Loading...
21 results
Search Results
Now showing 1 - 10 of 21
- HomeTree: an art inspired mobile eco-feedback visualizationPublication . Quintal, Filipe; Nisi, Valentina; Nunes, Nuno; Barreto, Mary; Pereira, LucasThis paper presents HomeTree a prototype of an art-inspired mobile eco feedback system. The system is implemented on a tablet PC and relies on a non intrusive energy-monitoring infrastructure to access consumption and power event information. Our prototype addresses an important problem in eco feedback, which is the fact that users loose interest about their energy consump tion after a period of several weeks. To accomplish this HomeTree implements a dual visualization strategy. Initially HomeTree presents users with a screensa ver that shows energy consumption mapped in a dynamic illustration of the lo cal forest. Through this strategy we leverage the emotional connection between the short-term energy consumption and the long-term effects on nature through the local depicted landscape. In a second mode of operation users can interact with HomeTree directly by checking the historical records of their consumption data, and check which days or weeks they have reduced or increased consump tion. Furthermore a comparison with a more objective baseline, such as the city of Funchal energy consumption is provided, in order to give users a sense of the level of their consumption in a wider context.
- Can HCI help increase people’s engagement in sustainable development? A case study on energy literacyPublication . Pestana, Carla; Barros, Luísa; Scuri, Sabrina; Barreto, MaryThe adoption of energy efficiency practices and increased penetration of renewable energy sources in the power system are estimated to play a key role in the decarbonization of the energy sector, helping reduce greenhouse gas emissions and ultimately fight climate change. To foster energy transition, energy education initiatives should primarily target the citizens and be designed adopting a User-Centered Design (UCD) approach and HCI methodologies. This paper describes how UCD/HCI can inform the design of citizens’ energy education initiatives by presenting a case study— the development of an information platform targeting Madeiran citizens. The article describes the design process, from ideation to prototype and validation. Methods used in each phase (card sorting, semi-structured interviews, brainstorming sessions, think-aloud protocol and surveys) are described. Results of each phase and how they have informed the following steps are presented, together with a detailed description of the resulting information platform and initial results in terms of acceptance and interaction with the system. Our initial results support the hypothesis that adopting an HCI perspective can nurture the development of energy education initiatives targeting citizens, bringing a user-centered approach to the design of such initiatives.
- Understanding the challenges behind electric vehicle usage by drivers: a case study in the Madeira Autonomous RegionPublication . Barros, Luísa; Barreto, Mary; Pereira, LucasElectric Vehicles (EV) adoption targets have been set by govern ments from countries throughout Europe, related to the European goals, for the decarbonization of the road transport sector. The change for electric vehicle technology can be challenging to EV users for several reasons such as battery autonomy, time to charge the vehicle, and the different driving conditions. The work in this paper aims to study how users from Madeira and Porto Santo is lands deal with the challenges of EV usage. Furthermore, this paper also studies the role of the orography in the Regenerative Braking System technology integrated into electric vehicles. To assess such information, an online questionnaire was prepared and sent out to the electric vehicle community of both islands. The main results of this study show drivers’ preference to charge the vehicles at their household and that users are satisfied with the vehicle’s technology. Also, users’ battery range anxiety did not seem to have a significant impact. Moreover, from the drivers’ point of view, there is still the need to study the role of orography, while using the regenerative braking system.
- Understanding the limitations of eco-feedback: a one-year long-term studyPublication . Pereira, Lucas; Quintal, Filipe; Barreto, Mary; Nunes, Nuno J.For the last couple of decades the world has been witnessing a change in habits of energy consumption in domestic environments, with elec tricity emerging as the main source of energy consumed. The effects of these changes in our eco-system are hard to assess, therefore encouraging researchers from different fields to conduct studies with the goal of understanding and im proving perceptions and behaviors regarding household energy consumption. While several of these studies report success in increasing awareness, most of them are limited to short periods of time, thus resulting in a reduced knowledge of how householders will behave in the long-term. In this paper we attempt to reduce this gap presenting a long-term study on household electricity consump tion. We deployed a real-time non-intrusive energy monitoring and eco feedback system in 12 families during 52 weeks. Results show an increased awareness regarding electricity consumption despite a significant decrease in interactions with the eco-feedback system over time. We conclude that after one year of deployment of eco-feedback it was not possible to see any significant increase or decrease in the household consumption. Our results also confirm that consumption is tightly coupled with independent variables like the house hold size and the income-level of the families.
