1,721,143 research outputs found
The choice of the unit of analysis for modelling real work settings
No full textAir traffic control (ATC) is currently undergoing rapid changes as new technology is being introduced. The introduction of new technology produces adaptations of how the system performs its computation with consequences and changes in the activity for both the individual and the system as a whole. Even if ATC is a highly structured and well-documented domain, the analysis of changes and evolution in the work environment, in view of the design of new technologies, requires the definition of an appropriate-level analysis. This paper discusses two important issues related to the analysis of complex domains like ATC: the distinction between the normative task description and the actual human activity; and the choice of the unit of analysis for modelling real work settings. The paper presents a case study describing the application of distributed cognition and discusses findings and implications of this theoretical approach for the design of new technologies for ATC
Framing diversity: designing hearing aids from a deaf culture perspective
Full text linkDeaf people are proud of their culture and the fact of not being able to hearing is
rendered secondary to the positive experiences created by their social lives and 250-year-old
history and culture. This reality is often misled by the adoption of medical criteria which regard
Deafness as a medical condition measured against the “norm” of hearing people. This paper
presents a research-through-design project which developed smart jewels to counteract the
stigma of disability addressing functional and cultural needs of Deaf people. Workshops were
organised involving Deaf people, makers/engineers, designers and Italian sign language
interpreters who were engaged in a Thinking-through-making process where the experience
of Deaf participants was exploited to drive embodied explorations of future hearing aids. The
design case calls for a participatory design model in which designers and users can co-create
solutions addressing not only the (dis)abilities of the body but and more importantly, the
human experience
On Presence
No full textAs often occurs with the development of new technologies,
innovative concepts of novel human experiences
are mainly derived from the demonstration of ‘‘technological
potentials’’. Nowadays, advanced communication
applications such as tele-presence, 3D holographic
experiments, immersive VR environments, large highresolution
imaging displays, have all demonstrated a
potential to support experiences of ‘‘presence’’. However,
the application of scientific insights from basic research
on human perception and cognition has not yet
influenced the design of advanced software systems and
presence technologies. The lack of inter-disciplinarity
has often brought well-known failures of overengineered
technologies which almost ignored basic
understanding of how human perception, cognition,
co-operation and communication work. The lack of
mutual penetration among the disciplines that can contribute
to a sound and robust foundation of presence is
currently recognised but far from being overcom
Structured Task Analysis in Complex Domains
No full textThis paper describes the application of MUSE, a human factors structured design method, to the design of systems supporting the work of air traffic controllers at European airport control towers. The paper illustrates the derivation of a generalized task model starting from the analyses performed at four airports and the construction of the composite task model of the future system. Other important concerns of the work are the harmonization of the different tools in the airport control tower and the assessment of the impact of these tools on the human operators. The potentialities and limitations of applying the method are discussed in particular with respect to the complexity of the domain and the nonstandard features of the air traffic control as a MUSE application. Indeed, air traffic management is widely acknowledged as a complex domain to design for, and the documented application of human factors structured methods to design are all referred to the modelling of worksystems (as opposed to working positions or workstations) with a single operator. In the present application one has multiple operators and multiple design goals (design, harmonization, assessment). The work presented is a contribution to the extension and better definition of structured methods and their applicability to the analysis of complex domains
Perceiving while being perceived
No full textUnder what conditions can we engage in a meaningful, expressive interaction with an electronic device? How can we distinguish between merely functional objects and esthetic, poetic, interactive objects that can be potential carriers for meaningful experience? This paper provides some answers to these questions through considering an aspect of aesthetic interaction that is still quite unexplored. Taking a phenomenological approach to action and perception, the paper explores the possibility of achieving by design a shared perception with interactive devices in order to enrich the experience of use as an emergent and dynamic outcome of the interaction. In exploring shared perception with interactive devices, the concept of “perceptual crossing” is taken as a main source of inspiration for design. As defined by Auvray, Lenay, and Stewart (2008), perceptual crossing is the recognition of an object of interaction which involves the perception of how the behaviour of the object and its perception relate to our own. In this sense, a shared perceptual activity influences the behaviour of interacting entities in a very peculiar way: we perceive while being perceived. Here, this argument is explored from the design viewpoint, and prototypes that illustrate the dynamics of perceptual crossing in human-robot interaction are presented
Pervasive, disruptive, seductive, enabling: Designing technologies for learning and social innovation
Full text link"There are no technological revolutions without cultural transformations." This is a quote from the book “The Internet Galaxy: Reflections on the Internet, Business, and Society” by Manuel Castells, in which the author explores the complexity of the social problems generated by the spread of the Internet.
Nowadays the Internet is no longer simply a means for connecting people through computers. The digital components of the network have materialized in things. Information has ceased to travel exclusively on the computer screen and moved onto physical objects, now able to talk to each other and with the environment.
The challenge is that this technological innovation will become a social innovation, and that individuals, society, institutions and companies will appropriate it, modifying it, transforming it, and experimenting with it.
This paper is a reflection on the role of technology in supporting social innovation. We will approach this topic from the perspective of interaction design, a discipline that studies social practices connected with use of technologies, and imagines new possibilities as well as new activities enabled by them.
The reflection will develop by presenting the outcomes of Light through Culture, an international educational project that aims to create a meaningful context for learning in which students reflect on socio-cultural issues together by building interactive installations
- …
