Remote Work Environment Research Articles

고위험 작업환경에서 응급상황 인지를 위한 직물형 플렉시블 플랫폼 기반의 다중 생체신호 중앙 모니터링 시스템 개발

The purpose of this paper is to implement a multiple bio-signal central monitoring system based on ∙제1저자 : 전기만 ∙교신저자 : 고광철 ∙투고일 : 2014. 10. 29, 심사일 : 2014. 11. 13, 게재확정일 : 2014. 12. 03. * 한양대학교 전기생체공학부(Division of Electrical and Biomedical Engineering, Hanyang University) ** 전자부품연구원 메디컬IT융합연구센터(Medical IT Convergence Research Center, Korea Electronics Technology Institute) 228 Journal of The Korea Society of Computer and Information December 2014 textile fabrics flexible platform which can obtain and monitor bio signals(heart rate, body temperature, electrocardiography, electromyogram) of workers in special working environments and additional situational information (3-axis acceleration, temperature, humidity, illumination, surrounding image). This system can prevent various accidents that may occur in the remote work environment and provide fast and efficient response by detecting workers’situations in real-time. For it, the textile fabrics flexible platform was made as innerwear or outerwear so that it does not interfere with workers’ performance while collecting bio-signal and situational information, and obtained information is sent to the central monitoring system through wireless communication. The central monitoring system is based on wireless medical telemetry service of WMTS (Wireless Medical Telemetry Service); can monitor from 2 to 32 people simultaneously; and was designed so that it can be expanded. Also, in this study, to verify performance of the WMTS communication model, packet transmission rates were compared according to the distance. ▸

The development, validation and use of the Rural and Remote Teaching, Working, Living and Learning Environment Survey (RRTWLLES)

Research in rural and remote schools and communities of Queensland resulted in the development and validation of the Rural and Remote Teaching, Working, Living and Learning Environment Survey (RRTWLLES). Samples of 252 teachers and 191 community members were used to validate the structure of this questionnaire. It was developed within the standard psychometric framework of instrument design. Eleven dimensions of importance to teachers in rural and remote communities were identified: Community Involvement, Personal Safety, Personal Dislocation, Community Services, Social Inclusivity, Staff Affiliation, Administration Team Support, Mission Consensus, Teacher Aide Support, Opportunities for Professional Learning, and Resource Adequacy. Very sound internal consistency reliability was found for all 11 scales. Multilevel analysis revealed significant differences between teacher and community member scores for Personal Dislocation and Social Inclusivity. The RRTWLLES has the potential to assist rural and remote educators, researchers, teachers and community members.

A simple headspace equilibration method for measuring dissolved methane

Dissolved methane concentrations in the ocean are close to equilibrium with the atmosphere. Because methane is only sparingly soluble in seawater, measuring it without contamination is challenging for samples collected and processed in the presence of air. Several methods for analyzing dissolved methane are described in the literature, yet none has conducted a thorough assessment of the method yield, contamination issues during collection, transport and storage, and the effect of temperature changes and preservative. Previous extraction methods transfer methane from water to gas by either a "sparge and trap" or a "headspace equilibration" technique. The gas is then analyzed for methane by gas chromatography. Here, we revisit the headspace equilibration technique and describe a simple, inexpensive, and reliable method to measure methane in fresh and seawater, regardless of concentration. Within the range of concentrations typically found in surface seawaters (2‐1000 nmol L‐1), the yield of the method nears 100% of what is expected from solubility calculation following the addition of known amount of methane. In addition to being sensitive (detection limit of 0.1 ppmv, or 0.74 nmol L‐1), this method requires less than 10 min per sample, and does not use highly toxic chemicals. It can be conducted with minimum materials and does not require the use of a gas chromatograph at the collection site. It can therefore be used in various remote working environments and conditions.

A Phantom Sensory Framework for Enhancing Remote-Perception in Tele-Operated Systems

Operator of man-in-loop type remote operated slave robotic systems, need to perceive remote work environment through innovative sensing, particularly when slave is in close vicinity of objects. Real-time rendering of multiple types of perceivable effects in such state has been devised by employing innovative sensory techniques. A phantom that maintains self-state synchronized with the tele-operated robot's dynamic state has been devised to host the sensors in modeled workspace. The hosted sensor is presented same spatial state as faced by the slave robot in real time and senses vicinity using innovative activation of phantom's work environment. Work details sensor forming methods, sensor function, and the process of phantom-environment formation. The sensor responds to vicinity in several ways. Modalities of rendering the sensed effects too have been delved in.

Job Satisfaction, Organizational Commitment and Stress among Offshore Oil and Gas Platform Employees

Working offshore on an oil rig is perceived as a challenge to many people. Having to live and work at the same site, shift-work schedule with long working hours, high risks and remote work environment; are some common features of an offshore job. High job satisfaction (JS), strong organizational commitment (OC) and minimal stress (St) are key factors to retain the offshore oil and gas platform employees. This is critical to oil and gas companies as skilled and experienced employees are highly demanded in the industry. This study aimed to examine the level of job satisfaction, organizational commitment and stress among oil rig employees (n=214) situated in the coast of East Malaysia. This study also analyzed the relationship between the three variables. The data was collected using a self-administered questionnaire. The findings suggested a moderate level of stress and job satisfaction, while organizational commitment was found to be quite high among the respondents. Job satisfaction was found to have significant positive association with organizational commitment, on the other hand stress was found to be negatively correlated to OC & JS. The implications of these findings for practice and theory in the field of Human Resource Management are discussed.

