Problem
Many systems have been implemented applying virtual reality concepts on advanced perceptions on e-learning. However, none of these focus on the early stage of development in children. Moreover, it is widely accepted that the emerging technology trends retard the motor skills and fundamental brain development, prospected at the initial growing stages of children.
Therefore, it is necessary to design a system that utilizes the virtual reality implementations for enhancing the initial development and growth of children countering the bad impacts of technology on them.
1.Introduction
Virtual reality technologies have great potential and novel strategies, which are known as “Sensorimotor training in neuron-rehabilitation” [1], [2] can be used to enhance the brain development of the kindergarten children, who are above the age limit between two and four years. Hand and its gestures have a direct connectivity with the brain development [8], [9], [10], which is considered to be the important scaling factor to measure its timely accurate development expected at the prospected age limit.
The brain development is fore mostly measured by the controlling and handling of the commands interpreted by the brain through the real time responding of hands (with their motions done by fingers).
Even though there had been many researches on virtual reality concepts and related brain development, most of them focus E-Learning [1], [2], [3] rather than on the brain development with motor skills of hand (gestures done by fingers) focusing on kindergarten age, which is considered by the specialists as the most important and foremost stage that decides entire growth of life time of a man.
The mechanism that we are going to develop would also counter the idea that the technology hiders the brain development related activities that are considered to be mandatory by the specialists of the relevant area.
The proposed system would execute both virtual reality concepts and brain development strategies of a child at its initial state. This system can be later developed to be a fully functioned E-Learning implementation with all prospected possibilities.
1.1. Why a platform?
The main reason to develop a platform [11] would definitely rely on very purpose of the applicability and the modifications that can be used with the new findings, developments and researched facts to lead the framework for greater advancements in the future.
A software framework is an abstraction in which providing generic functionality can be selectively changed by additional user code. It provides a standard way to build and deploy applications. A software framework is universal and gives a software environment that provides the functionality as part of a larger software platform to facilitate development of software applications, products and solutions.
A software framework may include support programs, compilers, code libraries, tool sets and application programming interfaces (APIs) that bring together all the different components to enable the development of a project or system. We suppose to use a java framework where object oriented programming concepts are applied with and such a framework would contain with,
a. Ready made architecture
b. Set of classes and interfaces
1.2. Main interfaces (Functions) within the platform
For the implementation purpose
- Authentication and establishing the connection of the smart kid hand glove to the framework via Bluetooth.
- Navigation to the preferences of activities provided with the framework.
- Providing the activity interfaces with the preferred selections on a guided background (Basic shapes, lines, curves).
- Compatibility calculation (between real image and the drawn sketch by child) and submission of the evaluation on the child’s performance level.
For the future developments and modification (Essentials of a framework)
- Collection : The root of the collection hierarchy
- List : Extends the collection interface to maintain a sequence of elements that need to be unique.
- Queue : Collection used to hold multiple elements
- De-queue: Collection used to hold multiple elements prior to processing and provides additional insertion, extraction and inspection operations.
- Set : Extends the collection interface and contains a set of unique elements.
- Sorted set: Extends the set interface to provide the required functionality for maintaining a set in which the elements are stored in some sorted order.
- Map : An object that maps keys to values
- Sorted Map: Extends the map interface for maps that maintaining their mapping sorted in key order. m. Iterator Interface : Used to iterate elements of a collection
Reference: http://javaultimate.com/java/collection_introduction.htm
1.3. The reason for developing a smart glove
The main deploying and controlling hands lie with the virtual user inputs to the framework .In order to generate that virtual user inputs and make it inserted to the framework is totally done with the operation of the smart glove that we suppose to develop with IOT technologies [12], [13] and virtual reality concepts.
1.4. The development of the activity evaluation method
An evaluation method is supposed to develop with the framework would follow up the image processing techniques for providing more accurate and correct feedback [14] to the users themselves as a percentage of the compatibility based rating tool.
2. Background and Motivation
Even though there are many aspects and findings of the E-Learning applications with the virtual reality platform [3], there are problem with the prospected consumers and user base, and with the high-end technology used, which leads to a very high market price.
Most of the today’s researched and validated findings are related to usage of virtual reality platform for an effective education [3] and development of effective education platform via the development of brain and neurological senses transmission and conduction [1],[2], yet none of any implementation has been made combining both facts into one implementation.
Some of the important and relative research work done within recent past is as follows.
