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This paper aims to develop a wearable-based human-manipulator interface which integrates the interval Kalman filter (IKF), unscented Kalman filter (UKF), over damping method (ODM) and adaptive multispace transformation (AMT) to perform immersive human-manipulator interaction by interacting the natural and continuous motion of the human operator’s hand with the robot manipulator.

The interface requires that a wearable watch is tightly worn on the operator’s hand to track the continuous movements of the operator’s hand. Nevertheless, the measurement errors generated by the sensor error and tracking failure signicantly occur several times, which means that the measurement is not determined with sufficient accuracy. Due to this fact, IKF and UKF are used to compensate for the noisy and incomplete measurements, and ODM is established to eliminate the influence of the error signals like data jitter. Furthermore, to be subject to the inherent perceptive limitations of the human operator and the motor, AMT that focuses on a secondary treatment is also introduced.

Experimental studies on the GOOGOL GRB3016 robot show that such a wearable-based interface that incorporates the feedback mechanism and hybrid filters can operate the robot manipulator more flexibly and advantageously even if the operator is nonprofessional; the feedback mechanism introduced here can successfully assist in improving the performance of the interface.

The interface uses one wearable watch to simultaneously track the orientation and position of the operator’s hand; it is not only avoids problems of occlusion, identification and limited operating space, but also realizes a kind of two-way human-manipulator interaction, a feedback mechanism can be triggered in the watch to reflect the system states in real time. Furthermore, the interface gets rid of the synchronization question in posture estimation, as hybrid filters work independently to compensate the noisy measurements respectively.

This paper aims to present an intuitive control system for robotic manipulators that pairs a Leap Motion, a low-cost optical tracking and gesture recognition device, with the ability to record and replay trajectories and operation to create an intuitive method of controlling and programming a robotic manipulator. This system was designed to be extensible and includes modules and methods for obstacle detection and dynamic trajectory modification for obstacle avoidance.

The presented control architecture, while portable to any robotic platform, was designed to actuate a six degree-of-freedom robotic manipulator of our own design. From the data collected by the Leap Motion, the manipulator was controlled by mapping the position and orientation of the human hand to values in the joint space of the robot. Additional recording and playback functionality was implemented to allow for the robot to repeat the desired tasks once the task had been demonstrated and recorded.

Experiments were conducted on our custom-built robotic manipulator by first using a simulation model to characterize and quantify the robot’s tracking of the Leap Motion generated trajectory. Tests were conducted in the Gazebo simulation software in conjunction with Robot Operating System, where results were collected by recording both the real-time input from the Leap Motion sensor, and the corresponding pose data. The results of these experiments show that the goal of accurate and real-time control of the robot was achieved and validated our methods of transcribing, recording and repeating six degree-of-freedom trajectories from the Leap Motion camera.

As robots evolve in complexity, the methods of programming them need to evolve to become more intuitive. Humans instinctively teach by demonstrating the task to a given subject, who then observes the various poses and tries to replicate the motions. This work aims to integrate the natural human teaching methods into robotics programming through an intuitive, demonstration-based programming method.

The aim of this paper is to present a novel methodology which incorporates Camshift, Kalman filter (KFs) and adaptive multi-space transformation (AMT) for a human-robot interface, which perfects human intelligence and teleoperation.

In the proposed method, an inertial measurement unit is used to measure the orientation of the human hand, and a Camshift algorithm is used to track the human hand using a three-dimensional camera. Although the location and the orientation of the human can be obtained from the two sensors, the measurement error increases over time due to the noise of the devices and the tracking errors. KFs are used to estimate the location and the orientation of the human hand. Moreover, to be subject to the perceptive limitations and the motor limitations, human operator is hard to carry out the high precision operation. An AMT method is proposed to assist the operator to improve accuracy and reliability in determining the pose of the robot.

The experimental results show that this method would not hinder most natural human-limb motion and allows the operator to concentrate on his/her own task. Compared with the non-contacting marker-less method (Kofman et al., 2007), this method proves more accurate and stable.

The human-robot interface system was experimentally verified in a laboratory environment, and the results indicate that such a system can complete high-precision manipulation efficiently.

