Multimedia And Sensory Input For Augmented Mixed And Virtual Reality

Augmented and virtual reality (AR and VR) offer exciting opportunities for human computer interaction (HCI), the enhancement of places, and new business cases. Though VR is most popular for video games, especially among younger generations, AR and VR can also be used in applications that include military, medical, navigational, tourism, marketing, and maintenance uses. Research in these technologies along with 3D user interfaces has gained momentum in recent years and has solidified it as a staple technology for the foreseeable future. Multimedia and Sensory Input for Augmented, Mixed, and Virtual Reality includes a collection of business case studies covering a variety of topics related to AR, VR, and mixed reality (MR) including their use in possible applications. This book also touches on the diverse uses of AR and VR in many industries and discusses their importance, challenges, and opportunities. While discussing the use these technologies in sectors such as education, healthcare, and computer science, this book is ideal for computer scientists, engineers, practitioners, stakeholders, researchers, academicians, and students who are interested in the latest research on augmented, mixed, and virtual reality.

In our fast-paced, technology-driven world, there is a strong sense of untapped potential and unfulfilled promises. People today possess an unprecedented amount of power through their technological gadgets but often remain unaware of how to wield it effectively. This lack of understanding and agency leads to a plethora of societal problems, from passive consumerism to environmental degradation, fostering a sense of helplessness. Considerations of Cyber Behavior and Mass Technology in Modern Society offer a comprehensive solution to this pressing issue. It is a scholarly beacon, guiding academic scholars and critical thinkers toward a profound reassessment of our relationship with technology and society. By delving into the intricate web of topics such as active citizenship, global information production, and the coexistence of consumer technology and freedom, our book presents an opportunity to explore the root causes of our modern-day challenges.

Motivation is an important factor in and for all education levels. However, as learners in online distance education milieus are away from both teachers, other learners, and the learning environments physically, this concept becomes more important for online education. Motivating learners in distance education and keeping their motivation alive throughout the learning process is an issue that should be emphasized and taken care of for teachers and instructional designers. At this point, although there are many approaches, models, and theories regarding enhancing and sustaining motivation and engagement in the education processes, it is seen that there is not enough work and/or effective and efficient strategies that can be applied in online distance learning environments. Motivation, Volition, and Engagement in Online Distance Learning evaluates motivational obstacles in online distance education both theoretically and practically, identifies the strengths and weaknesses of the online education environments regarding motivation, and provides actionable motivational and volitional strategies for online educators. This book offers coverage of topics such as learning theories, motivation research, and synchronous online learning environments, making it a valuable resource for researchers, professionals, decision makers, institutions in all education levels, academicians, pre-service teachers, and most importantly, online educators from various disciplines and learners from all educational landscapes.

This book is primarily a summary of research done over 10 years in multimedia and virtual reality, which fits within a wider interest of exploiting psychological theory to improve the process of designing interactive systems. The subject matter lies firmly within the field of HCI, with some cross-referencing to software engineering. Extending Sutcliffe's views on the design process to more complex interfaces that have evolved in recent years, this book: *introduces the background to multisensory user interfaces and surveys the design issues and previous HCI research in these areas; *explains the basic psychology for design of multisensory user interfaces, including the Interactive Cognitive Subsystems cognitive model; *describes elaborations of Norman's models of action for multimedia and VR, relates these models to the ICS cognitive model, and explains how the models can be applied to predict the design features necessary for successful interaction; *provides a design process from requirements, user and domain analysis, to design of representation in media or virtual worlds and facilities for user interaction therein; *covers usability evaluation for multisensory interfaces by extending existing well-known HCI approaches of heuristic evaluation and observational usability testing; and *presents two special application areas for multisensory interfaces: educational applications and virtual prototyping for design refinement. To download images and figures free of charge that enhance and clarify materials discussed in chapters 1-7 go to http://www.co.umist.ac.uk/centreULhci/MMVRbook.htm

