Design Of Consumer Electronics Research Articles

Applications of affordance and cognitive ergonomics in virtual design: A digital camera as an illustrative case

Affordance-based design (ABD) plays an important role in identifying interactions, especially effortless ones, between users and artifacts. Cognitive ergonomics extends our understanding of this effortless interaction. This study combines the two design methodologies together in order to reduce cognitive friction in using digital products. The design process of a compact digital camera is selected as a case study that includes the design of the physical shape for a camera and of its user interface. In designing a product shape, a design toolbox was developed that integrated a modified multi-objective genetic algorithm and the ABD, which was named as affordance-based interactive genetic algorithm. Using this toolbox and interactive user feedback, the camera design evolves toward a product that better satisfies the users. User interfaces (UIs) including linear and elliptic layouts were subsequently designed based on cognitive ergonomics. A predictive tool of UI, the Cog Tool, was used to evaluate the performance of skilled users on a given task by correlating the overall task completion time. Finally, this research has the potential to not only effectively address the shortcomings of the design of consumer electronics but also enrich the generation of design solutions during the preliminary design phase of such products.

On the Effect of Training Convolution Neural Network for Millimeter-Wave Radar-Based Hand Gesture Recognition.

The purpose of this paper was to investigate the effect of a training state-of-the-art convolution neural network (CNN) for millimeter-wave radar-based hand gesture recognition (MR-HGR). Focusing on the small training dataset problem in MR-HGR, this paper first proposed to transfer the knowledge with the CNN models in computer vision to MR-HGR by fine-tuning the models with radar data samples. Meanwhile, for the different data modality in MR-HGR, a parameterized representation of temporal space-velocity (TSV) spectrogram was proposed as an integrated data modality of the time-evolving hand gesture features in the radar echo signals. The TSV spectrograms representing six common gestures in human–computer interaction (HCI) from nine volunteers were used as the data samples in the experiment. The evaluated models included ResNet with 50, 101, and 152 layers, DenseNet with 121, 161 and 169 layers, as well as light-weight MobileNet V2 and ShuffleNet V2, mostly proposed by many latest publications. In the experiment, not only self-testing (ST), but also more persuasive cross-testing (CT), were implemented to evaluate whether the fine-tuned models generalize to the radar data samples. The CT results show that the best fine-tuned models can reach to an average accuracy higher than 93% with a comparable ST average accuracy almost 100%. Moreover, in order to alleviate the problem caused by private gesture habits, an auxiliary test was performed by augmenting four shots of the gestures with the heaviest misclassifications into the training set. This enriching test is similar with the scenario that a tablet reacts to a new user. The results of two different volunteer in the enriching test shows that the average accuracy of the enriched gesture can be improved from 55.59% and 65.58% to 90.66% and 95.95% respectively. Compared with some baseline work in MR-HGR, the investigation by this paper can be beneficial in promoting MR-HGR in future industry applications and consumer electronic design.

Sound quality design of consumer electronics based on requirement analysis considering use case (Design information management using multidomain matrix)

Sound quality design of consumer electronics based on requirement analysis considering use case (Design information management using multidomain matrix)

The Design and Experiments of A SID-Based Power-Aware Simulator for Embedded Multicore Systems

Embedded multicore systems are playing increasingly important roles in the design of consumer electronics. The objective of such systems is to optimize both performance and power characteristics of mobile devices. However, currently there are no power metrics supporting popular application design platforms (such as SID) that application developers use to develop their applications. This hinders the ability of application developers to optimize power consumption. In this article we present the design and experiments of a SID-based power-aware simulation framework for embedded multicore systems. The proposed power estimation flow includes two phases: IP-level power modeling and power-aware system simulation. The first phase employs PowerMixer IP to construct the power model for the processor IP and other major IPs, while the second phase involves a power abstract interpretation method for summarizing the simulation trace, then, with a CPE module, estimating the power consumption based on the summarized trace information and the input of IP power models. In addition, a Manager component is devised to map each digital signal processor (DSP) component to a host thread and maintain the access to shared resources. The aim is to maintain the simulation performance as the number of simulated DSP components increases. A power-profiling API is also supported that developers of embedded software can use to tune the granularity of power-profiling for a specific code section of the target application. We demonstrate via case studies and experiments how application developers can use our SID-based power simulator for optimizing the power consumption of their applications. We characterize the power consumption of DSP applications with the DSPstone benchmark and discuss how compiler optimization levels with SIMD intrinsics influence the performance and power consumption. A histogram application and an augmented-reality application based on human-face-based RMS (recognition, mining, and synthesis) application are deployed as running examples on multicore systems to demonstrate how our power simulator can be used by developers in the optimization process to illustrate different views of power dissipations of applications.

A Prototype-Based Gate-Level Cycle-Accurate Methodology for SoC Performance Exploration and Estimation

A prototype-based SoC performance estimation methodology was proposed for consumer electronics design. Traditionally, prototypes are usually used in system verification before SoC tapeout, which is without accurate SoC performance exploration and estimation. This paper attempted to carefully model the SoC prototype as a performance estimator and explore the environment of SoC performance. The prototype met the gate-level cycle-accurate requirement, which covered the effect of embedded processor, on-chip bus structure, IP design, embedded OS, GUI systems, and application programs. The prototype configuration, chip post-layout simulation result, and the measured parameters of SoC prototypes were merged to model a target SoC design. The system performance was examined according to the proposed estimation models, the profiling result of the application programs ported on prototypes, and the timing parameters from the post-layout simulation of the target SoC. The experimental result showed that the proposed method was accompanied with only an average of 2.08% of error for an MPEG-4 decoder SoC at simple profile level 2 specifications.

