Industrial quality inspection remains a precisioncritical and cognitively demanding activity, still often supported by paper-based procedures and external digital resources that increase context switching and may affect consistency. In line with Industry 5.0, Augmented Reality (AR) offers the possibility of bringing contextual inspection support directly into the operator's workspace. This paper presents the design rationale and current development of an Augmented Reality Inspection Assistant within the broader AR-HAIRC 5.0 model solution for industrial quality inspection. The work focuses on the operatorfacing interface layer, including the digitalization of inspection procedures, step-by-step AR guidance, and the presentation of relevant inspection information in situ. The paper also outlines the planned evaluation of the AR-assisted approach against traditional inspection methods through measures such as inspection time, error rates, and user satisfaction.

Modern manufacturing demands high-precision yet adaptable quality inspection while preserving human expertise. This paper presents AR-HAIRC 5.0, a human-centric AR collaboration model for Industry 5.0 that integrates onsite operators, AI-driven assistants, and remote experts within an adaptive loop of sensing, analysis, decision-making, action, and learning. We introduce a conceptual model and its logical architecture comprising an AR Inspection Assistant, a Remote Expert Console, and a Core Coordination Platform managing synchronization and data flows with enterprise quality management systems. We propose the implementation of a Meta Quest 3 prototype which will include AR guidance overlays, real-time AI suggestions, remote expert assistance, configurable support levels, and gamification. A case study with MCG, a Portuguese metalworking partner, elicited functional requirements and informed a planned evaluation involving usability testing, performance metrics, and qualitative feedback. This work establishes an approach for scalable, AI-augmented, human-centred inspection in next-generation smart factories.

This paper presents the design, implementation, and initial empirical evaluation of an LLM-based AI agent integrated into an Augmented Reality (AR) environment for quality inspection support in an Industry 5.0 manufacturing context. The fully implemented system combines spatially anchored visual overlays with a conversational AI assistant grounded in a deployed Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) pipeline over Manuel da Conceição Graça, Lda official inspection documentation. A preliminary within-subject user study ($\mathrm{N} = 6$) was conducted to compare two implemented input modalities, virtual keyboard and speech-to-text, across a set of simulated industrial inspection tasks. The objective of the study was to assess the usability of the implemented system with first-time AR users, and to determine which input modality better fits the hands-busy demands of shop-floor inspection. Results show that voice interaction was consistently preferred for ease of use, speed, and comfort, while the virtual keyboard was perceived as more precise but more demanding. Both conditions received positive SUS scores, confirming that the implemented system is usable without domainspecific training.

This study investigates how modalities spanning the Reality–Virtuality Continuum impact rehabilitation outcomes in Parkinson’s disease (PD). We developed Fruit Picker XR, a hand-tracked serious game for Meta Quest, in matched Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) versions, and tested them with 31 healthy adults and 4 individuals with PD. We collected usability (SUS), workload (NASA TLX and Paas), presence (IPQ), and eye tracking metrics. Both modalities were usable, but PD participants reported higher cognitive and physical load, particularly in VR, and exhibited longer fixations and saccades. AR lowered workload while maintaining engagement, whereas VR provided stronger presence for controls but inconsistently for PD. Based on these findings, we implemented five graded immersion levels and a therapist-controlled configuration interface via the PLAY platform, allowing real-time tuning of challenge and immersion. Results support the need for personalised XR prescriptions that optimise safety, cognitive load, and motivation in long-term PD therapy.

The effective management of Parkinson’s disease (PD) is increasingly reliant on innovative approaches to motivate patients to maintain physical activity. The potential of augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) as immersive tools to enhance patient engagement and encourage movement has been demonstrated. This study examines a fruit-catching game in both AR and VR formats, exploring the virtual continuum to prove which version is more beneficial for therapeutic use in tackling PD. The results of this study inform the future development of more personalized, accessible, and impactful serious games tailored to support PD rehabilitation.

Modern manufacturing demands high-precision yet adaptable quality inspection while preserving human expertise. This paper presents AR-HAIRC 5.0, a human-centric AR collaboration model for Industry 5.0 that integrates on-site operators, AI-driven assistants, and remote experts within an adaptive loop of sensing, analysis, decision-making, action, and learning. We introduce a conceptual model and its logical architecture comprising an AR Inspection Assistant, a Remote Expert Console, and a Core Coordination Platform managing synchronization and data flows with enterprise quality management systems. We propose the implementation of a Meta Quest 3 prototype which will include AR guidance overlays, real-time AI suggestions, remote expert assistance, configurable support levels, and gamification. A case study with MCG, a Portuguese metalworking partner, elicited functional requirements and informed a planned evaluation involving usability testing, performance metrics, and qualitative feedback. This work establishes an approach for scalable, AI-augmented, human-centred inspection in next-generation smart factories.