Academics 4.0 has become increasingly crucial in recent times due to the impact of Industry 4.0 on various fields. The emergence of disruptive technologies and the cyber-physical world has underscored the need for experts in these areas, which requires proper training of students from an early stage. Education 4.0 is essential in preparing faculties and students adequately for this purpose. This approach shifts the focus from teaching to learning and employs blended learning, MOOC courses, and flipped classrooms to achieve better understanding and application of knowledge. The practical aspect of the subject is discussed in the classroom, while the theoretical aspect is taught outside the class. The book, Architecture and Technological Advancements of Education 4.0, aims to explain the rationale, advantages, and features of Academics 4.0, explore assessment tools and techniques, and describe the national policy for bringing change in education. It also covers blended learning, MOOC courses, virtual labs, and mobile learning, with a focus on their benefits. The book will be useful for universities and educational entities that aim to follow Academics 4.0 in the education system, serve as a reference manual for research articles, and be helpful to faculties and academicians who wish to implement and assess online techniques. Additionally, it will be an excellent learning platform for providers and users of relevant domains, with a broad range of topics covering its impact on the education system, students, and workforce.

The application of contemporary and emerging operational research optimization methods in renewable energy is vital to creating and maintaining sustainable environments across the planet. More research is needed to understand how modern and innovative technological solutions can enhance accessible global energy. Operational Research for Renewable Energy and Sustainable Environments is a critical scholarly resource that examines the efficient use of modern electrical technology and renewable energy sources that have a positive impact on sustainable development. Highlighting topics such as cogeneration thermal modules, photovoltaic (PV) solar, and renewable energy systems (RES) application practices, this publication is geared towards academics, advocates, government officials, policymakers, humanized managers, practitioners, professionals, and students interested in the latest research on renewable energy and clean technology for sustainable rural development.

ROBOTIC PROCESS AUTOMATION Presenting the latest technologies and practices in this ever-changing field, this groundbreaking new volume covers the theoretical challenges and practical solutions for using robotics across a variety of industries, encompassing many disciplines, including mathematics, computer science, electrical engineering, information technology, mechatronics, electronics, bioengineering, and command and software engineering. Robotics is the study of creating devices that can take the place of people and mimic their behaviors. Mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, information engineering, mechatronics, electronics, bioengineering, computer engineering, control engineering, software engineering, mathematics, and other subjects are all included in robotics. Robots can be employed in a variety of scenarios and for a variety of objectives, but many are now being used in hazardous areas (such as radioactive material inspection, bomb detection, and deactivation), manufacturing operations, or in conditions where humans are unable to live (e.g. in space, underwater, in high heat, and clean up and containment of hazardous materials and radiation). Walking, lifting, speaking, cognition, and any other human activity are all attempted by robots. Many of today’s robots are influenced by nature, making bio-inspired robotics a growing area. Defusing explosives, seeking survivors in unstable ruins, and investigating mines and shipwrecks are just a few of the activities that robots are designed to undertake. This groundbreaking new volume presents a Robotic Process Automation (RPA) software technique that makes it simple to create, deploy, and manage software robots that mimic human movements while dealing with digital systems and software. Software robots can interpret what’s on a screen, type the correct keystrokes, traverse systems, locate and extract data, and do a wide variety of predetermined operations, much like people. Software robots can do it quicker and more reliably than humans, without having to stand up and stretch or take a coffee break.

Edge computing and analytics are fascinating the whole world of computing. Industry and business are keenly embracing this sound concept to develop customer-centric solutions by enhancing their operations, offerings, and outputs. There is a bevy of advancements in this domain that came with the arrival of IoT devices. The seamless convergence of microservices and serverless computing creates vast opportunities. With the help of IoT devices and these other developments, there has become a deep interest in business automation and additional improvisations in edge computing. With the steady growth of edge devices and applications of IoT fog/edge computing and analytics, there are also distinct challenges and threats. Research has been keenly focused on identifying and understanding these issues and shortcomings to bring viable solution approaches and algorithms. Cases on Edge Computing and Analytics describes the latest innovations, improvements, and transformations happening with edge devices and computing. It addresses the key concerns of the edge computing paradigm, how they are processed, and the various technologies and tools empowering edge computing and analytics. While highlighting topics within edge computing such as the key drivers for implementation, computing capabilities, security considerations, and use-cases, this book is ideal for IT industry professionals and project managers, computer scientists, computer engineers, and practitioners, stakeholders, researchers, academicians, and students looking for research on the latest trends and transitions in edge computing.