Online Assistance Research Articles

Assisting the “virtual” user

The development of online assistance for remote users of computer-based systems depends upon the assumptions made about the barriers users face and about the available strategies for addressing them. Drawing from the domain of digital libraries and information discovery and retrieval, this commentary speculates about missed opportunities hidden by those assumptions. Critical questions about strategies to remove user barriers, to guide users past barriers, and to help educate users to anticipate and independently overcome barriers suggest transitions for online user assistance technologies that could take the form of "confusion recognizers," "assistance avatars," and "pedagogically aware" user interfaces.

An electronic case manager for diabetes control.

To evaluate the usage and safety of an electronic case manager (ECM) system designed to facilitate the task of glycemic control. Sustained improvement in blood glucose control is the proven treatment outcome that will reduce or eliminate the long-term complications of diabetes. A customized microcomputer system served as the ECM. Located at the clinic, this voice-interactive system required the remote patient to need only a touch-tone telephone. Patients accessed the system to report daily self-measured glucose levels or hypoglycemic symptoms together with associated lifestyle events. System beta-testing was in an open-case series (n = 184) in an academic diabetes center with the goal of evaluating the ECM in terms of utilization, frequency of crises, and fiscal matters. Of the patients, 58% (n = 107) actively used the ECM for their daily diabetes care, accumulating 788 patient-months of follow-up. Over 45,000 telephone calls were received by the ECM during the start-up year. Each call was processed instantly and automatically. Patients benefited from having 24-h access to the ECM. Prevalence of diabetes-related crises (hyperglycemia > 400 mg/dl [22 mmol/l] or hypoglycemia < 50 mg/dl [2.8 mmol/l]) decreased approximately threefold (P < 0.05), with a concomitant statistically significant decrease in HbA1c of 0.8% at 6 months (n = 45, P = 0.024) and 0.9% at 12 months (n = 30, P = 0.044). The ECM provided 24-h on-line assistance in adjusting daily insulin and/or tablet therapy, automatic generation of standardized medical reports, electronic medical-legal documentation, as well as a marked reduction in the time spent on the phone with patients. Clinic visits in managing complex diabetes were reduced approximately twofold (P < 0.0001), and the effort spent by case managers was estimated. Patients with diabetes who accessed the ECM system received timely, cost-effective, and reliable medical intervention. This reduced the incidence of diabetic crises and the need for frequent clinic visits. The ECM empowers case managers to provide safer and superior diabetes care.

On-Line Assistance for Crane Operators

Safety is considered to be the most critical issue in the success of any lift operation. However, crane accidents involving tragic deaths of innocent people and destruction of property do occur. The number of accidents has decreased, only after the implementation of strict regulations by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). Repeated boom failure accidents of truck cranes used by the Bridge Maintenance Unit from the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NC DOT) triggered the research study described in this paper. Throughout the summer of 1994, the Bridge Maintenance Division of NC DOT recorded four accidents involving serious damage to their fleet of 64 National Series 446A truck mounted hydraulic cranes. The accidents involved bending of telescopic booms as well as turret drive gear failures. The repair of a bent boom alone can cost up to $16,000 in replacement parts, without considering all the costs of labor and overhead. The main objective of this research project was to develop and test an intelligent monitoring system that could be used to retrofit existing crane hardware. It was shown how a set of sensors and special devices were built and electronically integrated using an analog/digital converter and a laptop computer. Experimental work with a fully operational crane provided the necessary data to build a feature-based state identification system. Using a set of data collected during the experiments the paper demonstrates how sensory patterns can be recognized that lead to the identification of dangerous states.

ON-LINE AUTOMATIC HELP GENERATION SYSTEMS

The design of good user interfaces enhances the acceptance and use of computers, basically in environments in which their users are not familiar with computers. In this paper we concentrate on the design and development of intelligent interaction systems that provide active context-sensitive assistance to the user. We seek a compromise solution between development simplicity and power. To reach this objective, we propose the application of techniques from knowledge engineering to the development of active on-line assistance systems, establishing total independence between the knowledge on the interaction domain, the data, and the control of the communication acts. © 1996 Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.

