal users and users with mild intellectual disabilities. We investigated the time and the sequence of finding targets in function of their location on the screen and their properties (e.g. size). We worked out a method for analysing navigation routes and discovering differences between the target groups, which can be used in further investigations as well.

Color Rendering of Images in the Internet and Print Reproductions of the Sistine Chapel’s Frescos

ABSTRACT Many digital reproductions of artefacts can be found on the Internet. In this study we investigate differences between original works of art and digital reproductions downloaded from several online databases. Four frescos in the Sistine Chapel were selected for detailed investigation. Representative colored patches were measured on these reproductions from the Internet and from two printed albums. These data were compared with the Vatican Museum’s measurements of the original frescos and measurements in the Sistine Chapel taken by the researchers of the Virtual Environments and Imaging Technologies Laboratory of the University of Pannonia. Results presented in this article demonstrate that there are significant differences between the original artefacts and their digital reproductions. The source of these differences is very complex. One is the difference between the displaying techniques of different web browsers, which produces relevant aberrations in color rendering. Differences can also arise from the JPEG encoding and decoding methods. Implicit use of color spaces in browsers, missing or incorrect EXIF data, and noncalibrated displays together can result in very different forms of representation.

Characterizing luminous efficiency functions for a simulated mesopic night driving task based on reaction time

The objective of this study is to test the luminous efficiency functions V(λ), V′(λ), V10(λ) and their linear combinations on the basis of a data set gained from a simulated mesopic night‐time driving experiment. Another aim is to provide ‘real‐world’ data for the ‘X framework’ or ‘linear combination model’, and to find out its limits in a practical situation. Human performance was measured by the reaction time method. Results show that the single parameter of the linear combination of photopic and scotopic luminous efficiency functions can be determined analytically with little variation for a given mesopic background luminance level and a given visual target colour, but the computation leads to considerable deviations comparing all three target colours (red, green and blue) used in the experiment. The conclusion for the given experimental conditions is that the single parameter of the linear combination model has an increasing deviation for lower background luminance levels.

Target Group Questionnaire in the “ISG for Competence” Project

This paper introduces the “Intelligent Serious Games for Social and Cognitive Competence” project. The aim of these games are to teach youth with disabilities on creativity. The development of interactive mobile games and 3D simulations helps the social integration and personal development of children and youth with disabilities. The project targets to improve the quality of education and trainings to gain more efficiency. To enhance creativity and innovation the project uses serious games and 3D simulations this way teaching and learning becomes interesting, playful, attractive and efficient.

Designing Trainer’s Manual for the ISG for Competence Project

The 3-year project “Intelligent Serious Games for Social and Cognitive Competence” targets children and youth with disabilities, teaching them on creativity and social competencies, using serious desktop and mobile games. The intellectual output (IO) 4 “Trainers manual” is based on the results and conclusions from desktop and survey findings from IO1 Scoping Report, the curriculum and learning scenarios of IO2 Suite of serious game on accessible learning objects (learning content creation) and IO3 Interactive games for mobile learning which can be reviewed/downloaded from the official project website www.isg4competence.com.

Memory Game and Special HCI Device in Stroke Therapy

The main goal of our project was to design and implement a serious-game application, which helps the older generation, stroke patients to complete the rehabilitation process or practise daily movements playfully. The patients, therapists, trainers, and family members can edit the levels in the game. The user can control the game via Microsoft Kinect sensor, which is one of the most popular HCI device.

Flexibility in virtual environments – a fully adjustable virtual classroom

The fear of public speaking is one of the most wide-spread social problems of the world today. It is present in early childhood as well as in adultness, and causes problems with further influence on the childs entire life. The hesitation or the inability to speak in a heart-quaked situation can easily lead to bullying from classmates or even the teacher can misinterpret it as lack of knowledge or unwillingness to give the answer at all. For helping such children overcome their fear we developed a virtual environment imitating a classroom with its usual elements. The user immerses the virtual environment via a head mounted display where he or she must solve tasks in a “living” classroom of noisy, commentating classmates and a virtual teacher. A teacher or therapist supervises the acting in the virtual class and reacts to the doings of the user through speaking to him directly or allocating a speech utterance or other act to one of the virtual classmates. Due to its complex nature and complete adaptability the virtual classroom proved to be a very useful tool in helping such children and it is already in use in a primary school