Mohd Fairuz Shiratuddin

Non-contact multi-hand gestures interaction techniques for architectural design in a virtual environment

For decades, architectural designs are created and communicated by de facto tools; either 2D CAD or 3D CAD. Architects and CAD operators alike use CAD software installed on their personal computers or workstations. The interaction techniques used when using these tools are restricted to the WIMP (windows, icons, mouse, and pointers) paradigm. Graphical User Interface (GUI) and accessibility to the functionalities of the CAD software are thus designed and revolved around this paradigm. In the Multi-Hand Gesture (MHG) interaction paradigm, a non-contact gesture recognition system is used to detect in real-time the hands and fingers movements, and also their positions in 3D space. These gestures are then interpreted and used to execute specific commands or tasks. This paper proposes a framework for a non-contact MHG interaction technique for architectural design. It also discusses 1) the WIMP and a non-contact MHG interaction technique, and 2) the development of an early prototype of a non-contact MHG recognition system. The prototype system consists of a software that is developed to recognize and interpret the multi-hand gestures captured by the Kinect sensor which does real-time scanning of three-dimensional space and depth.

Interactive 3D visualization as a tool for construction education

Throughout the years, various teaching methods have been adopted to assist students to better understand building assemblies and construction details. Many current teaching techniques for explaining building assemblies use various mediums such as 2D drawings, isometric and perspective drawings, photographs of assemblies and also field trips to the construction jobsite. Such detail needs to be complemented with plans, elevations and sections. This is necessary because in any drawing only 2 dimensions are visible. 3D CAD modeling addresses the third dimension that is not present in 2D CAD drawings, and allows better viewing, validating and understanding building components and their construction. This paper addresses the impact of using 3D in teaching and its advantages over current approaches. The paper describes a pilot study conducted with students from the Virginia Tech Architecture and Building Construction departments. The experiment investigated the advantages of 3D representation as compared to 2D drawings, in understanding construction assemblies and details. The paper also discusses the shortcomings of the traditional methods and compares the suitability of using 3D as a teaching aid. A new approach utilizing pocket PCs and/or laptop computers via wireless connectivity, to allow students to access and view 3D models remotely, is briefly presented.

Using fuzzy rough feature selection for image retrieval system

Feature selection is an important step in processing the images especially for applications such as content based image retrieval. In large multimedia databases, it may not be practical to search through the entire database in order to retrieve similar images from a query. Good data structures for similarity search and indexing are needed, and the existing data structures do not scale well for the high dimensional multimedia descriptors. Thus feature selection is an important step. Fuzzy rough feature selection method has many advantages in determining the relevant features. In this paper, five feature selection methods are compared with the fuzzy rough method. These five feature selection methods are Relief-F, Information Gain, Gain Ratio, OneR and the statistical measure χ2. The main purpose of the comparison is to rank the image features and see which method provides better results. An image retrieval dataset (COREL dataset) was used in the comparison. In order to evaluate the performance of the six methods, ranking of the important features is defined. This is then used to compare with the automated ranking produced by the aforesaid feature selection methods. Results show that the retrieval system using fuzzy rough feature selection has better retrieval accuracy and provide good Precision Recall performance. The advantages of the use of fuzzy rough feature selection will also be discussed in the paper.

Integrating computer game-based learning into construction education

The attention to computer game-based learning has grown as research continues to demonstrate its effectiveness for education. Games have been proven to be an effective tool in supplementing conventional teaching methods. However, prior to the development of such educational game, in order to be effective, it is essential that pedagogic concerns are addressed first and integrated into the game design process. Educational games cannot be designed and developed exclusively by instructional designers, or exclusively by game developers, because the former know little about game development, and the latter know little about the science of teaching and learning. As such, development of educational games requires both the instructional designer and game developer to be equally involved during the design stage. This paper presented a comparative summary of the phases involved in the Instructional Design Process and Tasks, and the Game Design Process and Products. This paper also included a brief overview of the Game Concept and Design Document and discussed how it can be adapted for construction education.

A Review of Electroencephalogram-Based Analysis and Classification Frameworks for Dyslexia

Dyslexia is a hidden learning disability that causes difficulties in reading and writing despite average intelligence. Electroencephalogram (EEG) is one of the upcoming methods being researched for identifying unique brain activation patterns in dyslexics. This paper examines pros and cons of existing EEG-based analysis and classification frameworks for dyslexia and recommends optimizations through the findings to assist future research.

