The 2008 International Symposium on Collaborative Technologies and Systems (CTS’08)
May 19-23, 2008, Irvine, California, USA

 POSTERS

 

CAN GAME-BASED INTELLIGENT TUTORING SYSTEMS TEACH COMPLEX TASKS? THE SEARCH AND RESCUE GAME ENVIRONMENT

Jeff Craighead
Institute for Safety Security Rescue Technologies
University of South Florida
jeffcraighead@gmail.com

ABSTRACT
The Search and Rescue Game Environment (SARGE) is a distributed, game- based, intelligent tutoring system being developed at the University of South Florida's Institute for Safety Security Rescue Technology by doctoral candidate Jeff Craighead.  SARGE will be used to train teams of robot operators in the fields of law enforcement and search and rescue.  Players will be required to complete both single and multiplayer tutorial levels, assisted by an intelligent tutor before gaining access to the main game scenarios to assure minimum operator competency during online play.  This poster describes the major capabilities of SARGE, upcoming user trials, and a recent validation experiment which showed a simulated robot in SARGE can reproduce the motion of a real robot to within 0.7m and 0.08m/s in a reproduction of a real world environment.

Presenter’s Biography
Jeff Craighead is a Doctoral candidate in Computer Science and Engineering at the University of South Florida.  In 2004, he obtained his Bachelors of Science in Computer Science from the University of South Florida.  Mr. Craighead is a member of the Institute for Safety Security Rescue Technologies (iSSRT) located at USF in Tampa, Florida.  His research interests include: mobile robots, artificial intelligence, serious games, game-based training, and software agents.  Currently, his research is focused on the use of 3D action games for training robot operators in ordnance disposal and search-and-rescue tasks, he currently has 10 publications on these topics.  Through iSSRT he has participated in post-disaster surveys, most recently a parking garage collapse in Jacksonville, Florida, as well as training exercises with local and national search-and-rescue and ordnance disposal teams.

 

XML TOPIC MAPS COLLABORATIVE ARGUMENTATION TOOLKIT (XCAT)

Eric Loomis
Design Knowledge Company (TDKC)
Fairborn, OHIO, USA
eric@tdkc.com

ABSTRACT
The Air Force Research Laboratory's (AFRL) collaborative, trusted sensing research and development is critical to providing the warfighter much-needed Universal Situational Awareness (USA).  USA requires many different capabilities including the ability to rapidly correlate sensor data and provide at-a-glance decision support tools that provide a means to rapidly assess sensor web trustworthiness and overall system health/status.  The Design Knowledge Company (TDKC) is currently developing the XTM Collaborative Argumentation Toolkit (XCAT) for the AFRL's Sensor Directorate.  XCAT will provide a next-generation capability to manage sensor data streams, parameterize sensor network quality of service and level of trust, and correlate the sensor information with other intelligence data.  XCAT will also provide argumentation tools to assist with decision making and course-of-action selections.

Presenter’s Biography
Mr. Eric Loomis is a technology innovator and entrepreneur with over twenty years of experience in the software industry.  He is one of the founders and owners of the Design Knowledge Company (TDKC) located in Dayton, OH.  TDKC provides advanced research and development support for a variety of government and commercial clients.  At TDKC, Mr. Loomis serves as the Vice President and supports many of the firm's research and development programs.  Mr. Loomis has a B.S. in Computer Science from Wright State University in Dayton, OH.  Prior to starting TDKC, Mr. Loomis worked for several defense contractors and commercial firms including Ball Aerospace, General Dynamics, CACI, MTL Systems, Spectra Research, Tektronix, and Datalytics.  Mr. Loomis will be presenting the results from an ongoing Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) project called XCAT.  XCAT deals with the development of decision support and visualization tools to support layered sensor webs.