A Module Design Approach Using Structural and Functional Modeling for Distributed Consumer Electronics Design Project

This paper describes the utilization of the product model by SysML as a joint platform for distributed design. We introduce a typical design process involving distributed design teams. In particular, this process allows a thermal design of cavities, i.e., air space inside the enclosure, in terms of flow rate, acoustic radiation resistance and so on. Then, we investigate a module-based design optimization approach defining cavity as a module to efficiently support such processes. Authors propose structural and functional modeling that enables all the distributed design sites to share the design information with the product model. Using this design framework, it will be possible to prevent performance defects due to physical coupling between modules, and thus, reduce the iteration of work.

Automatic 3D measuring system for optical scanning of axial fan blades

Consumer electronics are ever more sophisticated in terms of esthetics and design. Due to mass production, the required sampling quantity for quality inspection of products has surged considerably. As such, learning how to utilize the appropriate device and methodology to accomplish free-form surface measuring in an efficient, precise, and timely way has become a very important topic for quality control of the design of consumer electronics. Focusing on the overlap interference problem of fan blades produced in the axial fan blades, this research proposes a geometric calculation algorithm and calculates the suitable measuring orientation, which can be used to evade the interference area of the surface of each fan blade, so as to achieve the objective of automatic measuring. Meanwhile, this research develops a visual software system to simulate the actual optical scanning orientation of non-contact measuring, intending to let users observe the optical scanning orientation of fan blades and estimate the measuring results through the simulated images. Finally, by the way of real measuring, this paper proves the feasibility and convenience of this research.

What we'll wear

We're all going to end up wearing more technology, but how will it be organised. In previous columns I have written about the design of consumer electronics devices and gadgets. However, while I am a research scientist, I am also a futurologist, so I want to look a bit further into the future of devices this time, with a particular emphasis on the wearable possibilities. How might we embrace more natural and integrated methods of interacting with gadgets of the future? What benefits and disadvantages might this bring? There are already plenty of ways for people to wear electronics. In Japan (more so than in Europe), the humble mobile phone is more likely to be worn on a lanyard around the neck as an explicit and colour-coordinated fashion accessory than to be tucked away in a bag or pocket as is often the case in Europe. Many business users of BlackBerries will have their device, perhaps among many others, clipped to their belt in its plastic holster, with some actually feeling quite vulnerable if it isn't there. Apple's first iPod Shuffle was designed to be worn around the neck and the later, smaller edition was fitted with a clip. Under the careful guidance of its producer and designer, the iPod has spawned a whole ecosystem of accessories. The now iconic white ear-buds were designed to be seen and to stand out as people wore them. The telltale sign of white wires leading to someone's ears did more to market the world leader in music players than any more discreet wireless ear-buds could have. Among the iPod accessory ecosystem are a number of items of clothing, including jackets. The jackets not only have a dedicated pocket to keep the music player safe, but also buttons and sometimes a display woven into the sleeve so that the player can be controlled without removing it. The ear-buds may also be integrated into the clothing. These are the early days of wearable technology, when the smart materials industry is in its infancy. We'll reach a point when the task of making ever-more complex consumer electronics devices simple to use will need to go beyond single areas of evolutionary improvement, such as a touch and point mechanism for the user interface. Designers will need to think again about the whole device, how it presents ideas to the user, and how it fits into people's lives. One way that this will be possible is for the functions to be spread across a number of cooperating parts, each of which are individually simple, but which together provide more value to a user than simply the sum of the parts. This will be supported by high-bandwidth, short-range wireless technologies. And many of these device parts will be wearable in future. So it's possible to imagine a world in which the key identity authentication function is provided by a device that is very discretely and securely worn on, or even within, the human body. The display might be provided by special glasses that the user wears as normal spectacles, or even as active contact lenses projecting directly onto the retina. Gestures may be sensed by the clothing we wear and used to control some applications. Progress is already being made in understanding signals from the brain, in controlling artificial limbs for example it's not a great leap from this to thinking about what you want other devices to do and for them to be able to respond In the shorter term, we may find jewellers providing the initial high-end forays into wearable device parts. Earrings are an obvious candidate to become handy speakers, and a necklace might make a good candidate for a microphone and camera. Maybe a ring on the finger could provide authentication and secure storage, or even a direction indicator for navigational purposes? A few issues need to be overcome to make wearable devices practical, in addition to achieving their cultural acceptance. Wearing your gadgetry might be very convenient, but may also be very inconvenient when dressing in the morning. The materials must provide instant snap-on wireless connectivity because, apart from the most incurable technophile, wiring yourself up each time you dress is not an option. And there are lesser aspects of waterproofing and washability to deal with. Combined with, or maybe being borne out of, the inevitable expansion of ubiquitous sensor networks, perhaps beginning with RFID use after the clothing has been purchased, humans will wear increasing amounts of technology. Let's hope that the winners in the design of wearable technologies are more like those who created the iPod than those behind many of the other products that have hit the streets in recent years or we could be wearing some very strange stuff indeed.

A “hands-on” course in consumer electronics design

There is still a large gap between the academic design approach taught to our students and the real world of competitive product design. In spite of program upgrades which heavily emphasize design, the termination of many of our students advanced design projects is still a maze of breadboards connected together with wires which randomly wander off to input sensors or output displays. Clearly, there is a big step missing between the disorganized connection of components which concludes a design project, and the sleek, injection molded, Sony Discman that is playing in the design laboratory beside the workbench. In an effort to close the gap between engineering education and modern consumer electronics product design, the Department of Electrical Engineering at the University of Washington has initiated a “reverse-engineering” course in Consumer Electronics. The first offering of the course was made during Winter 1994 as part of the College of Engineering honors program.