- Understanding goal setting behavior in the context of energy consumption reductionPublication . Scott, Michelle; Barreto, Mary; Quintal, Filipe; Oakley, IanHome energy use represents a significant proportion of total con sumption. A growing research area is considering how to help everyday users consume less. However, simply determining how to best reduce consumption remains a challenging task for many users. Based on goal setting theory, this paper presents two lab studies (based on the presentation of detailed scenarios and the solicitation of goal selections for the individuals depicted) in order to better understand how users make such decisions. It reveals a preference for goals that are perceived to be easy and specific, rather than those known to be effective (e.g. those that reduce energy consumption) or generic. Goal setting theory suggests that easy goals lead to low levels of commitment and motiva tion, suggesting such choices may be doubly ineffective. Ultimately, this paper contributes to a better understanding of users’ goal selections and argues this is a prerequisite to effectively supporting users in reducing resource consumption.
- Citizen motivation on the go: the role of psychological empowermentPublication . Goncalves, J.; Kostakos, V.; Karapanos, E.; Barreto, M.; Camacho, T.; Tomasic, A.; Zimmerman, J.Although advances in technology now enable people to communicate ‘anytime, anyplace’, it is not clear how citizens can be motivated to actually do so. This paper evaluates the impact of three principles of psychological empowerment, namely perceived self-efficacy, sense of community and causal importance, on public transport passengers’ motivation to report issues and complaints while on the move. A week-long study with 65 participants revealed that self-efficacy and causal importance increased participation in short bursts and increased perceptions of service quality over longer periods. Finally, we discuss the implications of these findings for citizen participation projects and reflect on design opportunities for mobile technologies that motivate citizen participation.
- Why don't families get along with eco-feedback technologies?Publication . Barreto, Mary; Karapanos, Evangelos; Nunes, NunoEco-feedback domestic technologies have gained momentum over the last decade. Yet, while a wide range of research prototypes and commercial products has been proposed, their acceptance by families is still limited. In this paper we report on our findings from interviews with 15 dual income families, during a year-long deployment of an eco-feedback technology that attempted to inquire into the factors that prohibited its adoption. We found the non adoption of our system to be rooted in a number of systemic failures, relating to the physical context, the families’ social dynamics and the roles assumed by family members, as well as families’ priorities and the non-negotiability of their routines. Motivated by prior work and our empirical findings we propose three distinct dimensions but also phases in the adoption of eco-feedback technologies: orientation, incorporation and social integration, and discuss how these may hint at different barriers in the adoption of eco-feedback technologies.
- MyTukxi: low cost smart charging for small scale EVsPublication . Quintal, Filipe; Scuri, Sabrina; Barreto, Mary; Pereira, Lucas; Vasconcelos, Dino; Pestana, DanielAs the electrification of the transportation sector grows the electric grid must handle the new load resulting from electric vehicles (EV) charging. The integration of this new load in the grid has been subject to work in the smart-charging research field, however, while normal-sized EVs often offer chargers or other functions that support smart-charging, smaller EVs do not, which could be problem atic. Especially considering that the consumption of small EV when aggregated can be significant. This article presents the motivation and development behind the development of MyTukxi, a hardware and software system that aims at implementing smart-charging algorithms for low consuming electric vehicles (EV), interacting with drivers to compensate for the lack of charging control in such vehicles.
- The acceptance of energy monitoring technologies: the case of local prosumersPublication . Barreto, Mary; Pereira, Lucas; Quintal, FilipeWith transformations happening in the electricity sector, we need to ensure consumers have access to updated and correct information to accompany such changes. Consumers need to understand technologies available to them but also, learn how to use them to optimize their personal investment in such types of equipment. In this paper, we explore how a group of local pro sumers has adopted energy monitoring technologies, their day to-day strategies, and expectations when handling such systems. We studied 11 prosumers and the technologies they have used for three years, evaluated their satisfaction with the feedback provided and analyzed how a more modern visualization of their energy practices was introduced and adopted into their daily lives. We conducted interviews and questionnaires to evaluate their engagement with these tools. This initial work suggests this particular group of users have already a high level of knowledge about their systems, and as a result have integrated these into their routines. However, more support would be needed from other local actors to help them reach more benefits and as such, more satisfaction as consumers. We conclude by reflecting on barriers that need to be addressed to increase user satisfaction with these systems.
- «
- 1 (current)
- 2
- 3
- »