The purpose of this paper is to develop a framework on how to deal with stressors emerging from the COVID-19 outbreak. The theoretical framework aims to explain pandemic-related stressors and potential ways to prevent them, considering a wide range of interacting factors at individual, team and organizational levels to ensure their employees’ health.

The authors drew on an integrative literature review to identify pandemic-related stressors influenceable by the organization and gathered solution approaches to counteract them. Popular psychological stress theories served as a theoretical base for the framework.

The authors based the framework on an integration of the transactional stress theory (Lazarus and Folkman, 1984) and the job demands resources model (Schaufeli and Bakker, 2004), focusing on their respective theoretical strengths. The final framework offers a solid orientation for scholars regarding the introduction of holistic and strategic measures in coping with pandemic-related stressors. A section describing possibilities for practitioners’ use of the framework has been integrated.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first to offer a framework on how to handle COVID-19-related stressors in the workplace by implementing teamwide and companywide measures.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the ability of “adaptable buildings” to respond to future potential built environment changes in sustainable way.

A detailed literature review and a case study were undertaken to identify the life cycle changes of typical buildings over a period of more than 100 years. In total, 12 semi-structured interviews were conducted among construction industry professionals to identify how adaptable buildings enhance sustainability within the built environment. Case study data were analysed through a Morphological Analysis, and the interview data were analysed through discourse analysis.

Out of the many adaptable features, the results revealed “change of use” as the dominant trend within the buildings of the selected urban cluster. More than 60 per cent of buildings have changed their original use during their life cycle. Around 10 per cent of them have changed their use frequently (every six year) during the last 20 years thereby signalling an increase in the rate of change. The positive contribution of adaptable buildings in achieving sustainability in terms of economic, social and environmental considerations, were confirmed through the analysis of semi-structured interviews.

This paper reports a longitudinal study spanning over 100 years, exploring the extent of building adaptation within a selected cluster of Liverpool city centre, UK. The study further confirms the need to incorporate adaptability as a key criterion when designing buildings. The increased rate at which “change of use” has occurred further reinforces the need. Lack of a track record of designing for reuse makes this an interesting challenge for the construction industry, hence likely to have significant implications for policy/strategy formulation.

This paper provides a critical review of developments in the adaptability of buildings. The purpose of this paper is to determine the current “state-of-the-art”, describe current thinking and trends in research and practice, and identify issues and gaps that further research can address. It provides a basis for a scientific and practical understanding of the interdependencies across different design criterion. This paper increases the awareness of architects, engineers, clients and users on the importance of adaptability and its role in lowering impacts over the lifecycle of buildings as part of the infrastructure system.

This paper draws mainly from the literature as its source of evidence. These were identified from established databases and search engines (e.g. Scopus, ISI Web of Knowledge and Google Scholar) using keywords such as adaptability, adaptable, adaptation, and flexibility. Over 80 sources including books, journal papers, conference proceedings, research reports and doctoral theses covering the period 1990 to 2017 were reviewed and categorised. An inductive approach was used to critically review and categorise these publications and develop a framework for analysis.

The concept of adaptability includes many dimensions which can broadly fall into two categories: changes to buildings and user adaptations to buildings. However, previous research has mostly focussed on the former, with many attempts to identify building attributes that facilitate adaptability, and some considerations for its assessment. Key areas that have not been adequately addressed and which require further research include: user/occupant adaptations, cost, benefits and implications of various adaptability measures, and the development of a standardised assessment methodology that could aid in decision making in the design stage of buildings.

The adaptability strategies considered in this review focussed mainly on building components and systems, and did not include the contribution of intelligent and smart/biological systems. The coverage is further limited in scope due to the period considered (1990-2017) and the exclusion of terms such as “retrofit” and “refurbishment” from the review. However, the findings provide a solid basis for further research in the areas identified above. It identifies research issues and gaps in knowledge between the defined needs and current state-of-the-art on adaptive building for both research and practice.

This paper is a review of research into a highly topical subject, given the acknowledged need to adapt buildings over their lifecycle to environmental, economic or social changes. It provides further insights on the dimensions of adaptability and identifies areas for further research that will contribute to the development of robust tools for the assessment of building adaptability, which will enhance the decision-making process of building design and the development of a more sustainable built environment.