 

A WEB-BASED MOBILE COLLABORATION SYSTEM

Du Li and Umesh Chandra
Nokia Research Center
Palo Alto, California, USA

ABSTRACT
With cell phones adopted by billions of people today, mobility has become a critical requirement in modern collaboration support systems.  However, support for mobile collaboration has been limited in existing products and research prototypes.  The MoBS (Mobile Business Solutions) team at Nokia Research has been building a mobile collaboration system since 2007.  The system is based on standardized Web 2.0 techniques to ease engineering and deployment problems.  A number of tools are provided in the system, including presence awareness, file sharing, slide sharing, chat, meeting minutes, whiteboard, gesture, and voice conferencing.  The system is undergoing user studies and being extended to support a range of vertical application domains, such as formal business meetings, informal conversations, education, and telemedicine.

Presenter’s Biography
Du Li has been doing research on collaboration systems since 1997, focusing on groupware engineering and consistency control issues.  Before joining Nokia in 2007, he received PhD from UCLA in Computer Science in 2000 and had been in academia since then.  His research interests include collaborative systems, CSCW, mobile computing, and Web.  He served on NSF panels, TPC of the CSCW, GROUP, and ECSCW conferences, and the editorial board of JCSCW.

Umesh Chandra leads a research team called Mobile Business Solutions (MoBS) at Nokia Research Center, Palo Alto.  His research focus is on how to utilize Web 2.0 concepts and technologies in enterprises and develop next generation Web-based mobile enterprise applications and services.  His research interests are in the areas of IP multimedia, group communication, Web/Enterprise 2.0, Mobile Web, etc.

 

A Tool for Role-based ChatTing

Haibin Zhu and Rob Alkins
Department of Computer Science and Mathematics
Nipissing University,North Bay, Ontario, Canada
haibinz@nipissingu.ca

ABSTRACT
Role-based collaboration (RBC) is proposed to support people’s collaboration with more usable human-computer interfaces.  To approach the objectives of RBC, a new practical tool is required.  Designing, implementing and using the new tools are the major methods to accomplish the tasks of research on RBC.  This poster presents a role-based chatting tool that is a typical instance of role-based collaboration.  The scenario of role-based chatting, and the tool’s architecture and implementation are described.  The chatting tool reflects all the principles outlined by role-based collaboration.  This tool presented shows that role-based collaboration is practical, and feasible.  It shows the possibility of building more complex role-based systems.

Presenter’s Biography
Haibin Zhu is an associate professor of the Department of Computer Science and Mathematics, Nipissing University, Canada.  He has published about seventy research papers, five books (four in Chinese and one in English) and one book chapter on object-oriented programming, distributed and collaborative systems, computer architecture and intelligent systems.  Dr. Zhu is a senior member of IEEE, a member of ACM and a life member of the Chinese Association for Science and Technology, USA.  Dr. Zhu pioneered the research on role-based collaboration (RBC) in 2002 has organized about 10 special sessions or workshops on RBC.  He is a co-chair for the technical committee of Distributed Intelligent Systems of the IEEE SMC society.

 

A VISUALIZED TOOL OF ROLE TRANSFER

Haibin Zhu, Matthew Grenier, Rob Alkins, Jeffery Lacarte and Jordon Hoskins
Department of Computer Science and Mathematics
Nipissing University, North Bay, Ontario, Canada
Email: haibinz@nipissingu.ca

ABSTRACT
When a crisis occurs, decision makers experience high tension and must make a decision in a short time.  An automated tool with accurate analysis would help them make correct decisions.  This poster presents a visualized tool to help a manager or a commander understand the structure of a group based on roles and agents (or people).  The significant contribution of this tool is that it provides an exact solution to check if a group is workable, and if an agent (or a person) is critical for a group.  It also suggests a role transfer scheme implementing time sharing mechanisms for when there are an insufficient number of agents (people) to complete a task simultaneously.  Because role transfer is a fundamental problem in management, task assignment, and training, this tool can be used in many different ways, such as, training and management.  It is also a direct assistance tool for crisis responses.

Presenter’s Biography
Same as above.