Experience of overseas‐trained health professionals in rural and remote areas of destination countries: A literature review

This study aimed to review and synthesise existing literature that investigated the experience of overseas-trained health professionals (OTHPs) in rural and remote areas of destination countries. A systematic literature review was conducted using electronic databases and manual search of studies published from January 2004 to February 2011. Data were analysed from the final 17 original report articles that met the inclusion criteria. The reviewed research studies were conducted in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the UK and the USA. Overseas-trained medical practitioners were the most frequently researched (n = 14); two studies involved nurses and one study included several health professionals. Three main themes emerged from the review and these were: (i) expectations; (ii) cultural diversity; and (iii) orientation and integration to rural and remote health work environment. The OTHPs were expected to possess the appropriate professional and cultural skills while they themselves expected recognition of their previous experiences and adequate organisational orientation and support. A welcoming and accepting community coupled with a relaxed rural lifestyle and the joy of continued patient care resulted in successful integration and contributed to increased staff retention rates. Recognition of expectations and cultural diversity by all parties and comprehensive orientation with sufficient organisational support are important elements in the integration of OTHPs and subsequent delivery of quality health care to people living in rural and remote areas.

Induction of Cooperative Behavior Through Exchange of Nonverbal Information

In this study, the process of inducing mutual cooperation among workers in a remote work environment (telework) was experimentally examined. The gambling task developed by Payne was used, and subjects were not given information regarding their partners’ reputations. In addition, subjects and their partners completed the task in different rooms to avoid the effects of verbal and nonverbal communication. Subjects knew only which buttons their partners pushed, i.e., their behavior in the remote work environment. The number of experimental trials was 100. We found that cooperative behavior was induced by the 33rd trial. Although subjects did not know their partners’ reputations, cooperative behavior arose as subjects saw which buttons their partners pushed. In a control experiment, the subjects competed with a computer, and the results suggested that cooperative behavior was not induced when a human subject competed with a computer. Overall, the results suggest that an exchange of nonverbal behavioral information was necessary for inducing cooperative behavior.

Evaluating the augmented reality human-robot collaboration system

This article discusses an experimental comparison of three user interface techniques for interaction with a remotely located robot. A typical interface for such a situation is to teleoperate the robot using a camera that displays the robot's view of its work environment. However, the operator often has a difficult time maintaining situation awareness due to this single egocentric view. Hence, a multimodal system was developed enabling the human operator to view the robot in its remote work environment through an augmented reality interface, the augmented reality human-robot collaboration (AR-HRC) system. The operator uses spoken dialogue, reaches into the 3D representation of the remote work environment and discusses intended actions of the robot. The result of the comparison was that the AR-HRC interface was found to be most effective, increasing accuracy by 30%, while reducing the number of close calls in operating the robot by factors of ∼3x. It thus provides the means to maintain spatial awareness and give the users the feeling of working in a true collaborative environment.

Extending the Network Lifetime of Wireless Sensor Networks Using Residual Energy Extraction—Hybrid Scheduling Algorithm

Wireless sensor networks (WSNs) are mostly deployed in a remote working environment, since sensor nodes are small in size, cost-efficient, low-power devices, and have limited battery power supply. Because of limited power source, energy consumption has been considered as the most critical factor when designing sensor network protocols. The network lifetime mainly depends on the battery lifetime of the node. The main concern is to increase the lifetime with respect to energy constraints. One way of doing this is by turning off redun-dant nodes to sleep mode to conserve energy while active nodes can provide essential k-coverage, which improves fault-tolerance. Hence, we use scheduling algorithms that turn off redundant nodes after providing the required coverage level k. The scheduling algorithms can be implemented in centralized or localized schemes, which have their own advantages and disadvantages. To exploit the advantages of both schemes, we employ both schemes on the network according to a threshold value. This threshold value is estimated on the performance of WSN based on network lifetime comparison using centralized and localized algorithms. To extend the network lifetime and to extract the useful energy from the network further, we go for compromise in the area covered by nodes.

