Experimental platform for developing interactive surface computers to support complex, time-critical teamwork

虽然计算机在现代工作环境中激增，但人们打印报告，图表和其他数据以促进面对面会议中的讨论和决策仍然很常见。 在时间或生命危急的情况下，如危机应对和安全与防御，往往必须根据迅速变化的信息做出决策。 在这些环境中，决策者需要直接获得最新信息，并且必须能够与附近的同事分享这些信息。 交互式大屏幕显示器的最新发展，例如微软的交互式桌面显示器，称为Surface，现在使人们能够在协作活动期间与最新的数字信息交互并共享最新的数字信息，例如地图，文档和传感器数据。 然而，由于这些显示系统的大尺寸、共享的输入空间以及在桌面系统的情况下的水平显示取向，为这些显示系统设计有效的界面是具有挑战性的。 请求提供的设备将用于支持一项研究方案，以解决这些系统缺乏适当接口和相关软件应用程序的问题。 这项研究计划将有助于改进软件用户界面的交互式，多用户显示系统。 它还将提高我们对交互式墙壁和桌面系统如何在复杂的、时间关键的任务领域（如军事指挥和控制以及应急响应）中有效利用的理解。 通过这项研究，学生将在协同技术设计和实证研究方法的培训。这些技能对于为高度协作的工作环境开发信息技术至关重要，例如国防，医疗保健，教育以及软件和游戏开发。

Though computers proliferate in modern work environments, it is still commonplace for people to print off reports, charts, and other data to facilitate discussions and decision-making in face-to-face meetings. In time- or life-critical situations, such as crisis response and security and defence, decisions must often be made based on rapidly changing information. In these settings, decision-makers need direct access to current information and must be able to share this information with nearby colleagues. Recent developments in interactive, large-screen displays, such as Microsoft's interactive tabletop display, called Surface, now enable people to interact with and share up-to-date digital information, such as maps, documents, and sensor data, during collaborative activities. However, designing effective interfaces for these display systems is challenging due to their large size, shared input space, and, in the case of a tabletop system, horizontal display orientation. The requested equipment will be used to support a research program that addresses the lack of suitable interfaces and associated software applications for these systems. This research program will contribute improved software user interfaces for interactive, multi-user display systems. It will also improve our understanding of how interactive wall and tabletop systems can be effectively utilized in the context of complex, time-critical task domains, such as military command and control, and emergency response. Through this research, students will be trained in collaborative technology design and empirical research methods. These skills are critical for developing information technologies for highly collaborative work environments, such as defence, healthcare, education, and software and game development.