Intelligent tutoring system framework for operator training for diagnostic problem solving

Diagnostic problem solving forms a major part of the operator's activity in complex chemical processes. It cannot be overemphasized that training operators on fault diagnosis and developing appropriate corrective strategies will help minimize process upsets, and thereby improve the reliability and safety of the plant. An intelligent operator training framework has been proposed and implemented to improve training effectiveness for diagnostic problem solving. A dynamic simulator coupled with an intelligent computer-based tutor constitutes the intelligent training system (ITS). It helps operators to organize system knowledge and operational information including symptom-cause relationship, and may enhance their performance. Our learning environment is composed of an interactive, real-time simulation of a chemical process plant, a computer model of expert operators, components that allow for automatic evaluation and coaching of the trainees in order to improve their diagnostic skills, and graphical user interfaces. To make our intelligent training system more effective, the process-related information/explanations including digraph-based symptom-cause relation are supplied through intelligent hypermedia interface. This system can also be used as an on-line assistant of process operators and for the training of remedial actions, and they are part of further enhancements being planned.

FACT: Financial accounting computerized tutor

Abstract This paper describes a tutorial financial accounting instructional case study entitled FACT. The case is designed for use in the introductory financial accounting course or as a review resource in the intermediate accounting course. It is a comprehensive practice set that demonstrates the integrative nature of the accounting cycle in the microcomputer environment. The case focuses on the conceptual analysis of the accounting transactions from the inception of a company to preparation of the classified financial statements. The main features of this computerized case distinguish it from the other manual and computerized accounting practice sets. These features include: user-friendliness, advanced graphical user interface, automatic grading system, statistical analytical report of students' performance, automatic errors detection routine, and on-line textbook and tutorial assistance. The software has proved its versatility in reinforcing students' comprehension of the accounting cycle through its experimental use by over 36 universities in the U.S., Canada, Australia, and England. The flexibility of the software program provides the instructor with a number of options for use as a classroom instructional tool, test materials, short assignments, or a comprehensive course review. The average completion time for the case is four hours. No additional materials or previous knowledge of microcomputer applications are needed to complete the case study. (A free copy of the software can be obtained directly from the author.)

SPARSE—an expert system for alarm processing and operator assistance in substations control centers

In case of occurrence of an incident in an electrical network, several hundreds of messages per minute may be presented to Control Center operators. This makes very difficult the identification of the fault and to decide about the required actions in order to minimize the consequences of the incident and to restore the service.This paper describes an expert system named SPARSE that provides on-line assistance to the operators of Substation Control Centers (SCC) of the portuguese electrical transmission network. SPARSE performs intelligent alarm processing and provides advice regarding operator actions. This system has been developed by the Faculty of Engineering of University of Porto in a joint project with Electricidade de Portugal, EDP, S.A., the utility that deals with power generation, transmission and distribution in Portugal.

A neural network tool for identifying text-editing goals

When performing a computer task, a user will decompose the task into cognitive goals and subgoals. These goals are accomplished through the use of external operators (e.g. keystrokes, mouse button presses) or internal mental operators (e.g. reading parts of the display, deciding on the goal). Users may utilize different goals and sequence the goals differently to accomplish the same overall task. Determining the goals and the sequencing of the goals could be useful for several reasons, such as providing a means for on-line assistance with the task. Determining these goals in the past, however, has been a time-consuming process. A neural network tool for automatically identifying cognitive text-editing goals from operators is investigated. The first of three memos edited by subjects was used to train the neural network successfully to map the operators (keystrokes) to cognitive goals. In a test of the trained network's ability to generalize to new input—the second and third memos edited by the subjects—the net could identify the cognitive goals with an overall performance accuracy of 96%. Two methods were used to investigate the validity of the goals which were identified by the tool. The characteristics of the goals were consistent with that which could be expected based upon previous research. This research illustrates that a neural network tool can identify the cognitive goals of a task.

