Outdoor Localization Using BLE RSSI and Accessible Pedestrian Signals for the Visually Impaired at Intersections.

One of the major challenges for blind and visually impaired (BVI) people is traveling safely to cross intersections on foot. Many countries are now generating audible signals at crossings for visually impaired people to help with this problem. However, these accessible pedestrian signals can result in confusion for visually impaired people as they do not know which signal must be interpreted for traveling multiple crosses in complex road architecture. To solve this problem, we propose an assistive system called CAS (Crossing Assistance System) which extends the principle of the BLE (Bluetooth Low Energy) RSSI (Received Signal Strength Indicator) signal for outdoor and indoor location tracking and overcomes the intrinsic limitation of outdoor noise to enable us to locate the user effectively. We installed the system on a real-world intersection and collected a set of data for demonstrating the feasibility of outdoor RSSI tracking in a series of two studies. In the first study, our goal was to show the feasibility of using outdoor RSSI on the localization of four zones. We used a k-nearest neighbors (kNN) method and showed it led to 99.8% accuracy. In the second study, we extended our work to a more complex setup with nine zones, evaluated both the kNN and an additional method, a Support Vector Machine (SVM) with various RSSI features for classification. We found that the SVM performed best using the RSSI average, standard deviation, median, interquartile range (IQR) of the RSSI over a 5 s window. The best method can localize people with 97.7% accuracy. We conclude this paper by discussing how our system can impact navigation for BVI users in outdoor and indoor setups and what are the implications of these findings on the design of both wearable and traffic assistive technology for blind pedestrian navigation.

Wearable GPS and Accelerometer Technologies for Monitoring Mobility and Physical Activity in Neurodegenerative Disorders: A Systematic Review.

Neurodegenerative disorders (NDDs) constitute an increasing global burden and can significantly impair an individual's mobility, physical activity (PA), and independence. Remote monitoring has been difficult without relying on diaries/questionnaires which are more challenging for people with dementia to complete. Wearable global positioning system (GPS) sensors and accelerometers present a cost-effective and noninvasive way to passively monitor mobility and PA. In addition, changes in sensor-derived outcomes (such as walking behaviour, sedentary, and active activity) may serve as potential biomarkers of disease onset, progression, and response to treatment. We performed a systematic search across four databases to identify papers published within the past 5 years, in which wearable GPS or accelerometers were used to monitor mobility or PA in patients with common NDDs (Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, motor neuron diseases/amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, vascular parkinsonism, and vascular dementia). Disease and technology-specific vocabulary were searched singly, and then in combination, identifying 4985 papers. Following deduplication, we screened 3115 papers and retained 28 studies following a full text review. One study used wearable GPS and accelerometers, while 27 studies used solely accelerometers in NDDs. GPS-derived measures had been validated against current gold standard measures in one Parkinson's cohort, suggesting that the technology may be applicable to other NDDs. In contrast, accelerometers are widely utilised in NDDs and have been operationalised in well-designed clinical trials.

KnobSlider: Design of a Shape-Changing Parameter Control UI and Study of User Preferences on Its Speed and Tangibility.

Professionals such as sound engineers or aircraft pilots heavily use physical knobs and sliders on their interfaces. The interfaces have advantages over touchscreen interfaces, especially when the users need to quickly and eyes-freely respond to changing situations such as when musicians are improvising, or there is smoke in a cockpit. However, unlike touchscreen interfaces, the physical interfaces are often bulky and crowded and lack of adaptability to user preferences or small spaces. To have advantages from both physical and touchscreen control interfaces, we explore design space of control interfaces and suggest design guidelines in the following steps. We first conduct a formative study with eight professionals who use knobs and sliders. Based on their feedback, we propose design requirements for future parameter control interfaces. We then introduce the design of the KnobSlider, a shape-changing device that combines the advantages of a physical knob and a slider in a time- and space-multiplexing way. To increase users' acceptance on shape-changing control interfaces, we investigate subjective preference on speed of shape-changes by using pairwise comparison with different maximum speeds. We also investigate how tangibility-showing KnobSlider on a video or showing it in the physical world-affects users preference and suggest speed design guidelines for future studies.

Sampling molecular conformations and dynamics in a multiuser virtual reality framework.

