project topic proposal
Project Topic Proposal: 3D Manipulation of Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFG) with Kinect
05/01/11 12:08 Filed in: 484
This is a project with Dr. David Marshall from the Aerospace Engineering department. He has a Microsoft Kinect and other equipment available for this project. Since the project also incorporates aspects relevant for other courses (parallel processing, graphics, I’m open to proposals that span those courses as well. The following is an excerpt from Dr. Marshall’s email describing the project.
The basic project that I am starting is to use CFD algorithms to perform simulations of galaxy formation/evolution and related astrodynamical flows. I have a couple of very motivated students that want to work on this, and this has been a background interest of mine for a while. [...]
There are two parts to this project. One is the computation of the simulations. We were looking at purchasing a GPU cluster for this to see what kind of parallel computing algorithms we can apply to CFD and GPU. [...]
The other part of this project is the post-processing part. This work would be focused on developing software to do 3D visualization of the galaxy formation datasets (as well as other CFD datasets that my research group generates). I just purchased a 55" LED 3D TV to use as the 3D visualization architecture. I also wanted to see how we could use an Xbox Kinect as an interface to the visualization environment.
The basic project that I am starting is to use CFD algorithms to perform simulations of galaxy formation/evolution and related astrodynamical flows. I have a couple of very motivated students that want to work on this, and this has been a background interest of mine for a while. [...]
There are two parts to this project. One is the computation of the simulations. We were looking at purchasing a GPU cluster for this to see what kind of parallel computing algorithms we can apply to CFD and GPU. [...]
The other part of this project is the post-processing part. This work would be focused on developing software to do 3D visualization of the galaxy formation datasets (as well as other CFD datasets that my research group generates). I just purchased a 55" LED 3D TV to use as the 3D visualization architecture. I also wanted to see how we could use an Xbox Kinect as an interface to the visualization environment.
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Project Topic Proposal: Evaluation Methods for Mobile Devices
05/01/11 12:07 Filed in: 484
Since mobile devices with significant computational power have not been around that long, there is little experience with usability evaluation methods for such devices. I’m not sure if it’s suitable for a project in this class, but it would be interesting to do a survey of such methods, and maybe come up with a more generic framework.
Project Topic Proposal: Interaction Spaces
05/01/11 12:06 Filed in: 484
Interaction Spaces
I’m working with researchers from the University of Bremen, Germany, on a few projects related to “Spatial Cognition”, which investigates how human and computer-based agents deal with and communicate about spatial aspects of the world. While this is mostly related to AI, there are also possibilities for projects in this class. This might be especially interesting for students taking both classes, and would also be an excellent preparation for a possible summer internship in Bremen. Below is the abstract of a paper that we will present at the AAAI Spring Symposium Series in March at Stanford University.
“While computers assist humans with tasks such as navigation that involve spatial aspects, agents that can interact in a meaningful way in this context are still in their infancy. One core issue is the mismatch in the representation of spatial information a computer-based system is likely to use, and the one a human is likely to use. Computers are better suited for quantitative schemes such as maps or diagrams that rely on measurable distances between entities. Humans frequently use higher-level, domain-specific conceptual representations such as buildings, rooms, or streets for orientation purposes. Combined with the person-centric world view that we often assume when we refer to spatial information, it is challenging for agents to convert statements using spatial references into assertions that match their own internal representation. In this paper, we discuss an approach that uses natural language processing and information extraction tool kits to identify en- tities and statements about their spatial relations. These extractions are then processed by a spatial reasoner to convert them from the human conceptual space into the quantitative space used by the computer-based agent.”
I’m working with researchers from the University of Bremen, Germany, on a few projects related to “Spatial Cognition”, which investigates how human and computer-based agents deal with and communicate about spatial aspects of the world. While this is mostly related to AI, there are also possibilities for projects in this class. This might be especially interesting for students taking both classes, and would also be an excellent preparation for a possible summer internship in Bremen. Below is the abstract of a paper that we will present at the AAAI Spring Symposium Series in March at Stanford University.