An overview of on-line assistance: from on-line documentation to intelligent help and training

AbstractAn important aspect of any interactive computer system is its ease of use. On-line assistance is a major contributor to software usability. Conventional on-line assistance includes on-line documentation, or keyword access to textual help descriptions. More sophisticated on-line assistance includes intelligent help which provides immediate assistance for a specific problem, and intelligent training whose main goal is to support the user in learning about the system. These contemporary forms of intelligent assistance represent knowledge about the particular application, the user and the particular tasks the user is to perform. In addition, they possess inferencing capabilities to model the individual user's goals, plans, intentions and knowledge. This paper provides an overview of on-line assistance research, from empirical studies that attempt to determine the nature of effective assistance, to the design of intelligent on-line assistance systems capable of tailoring the assistance to the individual user. For readers interested in more details, recommendations for further reading in the related areas of advice-giving and intelligent help, intelligent user interfaces, critiquing, intelligent tutoring systems, and on-line documentation and hypertext are given.

Intelligent support system for continuous improvement in a dynamic manufacturing environment

In a dynamic competitive environment where consumer demands are getting more sophisticated and technology advancement is very fast, a firm that can quickly improve its workforce's skill level to match the introduction of advanced manufacturing technology will gain a competitive edge. This paper discusses how expert system technology should be modified and integrated with conventional analytical techniques like statistical estimation, pattern recognition, parameter estimation, etc., to provide on-line assistance to less experienced production operators, as well as to provide off-line support of continuous learning and the accumulation of experiences. A new paradigm that integrates the fault-tree (AND-OR graph) and the flow chart is developed. It is shown how such a paradigm can be applied to various applications in the production process, and how it can play an important role in the continuous learning process which will increase the speed of the workforce's skill improvement and production performance.

Towards a consultative on-line help system

Most computer systems provide a help facility which offers users on-line assistance in response to a query. The explanations provided by most systems often concentrate on the syntax of commands, and the user is expected to cite exactly the name of the command for which help is required. Often, the vocabulary involved is restrictive (because exact citation is essential) and confusing (because different systems adopt different terms). This paper explores ways of improving on-line help systems u • by developing user models to enable the explanations to match that user's particular needs and experience; • by categorising explanations in a way which enables more appropriate information to be presented; and • by incorporating an interface which provides users with the freedom to use natural language with a wide ranging vocabulary of their choice. The paper also describes the implementation of a help system which incorporates the listed facilities. In conclusion it outlines the prospects for developing a flexible vocabulary front-end to any command language.

Automated access to a large medical dictionary: Online assistance for research and application in natural language processing

Online dictionaries can be important tools for research and application in natural language processing. This paper describes work with a machine-readable version of “Dorland's Illustrated Medical Dictionary”. First the characteristics of the dictionary are briefly described, and then the complex process of converting the tape to an online interactive dictionary is discussed. The results of several experiments in automatically deriving information from the online dictionary are presented, and the paper ends with a discussion of the use of the online dictionary as a tool in the development of a natural language processing system designed for the biomedical domain.

An on-line assistance system for the simulation model development environment

The Assistance Manager, one of the tools of the Simulation Model Development Environment (SMDE), is required to provide effective and efficient transfer of assistance information to an SMDE user. This paper describes a prototype of the SMDE Assistance Manager. Objectives are set forth and a design is established and implemented on a SUN 3 160C workstation. The prototype is evaluated with respect to the design objectives and is shown to provide a highly flexible interface between the user and the database of assistance information. Results indicate that the prototype Assistance Manager incorporates the characteristics considered desirable in on-line assistance systems and serves as a basis for future enhancement and development.