Model-driven business process integration and management: A case study with the Bank SinoPac regional service platform

Business process integration and management (BPIM) is a critical element in enterprise business transformation. Small and medium-sized businesses have their own requirements for BPIM solutions: The engagement methodology should be fast and efficient; a reusable and robust framework is required to reduce cost; and the whole platform should be lightweight so that one can easily revise, develop, and execute solutions. We believe that model-driven technologies are the key to solving all of the challenges mentioned above. Model Blue, a set of model-driven business integration and management methods, frameworks, supporting tools, and a runtime environment, was developed by the IBM China Research Laboratory (CRL) in Beijing to study the efficacy of model-driven BPIM. To verify the technology and methodology, Model Blue was deployed with Bank SinoPac, a mid-sized bank headquartered in Taiwan. A lightweight BPIM solution platform was delivered for Bank SinoPac to design, develop, and deploy its business logic and processes. During the eightmonth life span of the project, IBM teams developed four major solutions for Bank SinoPac, which also developed one solution independently. In spite of the remote working environment and the outbreak of the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome illness, the project was completed successfully on schedule and within budget, with up to 30% efficiency improvement compared with similar projects. Bank SinoPac was satisfied with the technology and methodology, and awarded IBM other projects. In this paper, we illustrate how each key business process integration and solution development phase was carried out and guided by business process modeling, together with major experiences gained. The following technical aspects are discussed in detail: a two-dimensional business process modeling view to integrate flow modeling and data modeling; a lightweight processing logic automation environment with tooling support; and the end-to-end BPIM methodology, with models and documents successfully integrated as part of (or replacement for) the deliverables defined in the existing servicing methodologies and software engineering approaches.

A Study of Remote Workers and Their Differences from Non-Remote Workers

Information technology (IT) is enabling the creation of virtual organizations and remote work practices. As this practice of working remotely grows, so does the importance of making these remote end-users of technology effective members of organizations. This study tested a number of relationships that were suggested in the literature as being relevant in a remote work environment. Interpersonal trust of the employee in their manager was found to be strongly associated with higher self-perceptions of performance, higher job satisfaction and lower job stress. There was weak support for the impact of physical connectivity (i.e., the availability of IT) on job satisfaction, supporting the enabling role of IT. These findings were similar for both remote employees (i.e., those that worked in a different building than their managers) and non-remote employees. However, more frequent communications between the manager and employee was associated with higher levels of interpersonal trust only with the remote workers. Cognition-based trust was also found to be more important than affect-based trust in a remote work environment, suggesting that managers of remote employees should focus on activities that demonstrate competence, responsibility and professionalism.

Analysis of 3D Hand Trajectory Gestures Using Stroke-Based Composite Hidden Markov Models

We present a glove-based hand gesture recognition system using hidden Markov models (HMMs) for recognizing the unconstrained 3D trajectory gestures of operators in a remote work environment. A Polhemus sensor attached to a PinchGlove is employed to obtain a sequence of 3D positions of a hand trajectory. The direct use of 3D data provides more naturalness in generating gestures, thereby avoiding some of the constraints usually imposed to prevent performance degradation when trajectory data are projected into a specific 2D plane. We use two kinds of HMMs according to the basic units to be modeled: gesture-based HMM and stroke-based HMM. The decomposition of gestures into more primitive strokes is quite attractive, since reversely concatenating stroke-based HMMs makes it possible to construct a new set of gesture-based HMMs. Any deterioration in performance and reliability arising from decomposition can be remedied by a fine-tuned relearning process for such composite HMMs. We also propose an efficient method of estimating a variable threshold of reliability for an HMM, which is found to be useful in rejecting unreliable patterns. In recognition experiments on 16 types of gestures defined for remote work, the fine-tuned composite HMM achieves the best performance of 96.88% recognition rate and also the highest reliability.

Exploratory analysis of factors influencing performance dynamics of telecommuters and traditional office workers

Advances in information technology are enabling the formation of new work arrangements, where employees may perform work activities at any location, at any time. This includes remote locations such as an employee's home or a satellite office. When employees work remotely, there are fewer opportunities for face-to-face (FTF) communication, and more communication occurs in non-FTF modes. Communication is a crucial component of the work process and can affect the performance of work activities. Clearly, the resources necessary to provide an effective work environment are different for traditional and remote workers. It is thus critical to identify and study the dynamics of this environment to foster effective job performance. The authors are particularly interested in the use of communication to coordinate work activities and the resulting effect on performance. We investigate the difference in use of formal, informal, and electronic coordination techniques in the remote and traditional work environments. We also investigate the influence of job characteristics and information technology (IT) factors on job performance in both work environments. The study was conducted through a survey of a large number of telecommuters and a control group of nontelecommuters in eight firms in Atlanta (USA). We use inductive learning to identify patterns of behavior present in the data. Results from the study indicate communication needs in this work environment are much more complex than previously recognized. The research indicates that the method of use of communication channels and the communication partner must be considered, in addition to the work environment of the individual to provide an atmosphere conducive to good performance. We also found that job characteristics and IT factors had differing effects on the groups which should be explored further.

Remote working environments: management and organizational policy

As a result of ‘globalization’ and the ‘information age’, technology is challenging the traditional perception of work - normally associated with a fixed physical location. Work activities, physically remote from the organizational center but linked by new communication technologies, are rapidly being introduced. In South Africa, organizations will need to adapt management styles and policies to accommodate these changes. In the past the majority of South Africans were only partially integrated into the international information economy and certain technologies are intrinsically unsuitable for South Africa. However, enthusiastic adoption of new technologies such as the Internet and cellular telephony, combined with a national drive towards bringing telecommunications services to the previously disadvantaged in South Africa, suggest that the argument is no longer valid.