Proposal and Integration of Functionalities for an Assistive Platform in Complex Indoor Environments

The objective of this work is the proposal of a new navigation algorithm and its integration in a platform that is already designed and built, improving the functionality of the robot in order to patrol complex indoor environments. This patrol contains various features related to the navigation and the localization of the platform using a particle filter that allows the robot to move autonomously through the environment with the data obtained from an RGB-D camera and LIDAR. The navigation algorithm is adapted dynamically in real-time using the well-known CNN real-time object detector You Only Look Once (YOLOv3), which we have retrained with our own database. The platform detects standing and fallen people. Additionally, it registers people using a specific face recognition convolutional neural network. All these functionalities are controlled and centralized in a friendly user interface that appears on the robot’s touch screen and a voice service model is also used.

Proactive Complaint Management: Effects of Customer Voice Initiation on Perceived Justices, Satisfaction, and Negative Word-of-Mouth

Customer complaint or customer voice has been recognized as a key response to service failure that activates service recovery. This study aims at investigating how managing customer voice affects service recovery evaluation. Building on the concept of initiation, this study conceptualizes three conditions of service recovery, namely, service recovery based on customer-initiated voice, service recovery based on firm-initiated voice, and service recovery based on no voice. Using an experimental design, the present study investigates how customer evaluations of service recovery vary across voice initiation conditions. The multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA) reveals that firm-initiated voice, compared with customer-initiated voice, elevates customer perceived justice and satisfaction while diminishing negative word-of-mouth intention. The research findings emphasize the necessity to activate customer’s voice following a service encounter so that service failure can be identified and addressed, which helps in improving customer evaluation of service recovery attempts.

Development of Smart Librarian with the Virtual Assistant (PRIMO)

In modern life, with the ability to perform tasks, the virtual assistant (VA) can make our lives easier and smart. The virtual assistant can perform as a librarian, very smartly, and effectively. We build our VA with Raspberry Pi and Alexa Voice Service. As a result, few discussions that occur in library environments such as find books, short review books, university notice are accurately performed. The common way of communication used by people in day to day life is through speech. If the assistant system can be heard to the customer for the handle of the day to day affairs, then grant the right reply, it will be much simple for customers to transmit with their assistant system, and the assistant will be much better “Smart” as a personal assistant. We heard a very old story “Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves”, where the mouth of a treasure cave secured by magic. It unrolls on the words "unroll sesame" and seals itself on the words "near sesame". The magic is a VA in the modern world. The VA system built on artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning, natural language processing, and voice recognition technology.

Physician-user interaction and users' perceived service quality: evidence from Chinese mobile healthcare consultation

PurposeThe significance of physician-user interaction has been widely acknowledged in offline and online healthcare consultation. However, limited attempts have been made to explore the influence of physician-user interaction on users' perceived service quality (PSQ) in the mobile context. Based on the literature on physician-user interaction and media synchronicity theory, this study proposes a theoretical model where the interactive factors common across the offline, online and mobile context, i.e. physicians' informational support and emotional support, the interactive factors unique in the mobile context, i.e. physicians' response speed and voice service, and the interaction between the two categories of interactive factors predict users' PSQ in mobile consultation.Design/methodology/approachThis study collects consultation records between 25,225 users and 738 physicians from a leading Chinese mobile consultation application, and employs linear regression to verify the proposed theoretical model.FindingsPhysicians' informational, emotional support, response speed and voice service are found to have significant positive impacts on users' PSQ. Besides, physicians' response speed strengthens the positive impacts of physicians' informational and emotional support on users' PSQ, while physicians' voice service weakens the positive link between physicians' informational support on users' PSQ.Originality/valueThis study contributes to the antecedents for users' PSQ in mobile consultation by identifying unique interactive factors in the mobile context, and highlighting the individual and interaction effects of different physician-user interactive factors. Besides, this study employs novel methods, which leverages text classification and text pattern recognition to more accurately depict physicians' online behaviors based on objective communication records.

A Voice-Enabled Game Based Learning Application using Amazon's Echo with Alexa Voice Service: A Game Regarding Geographic Facts About Austria and Europe

An educational, interactive Amazon Alexa Skill called “Österreich und Europa Spiel / Austria and Europe Game” was developed at Graz University of Technology for a German as well as English speaking audience. This Skills intent is to assist learning geographic facts about Austria as well as Europe by interaction via voice controls with the device. The main research question was if an educational, interactive speech assistant application could be made in a way such that both under-age and full age subjects would be able to use it, enjoy the Game Based Learning experience overall and be assisted learning about the Geography of Austria and Europe. The Amazon Alexa Skill was tested for the first time in a class with 16 students at lower secondary school level. Two further tests were done with a total of five adult participants. After the tests the participants opinion was determined via a questionnaire. The evaluation of the tests suggests that the game indeed gives an additional motivational factor in learning Geography.

Table Teacher: Voice Based Application for Learning Tables using Amazon Alexa

With the evolution of sophisticated NLP algorithms and cloud based solutions, virtual assistants started to reach every home and office in the city. This paper proposes a technique for teaching basic mathematical tables for kids. The device will ask the questions and expect the answer in number format in return. The input received from the kid will be processed and validated. In case of correct answer, the next question will be asked. If answer is wrong, the kid is suitably notified. This ability to interact with the device in natural form like voice would keep the kid engaged to the process of learning. Proposed skill is available for enabling for all the echo family users and the result of customers using the skill is analyzed. The skill used AWS server less service Lambda as backend and Amazon Voice Service for front-end.