We describe a framework for interactive molecular dynamics in a multiuser virtual reality (VR) environment, combining rigorous cloud-mounted atomistic physics simulations with commodity VR hardware, which we have made accessible to readers (see isci.itch.io/nsb-imd). It allows users to visualize and sample, with atomic-level precision, the structures and dynamics of complex molecular structures "on the fly" and to interact with other users in the same virtual environment. A series of controlled studies, in which participants were tasked with a range of molecular manipulation goals (threading methane through a nanotube, changing helical screw sense, and tying a protein knot), quantitatively demonstrate that users within the interactive VR environment can complete sophisticated molecular modeling tasks more quickly than they can using conventional interfaces, especially for molecular pathways and structural transitions whose conformational choreographies are intrinsically three-dimensional. This framework should accelerate progress in nanoscale molecular engineering areas including conformational mapping, drug development, synthetic biology, and catalyst design. More broadly, our findings highlight the potential of VR in scientific domains where three-dimensional dynamics matter, spanning research and education.

The Dibber: Designing a standardised handheld tool for lay-up tasks.

We present an application of engineering and ergonomics principles in the design of a standardised tool, The Dibber, which is a tool with multiple geometric features to fit the diversity of lay-up tasks used in the composites industry. The Dibber is the result of a design process, which consists of a series of observations and prototyping to extract geometric requirements for lay-up tasks. To demonstrate that it is possible to design a standardised tool prototypes of the Dibber were distributed and 91 participants gave feedback. Our results are positive and show consistent patterns of use across industry sectors, as well as between novice and expert laminators.

Quality and impact of information about interventional rheumatology: a study in 119 patients undergoing fluoroscopy-guided procedures.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the quality of patient information about fluoroscopy-guided rheumatologic procedures, and to look for an impact on the patient's experience of the procedure. METHODS: One hundred and nineteen patients completed questionnaires before and after undergoing fluoroscopy-guided interventions. We looked for associations between the information supplied by the rheumatologist who recommended the procedure and pain, anxiety, awareness of potential complications, and the match between patient expectations and actual experience. RESULTS: 62.8% of patients reported receiving information about the procedure. Only 20.5% reported receiving specific information about potential adverse events, although 80.9% felt this information would have been useful. Most patients (74.8%) would have liked to receive additional information. Only 10.1% patients were given written information. Mean (+/-SD) anticipated pain severity as assessed in the waiting room before the procedure on a 0-10 scale was 4.5+/-2.4 in women and 4.2+/-2.3) in men. Actual pain severity during the procedure as assessed on the same scale was 2.7+/-2.6 in women and 2.2+/-1.6 in men. The level of information about the procedure did not influence anticipated or actual pain severity. Anxiety was reported by 59.8% patients and was more common in women (P<0.001), in patients given written information (P=0.05), and in patients undergoing their first intervention (P=0.05). Information was perceived as alleviating anxiety by 69.9% patients, and 77.3% of patients felt they would experience less anxiety if they had the procedure a second time. Only 21.2% patients were able to name a potential adverse event, and this proportion was not influenced by receiving written information. A mismatch between expectations about the procedure or its duration and actual experience was reported by 17 (17/69, 24.6%) and 34 (34/98, 34.7%) patients, respectively, with no significant differences across study subgroups. CONCLUSION: Information about interventional rheumatology procedures is required for ethical principles and legislation. Patients increasingly expect detailed information, which may increase the likelihood that the procedure unfolds smoothly. Our results indicate a need for optimizing patient information. Standardized written material deserves to be evaluated as a means of better meeting the informational needs of patients.

Improvement of Sjögren's syndrome after two infusions of rituximab (anti-CD20).

OBJECTIVE: There is evidence to support a dominant role for B cells in the pathophysiology of primary Sjögren's syndrome (SS). Therefore, we evaluated the safety and efficacy of anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody. METHODS: Sixteen patients who met the new American-European Consensus Group criteria for primary SS and scored >50 on at least 2 of 4 visual analog scales (VAS; 100 mm) evaluating global disease, pain, fatigue, and global dryness received infusions of low-dose rituximab (375 mg/m(2)) at weeks 0 and 1 without steroid premedication. RESULTS: Slow rituximab infusions (100 mg/hour) were well tolerated, with only 1 patient experiencing serum sickness-like disease. There was a dramatic reduction in B cells of the blood and salivary gland (SG). At week 12, VAS scores with respect to fatigue and dryness (P < 0.05), tender point count (P < 0.035), and quality of life as evaluated by the Short Form 36 questionnaire (SF-36; P < 0.001) were significantly improved. At week 36, significant improvements were noted in the 4 VAS scores (P < 0.05), tender joint count (P = 0.017), tender point count (P = 0.027), and SF-36 (P < 0.03). Pulmonary manifestations were ameliorated in 1 patient. Patients with improvements on at least 3 of the 4 VAS scores at any visit (n = 11) had a shorter disease duration than the other patients (n = 5; mean +/- SD duration 3.8 +/- 5.4 versus 30.1 +/- 29.5 years; P = 0.02). CONCLUSION: Low-dose rituximab infusions were well tolerated without the benefit of steroids. Infusions induced a rapid depletion of B cells in the blood and SG and could improve primary SS. Controlled studies are needed.