EFFECTS PLANNING AND COURSE OF ACTION TOOLS

Chetan Desai
ProLogic Inc.
Fairmont, West Virginia, USA
chetan@prologic-inc.com

ABSTRACT
This poster will show an overview of several complex algorithms along with design and validation approaches.  The algorithms include RF Modeling and Planning, Blast Mitigation Standoff Contour, and Automated Camera Path Generation.

Presenter’s Biography
Chetan Desai is the Vice President and General Manager for the newly formed Integrated Geospatial Solutions Group at ProLogic.  His earlier position was that of a Chief Scientist for the Geospatial Decision Support Group at ProLogic.  Chetan has over 20 years of experience in the areas of business management, research, design, and development of technologies and solutions in the areas of GIS, visualization, and modeling and simulation.  Chetan has held positions at major research universities and small businesses.  His current position is focused on the development of solutions that predominantly support C2ISR for Department of Defense.

SD - LINK

Brian Beebe
SAIC
Beavercreek, Ohio, USA
BRIAN.W.BEEBE@saic.com

ABSTRACT
SD-Link is a collaborative communication technology that safely and securely connects applications on computers located behind separate firewalls.  Unlike Application Server Providers (ASP) or Virtual Private Networks (VPN), SD-Link connections are more secure, require less setup, and involve no changes to existing firewall security.

Presenter’s Biography
Brian Beebe is the Chief Scientist for Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC) in Dayton, Ohio.  He performs technical vision and project support for the Air Force Research Laboratory in the areas of modeling and simulation evaluation toolkits and collaborative systems.  Mr. Beebe holds a B.S. in Computer Science from Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio, USA.

 

AFRL KNOWLEDGE REPOSITORY (AKR) LITE

Brian Beebe
SAIC
Beavercreek, Ohio, USA
BRIAN.W.BEEBE@saic.com

ABSTRACT
AKR Lite satisfies the important need for military decision superiority by providing visionary technologies in information and knowledge discovery, creation, classification, sharing, and analysis.  This allows for efficient, secure, and meaningful enhanced decision support for Air Force Capability Planning.

Presenter’s Biography
See Above.

 

NETWORK MODELING AND SIMULATION RESEARCH

Brian Beebe
SAIC
Beavercreek, Ohio, USA
BRIAN.W.BEEBE@saic.com

ABSTRACT
Science Applications International Corporation’s (SAIC) modeling and simulation research expertise was integral in the transition of Link16 model algorithms into the Enhanced Air-to-Air and Air-to-Ground Linked Environment Simulation (EAAGLES).  The work enabled constructive and virtual studies of Link16 network performances and concepts of operation for the Aeronautical Systems Center (ASC) and the Simulation and Analysis Facility (SIMAF) at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base.

Presenter’s Biography
See Above.

 

NETWORK AND DATA LINK MODELING

Brian Beebe
SAIC
Beavercreek, Ohio, USA
BRIAN.W.BEEBE@saic.com

ABSTRACT
Science Applications International Corporation’s (SAIC) network and data link modeling allows the user to understand advanced communications concepts and capabilities for information superiority.  The key to this modeling is the integration across modeling and simulation domains to enable causal relationships between communications and battlefield entities, thus creating dynamic network events.

Presenter’s Biography
See Above.

 

SAIC WELCOMES YOU

Brian Beebe
SAIC
Beavercreek, Ohio, USA
BRIAN.W.BEEBE@saic.com

ABSTRACT
Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC), a leading systems, solutions, and technical services company, offers a broad range of expertise in defense modernization efforts, intelligence, homeland security, logistics and product support, health and life sciences, space and earth sciences, and global commercial services.  SAIC is proud to again be a supporter of the Collaborative Technologies and Systems (CTS) Symposium.

Presenter’s Biography
See Above.

 

SAIC:  FROM SCIENCE TO SOLUTIONS

Brian Beebe

SAIC

Beavercreek, Ohio, USA

BRIAN.W.BEEBE@saic.com

ABSTRACT

Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC) helps enable and protect our US armed forces by transforming concepts into capabilities and science into innovative solutions for today and tomorrow.  SAIC is honored to be working along side our armed forces.

Presenter’s Biography:

See Above.