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by motor and non-motor symptoms. The MoveONParkinson project aims to enhance exercise engagement among people with Parkinson’s Disease (PwPD) in the Portuguese context through the ONParkinson digital platform, which provides mobile and web interfaces. While the broader MoveONParkinson project has been previously described from a health-focused perspective, this study specifically focuses on the development and integration of an AI-driven conversational agent (CA) for the Portuguese language, called PANDORA, within the mobile interface of the solution to assist and motivate PwPD in their exercise routines. PANDORA (Parkinson Assistant in Natural Dialogue and Oriented by Rules and Assessments), designed based on Self-Determination Theory (SDT), addresses the psychological needs of autonomy, competence, and relatedness. A preliminary study involving 20 PwPD, 10 caregivers, and 5 healthcare professionals informed the design requirements for PANDORA. The development process involved four main phases: (1) Design of the Chatbot’s Motivation Model, (2) Design and implementation of the conversational agent, (3) Technical Performance Evaluation, and (4) User Experience Evaluation. Technical Performance Evaluation, conducted with three physiotherapists, assessed domain coverage, coherence response capacity, and dialog management capacity, achieving 100% accuracy in domain coverage and coherence response capacity and 89% in dialog management capacity. The User Experience Study involved eight PwPD users recruited from Portuguese healthcare units performing predefined tasks, with user satisfaction scores ranging from 4.2 to 4.9 on a five-point Likert scale. The findings indicate that integrating a conversational agent with motivational cues tends to increase patient engagement. However, further studies are required to determine PANDORA’s impact on exercise engagement in PwPD.

Abstract Objective: In this paper, we introduce a study focused on the creation of multimodal inclusive web interfaces to foster inclusive services, aiming to empower individuals with disabilities. The primary objective of this endeavour was to develop an online platform known as SEU, which facilitates access to offline services for persons with disabilities. SEU accomplishes this by offering user interfaces that are both accessible and adaptable, catering to the diverse needs of various user profiles. Methods: A participatory design methodology was followed. Human-Computer Interaction Experts, Occupational Therapists, Accessibility Experts, and Persons with Disabilities participated actively during the creation process. A first usability study assessed the web platform regarding accessibility issues. This user study comprises two phases. In phase A, the online platform was assessed by the experts (Occupational Therapists and Accessibility Experts), and persons with disabilities tested the platform in phase B. The user study design included interviews, user observation and usability questionnaires posed after completing tasks in a controlled environment for one day. Results: The platform SEU was developed to present multimodal inclusive web interfaces, which change according to the user’s disability. Four different accessibility profiles were considered: cognitive, visual, motor, and hearing impairment. In the user study, four experts and eight end-users with distinct disabilities participated. Experts consider the platform presents important features and is very well designed, providing meaningful feedback. The results obtained with the end-users were equally positive regarding the available features and the usability of the web interfaces. Conclusions: Designing a web interface that is accessible and adaptable for users with distinct disabilities is viable and promising. The preliminary study with experts and PwD indicates they consider it an added value. However, the adaptations for users with cognitive impairments need a 1 deeper study to achieve more efficient solutions. The development of a mobile application interface was suggested by the end users, as most of them use smartphones in everyday life.

This paper explores the potential of mass collaboration to improve the quality of life for people with disability (PwD), a group representing approximately 16