“While computers assist humans with tasks such as navigation that involve spatial aspects, agents that can interact in a meaningful way in this context are still in their infancy. One core issue is the mismatch in the representation of spatial information a computer-based system is likely to use, and the one a human is likely to use. Computers are better suited for quantitative schemes such as maps or diagrams that rely on measurable distances between entities. Humans frequently use higher-level, domain-specific conceptual representations such as buildings, rooms, or streets for orientation purposes. Combined with the person-centric world view that we often assume when we refer to spatial information, it is challenging for agents to convert statements using spatial references into assertions that match their own internal representation. In this paper, we discuss an approach that uses natural language processing and information extraction tool kits to identify en- tities and statements about their spatial relations. These extractions are then processed by a spatial reasoner to convert them from the human conceptual space into the quantitative space used by the computer-based agent.”
Project Topic Proposal: Touch Feedback for Materials Data Base
05/01/11 12:05 Filed in: 484
Use of a haptic mouse (with touch-based feedback) to give users the ability to feel the objects in a database of materials created by Dr. Robert Arens from Architecture Engineering. The Materials Collection for the the Architecture-Engineering-Construction industry is planned to have two related components: a physical collection located in Cal Poly's CAED MRC (Materials Resource Center) and a searchable database. The physical collection allows easy access to specific products or simply browsing the shelves and exploring the sensory world of materials. Samples may be checked out for student use. Every material or product in our physical collection has a barcode that potentially links it to a searchable database. The database will provide basic information and links to more in-depth information that enables thoughtful and informed selection of materials.
Project Topic Proposal: Brain-Computer Interfaces
05/01/11 12:05 Filed in: 484
I have several BCI devices (one Emotiv Epoch head set, and a few OCZ NIAs) that, in principle, can be used for interaction with a computer. In practice, however, the cheap ones we can afford have serious limitations - they are difficult to calibrate and set up correctly, and do not work reliably. Students have used these before with mixed results, so the emphasis here will have to be more on the conceptual exploration of what could be done with such devices, and less on using the devices for a working system.
For more information on the experiences with previous projects, see
For more information on the experiences with previous projects, see
- M. Murray: https://wiki.csc.calpoly.edu/BCI-Prosthesis (Epoch)
- 480 Team 2: Maria and Luicia Teach Brain Waves (Epoch)
- 480 Team 3: Brain-Computer Interface B (Epoch)
- B. Reynolds Brain-Computer Interface (NIA)
- J. DeWan Brain-Computer Interface (NIA)
Project Topic Proposal: Xbox Kinect for gesture- and voice-based interaction
05/01/11 12:03 Filed in: 484
I have one Xbox/Kinect combination, and possibly another Kinect that could be used for a project. There are a few topics that I've been toying with, but haven't given much thought yet. If you have an interesting idea, let me know. There are plenty of hacks out there for inspiration (http://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en&q=xbox+kinect+hack&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8), but the emphasis for this class should be on interaction methods, not on the actual implementation.
Project Topic Discussions
05/01/11 11:59 Filed in: 484
I just realized that we could use the Comments feature of these pages for additional project proposals and discussions of the topic I mentioned yesterday. So I’m going to create a new entry for each topic. Please add a comment if the topic sounds interesting to you (this does not constitute a commitment to actually select it), or if you have questions.
I’ll also create another entry for additional project ideas. If you have one, add it there as a comment.
I’ll also create another entry for additional project ideas. If you have one, add it there as a comment.
Project Topic Proposal: Usability Considerations for Repair Manuals
05/01/11 12:08 Filed in: 484
iFixit, a company co-founded by another CSC Alum, has recently provided the infrastructure for a user-generated collection of instructions to repair all kinds of devices. There is an API to access the information about repairs. There are several opportunities for projects related to this:
- evaluation of their current design (generic Web page, iFixit iPad app)
- design and development of new interfaces, possibly on other platforms or devices
- consideration of usage in situation with limited interaction options (e.g. voice-based interaction to have the hands free for the repair)