Utilising Fuzzy Rough Set Based on Mutual Information Decreasing Method for Feature Reduction in an Image Retrieval System

Content-Based Image Retrieval (CBIR) system has become a focus of research in the area of image processing and machine vision. General CBIR system automatically index and retrieve images with visual features such as colour, texture and shape. However, current research found that there is a significant gap between visual features and semantic features used by humans to describe images. In order to bridge the semantic gap, some researchers have proposed methods for managing and decreasing image features, and extract useful features from a feature vector. This paper presents an image retrieval system utilising fuzzy rough set based on mutual information decreasing method and the Support Vector Machine (SVM) classifier. The system has training and testing phases. In order to reduce the semantic gap, the propose retrieval system used relevance feedback to improve the retrieval performance. This paper also compared the proposed method with other traditional retrieval systems that use PCA, kernel PCA, Isomap and MVU for their feature reduction method. Experiments are carried out using a standard Corel dataset to test the accuracy and robustness of the proposed system. The experiment results show the propose method can retrieve images more efficiently than the traditional methods. The use of fuzzy rough set based on mutual information decreasing method, SVM and relevance feedback ensures that the propose image retrieval system produces results which are highly relevant to the content of an image query.

A dual-route concept of persuasive User Interface (UI) design

As current trends are moving towards designing for persuasion, designing for functionalityand usability of awebsite isno longer sufficient. This paper identifies the factors of persuasion and their potential adaptation in UI design. The conceptual framework proposed and discussed in this paper refers to the Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM). The ELM is used to identify and distinguish the design cues for the central route and peripheral route. This paper also identifies web design qualities that may improve the persuasiveness and likelihood of a website. The factors of persuasion identified in this paper; namely relationship, emotion, credibility, and logic; will then be tested using a repeated-measures technique of experimental design to verify their effectiveness in influencing users to stay and make further decision at a website.

A proposed treatment for visual field loss caused by traumatic brain injury using Interactive Visuotactile Virtual Environment

In this paper, we propose a novel approach of using interactive virtual environment technology in Vision Restoration Therapy caused by Traumatic Brain Injury. We called the new system Interactive Visuotactile Virtual Environment and it holds a promise of expanding the scope of already existing rehabilitation techniques. Traditional vision rehabilitation methods are based on passive psychophysical training procedures, and can last up to six months before any modest improvements can be seen in patients. A highly immersive and interactive virtual environment will allow the patient to practice everyday activities such as object identification and object manipulation through the use 3D motion sensoring handheld devices such data glove or the Nintendo Wiimote. Employing both perceptual and action components in the training procedures holds the promise of more efficient sensorimotor rehabilitation. Increased stimulation of visual and sensorimotor areas of the brain should facilitate a comprehensive recovery of visuomotor function by exploiting the plasticity of the central nervous system. Integrated with a motion tracking system and an eye tracking device, the interactive virtual environment allows for the creation and manipulation of a wide variety of stimuli, as well as real-time recording of hand-, eye- and body movements and coordination. The goal of the project is to design a cost-effective and efficient vision restoration system.

Review of the Role of Modern Computational Technologies in the Detection of Dyslexia

Dyslexia is disability with a neurological origin that causes lack of proficiency in reading and writing despite normal (or above) intelligence and sensory abilities. Modern computational technologies play a significant role in enhancing the conventional dyslexia detection techniques as well as in discovering novel approaches for dyslexia detection. This paper covers the modern technologies that are being used and examines the existing gaps in the dyslexia detection procedures in order to benefit future research.

The impact of online visual on users’ motivation and behavioural intention - A comparison between persuasive and non-persuasive visuals

Research related to the first impression has highlighted the importance of visual appeal in influencing the favourable attitude towards a website. In the perspective of impression formation, it is proposed that the users are actually attracted to certain characteristics or aspects of the visual properties of a website, while ignoring the rests. Therefore, this study aims to investigate which visual strongly appeals to the users by comparing the impact of common visuals with the persuasive visuals. The principles of social influence are proposed as the added value to the persuasiveness of the web visuals. An experimental study is conducted and the PLS-SEM method is employed to analyse the obtained data. The result of the exploratory analyses demonstrated that the structural model has better quality when tested with persuasive data sample compared to non-persuasive data sample, evident with stronger coefficient of determination and path coefficients. Thus, it is concluded that persuasive visual provides better impact towards users’ attitude and behavioural intention of a website.