Investigations for bone metastasis from an unknown primary.

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the respective contributions of various investigations used to identify the primary tumor in a cohort of patients referred for diagnostic evaluation of one or more bone metastases. METHODS: A single-center retrospective study was conducted in a cohort of patients admitted between October 1990 and January 2000 for evaluation of one or more bone metastases with no known primary. All patients underwent radionuclide bone scanning, a chest radiograph, and an abdominal ultrasound scan. Computed tomography (CT) of the chest and abdomen, CT of the brain, and tumor marker assays were performed as clinically indicated. Using the final diagnosis as the reference standard, we evaluated the diagnostic usefulness of each investigation. RESULTS: The 152 patients (104 men and 48 women) had a mean age of 63.5+/-12.5 years. The primary was located in the lung in 37 patients, prostate in 26, breast or female genital tract in 24, urinary system in 11, gastrointestinal tract in 11, head and neck in 6, and other organs in 4. In 33 patients, no primary was identified. The extraskeletal metastases were located chiefly in the liver (20.4%), lung (17.1%), pleura (13.2%), and brain (7.2%). Bone biopsies were performed in 107 patients: 84 had a single bone biopsy, 16 had two bone biopsies, and 7 had three bone biopsies. The first bone biopsy was taken in the rheumatology department with or without fluoroscopic guidance in 62 patients, in the radiology department under CT guidance in 6 patients, and in the surgery department in 32 patients; this information was unavailable for the 7 remaining patients. The first bone biopsy was taken from the iliac bone in 48 patients, spine in 32, sacrum in 10, rib in 3, and other sites in 7. The histological biopsy findings indicated adenocarcinoma in 58 cases, epidermoid carcinoma in 28 cases, undifferentiated carcinoma in 2 cases, and other histological patterns in 9 cases. In 80 patients, another metastatic site was easier to access than the bone metastasis. Tumor marker assays were of limited value for determining the site of the primary, with the exception of prostate-specific antigen. CONCLUSION: Bone biopsies performed by rheumatologists, generally under fluoroscopic guidance, usually indicate the site of the primary or at least the histological type. Tumor markers are often positive but are of limited usefulness for identifying the primary.

Incidence and nature of karate injuries.

OBJECTIVES: To determine the incidence and nature of karate injuries sustained in karate clubs and to identify risk factors for injuries. METHODS: One hundred eighty-six individuals from three karate clubs in Brest, France, were entered in a retrospective study extending from September 2002 to June 2003. Each athlete was asked to complete a questionnaire on karate injuries sustained during the previous year (type, location, mechanism, exercise during which the injury occurred, number of days off training and work, and medical care). Injury types were described by number of injuries and risk factors per number of injured athletes. RESULTS: Forty-eight (28.8%) of the 186 athletes sustained 83 injuries (63 while training and 20 while competing). The annual injury rate was 44.6 per 100 athletes. Incidence rates were similar in males and females and across the three clubs but increased with age, time spent training (3.6+/-1.7 vs. 2.9+/-1.5 h/week; P=0.001), rank (lower ranks vs. brown and black belts, P=0.015), and years of practice (7.3+/-5.5 years in athletes with injuries vs. 5.1+/-4.8 in those without injuries; P=0.03). Injuries consisted of 43 (53%) hematomas, 16 (19%) sprains, seven (7%) muscle lesions, six (7%) fractures, four (5%) malaise episodes, and seven (7%) miscellaneous lesions. Time off training occurred for 26 (31.3%) injuries and ranged from 8 to >30 days. The body region involved was the head in 22 (26.5%) injuries, the torso in eight injuries (9.6%), the upper limb in 24 (28.9%) injuries, and the lower limb in 29 (35%) injuries. CONCLUSION: Karate injuries are fairly common but usually minor. They are more likely to occur during competitions than while training. The head and limbs are the main regions involved. Longer training times per week and higher rank are associated with an increased risk of injury. Prevention seems crucial.