Development of an intelligent knowledge base for heat stress evaluation

An intelligent knowledge base system for heat stress evaluation is described. The evaluation of heat stress is a particularly difficult problem, utilizing a variety of sometimes contradictory heat stress indices, and thus is naturally suited for computer aided design. The present system uses an expert system approach and can be used either as a stand along design tool or as one of the lower level models for larger ergonomic expert systems such as ALFIE. Simulations of a variety of environmental conditions were performed. A large diversity in predictive capabilities was found, depending on the assumptions used for each component index. For maximum efficiency with novice users, further explanations and on-line assistance need to be implemented within the system.

User modelling for a computer coach: a case study

A computer coach unobtrusively monitors interaction with a system and offers individualized advice on its use. Such active on-line assistance complements conventional documentation and its importance grows as the complexity of interactive systems increases. Instead of studying manuals, users learn highly-reactive systems through experiment, imported metaphors and natural intelligence. However, in so doing they inevitably fail to discover features which would help them in their work. This paper describes Anchises, a coach which aims to detect inefficient use and ignorance of important facilities of an interactive program in a domain-independent way. Its current knowledge base is the Emacs text editor, and Anchises provides highly-selective access to pertinent parts of the on-line documentation with little overhead for the user. In the design of Anchises, close attention has been paid to the user modelling component which determines the needs of an individual without entering into any explicit dialogue with him; in general this is the least well-understood aspect of computer coaches. An informal experiment was conducted to determine the effectiveness of the user modelling techniques employed.

4.放射線科における情報処理システム(第2報)(I.放射線施設におけるコンピュータの利用について)

4.放射線科における情報処理システム(第2報)(I.放射線施設におけるコンピュータの利用について)

Self-Descrbing Systems Using Integral Help

Some designers of software systems have recognized the need for providing interactive assistance to the users of their systems. A variety of ad hoc approaches have been used to associate assistance with various aspects of these systems. Common problems with such approaches are inconsistent availability of assistance and inaccurate assistance. A technique is presented for integrating assistance information into the design and implementation of a software system. This technique guarantees consistency and accuracy of syntactic assistance and provides a framework for integral semantic assistance information. The technique for developing self-describing systems centers around a specification of the language with which a user interacts with the system. The language is processed to produce a parser as well as on-line assistance information, error messages, and hard copy user manuals. A method for presenting this user assistance is discussed, and examples of an implemented system are provided.

Control and Supervision of Remote Line Units

The ITT 1210 Class 5 digital switching system has a distributed control architecture with inherent remote line switching capability. A unique common channel signaling scheme permits control and supervision of these remote units. Testing and maintenance capabilities are, in general, identical and equivalent to those available in the 1210 host office. The Technical Assistance Center provides an extra overview level of backup maintenance for on-line assistance to personnel in any operational 1210 system.

Recent advances in user assistance

As interactive users find conventional methods of training and documentation inadequate, designers are providing systems with online reference information, descriptions of valid input, elaboration of error messages, and explanations of a system's behavior. This paper describes some existing commercial systems that offer online assistance and more experimental approaches by the research community. The following material was originally presented at the SIGSOC conference on Easier and More Productive Use of Computing Systems. An extended version will appear in a special issue of the IEEE Transactions on Systems, Man, and Cybernetics (Volume SMC-12, March/April, 1982), and is reprinted here with the permission of the IEEE.Online user assistance is now offered on commercial systems and is the subject of investigation in experimental settings. It is difficult to compare the advantages and limitations of different approaches because they vary along many dimensions and because there is no commonly accepted terminology. A grouping of these dimensions into major categories is a necessary first step towards more empirical evaluations. The major software-related features of online assistance appear to fall into four categories:&amp;bull; access method -- the way users can construct or enter requests for assistance;&amp;bull; data structure -- the manner in which different portions of assistance information are related to each other;&amp;bull; software architecture -- how assistance requests and their responses are communicated among a user, an operating system, application programs, and the assistance database; and&amp;bull; contextual knowledge -- how much information is retained about the assistance environment, including the user, the application, and the tasks being performed.