- Investigation of virtual learning environment in the context of web 2.0-IEEE Conference Publication.[3]
- The research status on virtual reality by using bibliometric analysis-IEEE Conference Publication.[4]
- The Research Status on Virtual Reality by using of bibliometric analysis-IEEE Conference Publication[5]
- A collaborative multi-view virtual environment for molecular visualization and modeling-IEEE Conference Publication.[6]
- An empirical study of virtual learning environment adoption using UTAUT -IEEE Conference Publication.[7]
3. Aims and Objectives
3.1. Project Aim:
The prime aim of this project is to develop a software framework [11] that is controlled by a smart hand glove which interprets hand gestures (fingers) in a virtual reality platform[12], [13], specially focusing on monitoring and developing the prevailing state at the time of consideration of a child. The proposed system activities that would base within the framework are predefined with the expert knowledge gathered through a survey done in the relevant field.
3.2. Project Objectives
- To conduct a survey with to gather accurate information on the activities specified with the learning outcomes and objectives of prospected at kindergarten level.
- To conduct a survey on the software framework developing technologies and languages.
- Finalizing with the activities that are best to be included with the framework.
- Developing the framework.[11]
- Developing an evaluation method with the image processing techniques.[14]
- Developing the smart hand glove.[13]
- Connection configuration of the hand glove with the software framework developed along with the evaluation method.
- Emerging the system in a 3D-Platform.
- Conducting a quality assurance survey with the help of a defined number of children, deploying them in the entire system (framework + Hand Glove) and getting their and their parents feedbacks on the project. .
4. Methodology
The system is going to take the inputs from the user through the hand glove with the functioning of the “Hall Effect” which is generated with the hall sensors and the magnet. This would completely be transmitted via Bluetooth connection that is configured in between the web cam fixed laptop with Bluetooth facility and the Bluetooth module fixed with the hand glove. While this processing happens, the Arduino Uno circuit (IOT Technologies) of the glove would process with the conversion of the analog signal into digital form before sending them into the software framework.
The Insulation of the processed input to the system would then continue with the compatibility checking of the provided activity and the performed activity of the user. In order to do this, the relevant components will be exported to the image processing software/technique, via a special method called by the software itself (defined by the programmer).
According to the manipulated data, the provision of the user with a proper, accurate, analytical and mathematical feedback, embedded with all possible GUI techniques would be returned to the user. The way how it does the feedback displaying would follow up self-addictive strategies based on the surveyed details gathered on the typical child’s mindset and their interests.
The whole system would follow up a virtual, 3D platform/environment in the emerging and functioning.
Hall Effect [8]
If an electric current flows through a conductor in a magnetic field, the magnetic field exerts a transverse force on the moving charge carriers which tends to push them to one side of the conductor. A buildup of charge at the sides of the conductor will balance this magnetic influence, producing a measurable voltage between the two sides of the conductor. The presence of this measurable traverse voltage is called Hall Effect.
Motivational Factors
- Deploying a defined number of users (kids) with the effective involvement of their parents, to get a proper and balanced feedback to check whether the whole system developed supports the project objectives itself.
- Process with the comments of the deployed users and their parents and look into the possible advancements and changes that can be further done with the framework and whole system.
- Conclusion of the project implementation, providing the opportunities for further research work in future on the whole system.
References
[1] Sensorimotor Training in Virtual Reality (Sergei V.Adamovich( PhD), February 2010)
[2] Human Dexterity and Cognition. Chapter
3.1 (Ritter H, 2014)
[3] E-Learning Application of Traiser with
Virtual Reality using Android Platform (H.N Oroh, 2007 January)
[4] Investigation of Virtual Learning
Environment in the Context of Web 2.0 (Mala Pusnik, 2010 March)
[5] The Research Status on Virtual Reality
by using of bibliometric analysis (Tianye Zhang, 2010 June)
[6] A collaborative multi-view virtual
environment for molecular visualization and modeling (J.W Chastine,
2005 July)
[7] An empirical study of virtual learning
environment adoption using UTAUT (Bostjan Sumak, 2010 March)
[8] Hall Effect- Hyper
Physics
[9] Evolution of the
human hand: The role of throwing and clubbing (WYoung, 2002
November 22)
[10] Brain Development in
rodents and humans: Identifying benchmark of maturation and vulnerability to
injury across species. (Bridgette
D.Semple, 2013 April 11)
[11]Spring –The source
for modern Java Frameworks
[12] Making switches
smarter with true micro power “Hall Effect” sensors-Natural Language is
the new user interface.
[13] Hall sensors tech
goes modern for IOT and Automotive market
[14] Which is better for
more efficient and quicker Image – Processing MATLAB, OpenCV or Octave?
M.T.V.V. Perera
ICT/2014/2015/029