IntroductionDespite the effectiveness of exercise-based interventions on symptom management and disease progression, many people with Parkinson’s Disease (PwPD) do not exercise regularly. In line with the ubiquitous use of digital health technology, the MoveONParkinson digital solution was developed, comprising a Web Platform and a Mobile App with a Conversational Agent (CA). The interface features were designed based on the principles of Social Cognitive Theory with the goal of fostering behavior change in PwPD for sustained exercise participation and improved disease management.MethodsUsing a mixed methods approach, this study aimed to collect feedback, assess the acceptability of the Mobile App and the Web Platform, and evaluate the usability of the latter. Quantitative data, which included questionnaire responses and the System Usability Scale (SUS) scores, were analyzed using descriptive statistics, heatmaps, and correlation matrices. Qualitative data, comprising semi-structured and thinking-aloud interview transcripts, were subjected to an inductive thematic analysis. A total of 28 participants were involved in the study, comprising 20 physiotherapists (average age: 34.50 ± 10.4), and eight PwPD (average age: 65.75 ± 8.63; mean Hoehn & Yahr: 2.0 (± 0.76)).ResultsThree main themes emerged from the thematic analysis of the interviews, namely: Self-management (Theme 1), User Engagement (Theme 2), and Recommendations (Theme 3). The assessment of the Mobile App and the CA (mean score: 4.42/5.0 ± 0.79) suggests that PwPD were able to navigate this interface without notable difficulties. The mean SUS score of 79.50 (± 12.40%) with a 95% confidence interval ranging from 73.70 to 85.30, reveal good usability.DiscussionThese findings indicate a high level of acceptability of the MoveONParkinson digital solution, serving as a foundation for assessing its impact on exercise engagement and, subsequently, its influence on symptom management and quality of life of PwPD.

Evidence-informed interventions for stroke self-management support can influence functional capability and social participation. People with stroke should be offered self-management support after hospital discharge. However, in Portugal, there are no known programs of this nature. This study aimed to develop a person-centered and tailored blended care program for post-stroke self-management, taking into account the existing evidence-informed interventions and the perspectives of Portuguese people with stroke, caregivers, and health professionals. An exploratory sequential mixed methods approach was used, including qualitative methods during stakeholder consultation (stage 1) and co-production (stage 2) and quantitative assessment during prototyping (stage 3). After ethical approval, recruitment occurred in three health units. Results from a literature search led to the adaptation of the Bridges Stroke Self-Management Program. In stage one, 47 participants were interviewed, with two themes emerging: (i) Personalized support and (ii) Building Bridges through small steps. In stage two, the ComVida program was developed, combining in-person and digital approaches, supported by a workbook and a mobile app. In stage three, 56 participants evaluated prototypes, demonstrating a strong level of quality. Understandability and actionability of the developed tools obtained high scores (91–100%). The app also showed good usability (A-grade) and high levels of recommendation (5 stars).

This paper investigates the creation of multimodal web interfaces to foster inclusive services, aiming to empower individuals with disabilities. This paper details the development of SEU (Services to Empower yoU), an online platform designed to improve access to offline services for persons with disabilities through personalised multimodal web interfaces. Developed using a participatory design approach, SEU involved collaboration with Human- Computer Interaction experts, occupational therapists, accessibility experts, and persons with disabilities. The platform supports multiple user needs across cognitive, visual, motor, and hearing impairments. SEU was evaluated in a two-phase usability study, which included expert assessment and testing by persons with disabilities, supplemented with interviews, observations, and questionnaires. Feedback highlighted SEU’s effective design and usability, emphasising its utility in enhancing service accessibility. The study indicates that both experts and persons with disabilities consider the platform an added value. Although the platform was well-received, suggestions for better cognitive support and the addition of a mobile application were noted, acknowledging the regular smartphone usage among the target users.

Appears in: ICERI2022 Proceedings Publication year: 2022Page: 5685 (abstract only)ISBN: 978-84-09-45476-1ISSN: 2340-1095doi: 10.21125/iceri.2022.1399Conference name: 15th annual International Conference of Education, Research and InnovationDates: 7-9 November, 2022Location: Seville, Spain

Appears in: ICERI2022 Proceedings Publication year: 2022Pages: 3424-3429ISBN: 978-84-09-45476-1ISSN: 2340-1095doi: 10.21125/iceri.2022.0836Conference name: 15th annual International Conference of Education, Research and InnovationDates: 7-9 November, 2022Location: Seville, Spain

Services to Empower YOU” (SEU) responde a um desafio societal que visa fornecer a pessoas com deficiência ou incapacidade uma ferramenta agregadora e inclusiva através da qual possam requisitar com confiança serviços. Este artigo apresenta os resultados iniciais obtidos no projeto SEU que compreende o estudo da conceção e implementação de interfaces digitais adaptadas às necessidades específicas de cada utilizador, assim como o estudo de um modelo de negócio que permita aos prestadores de serviços fornecerem serviços para um público com características especiais. Partindo do levantamento das necessidades de pessoas com incapacidades e do estudo das normas de acessibilidade digital, especificou-se um Modelo de Adaptação para interfaces em função das características de cada tipo de utilizador e um Modelo de Serviços, que estende o modelo base de plataformas facilitadoras de serviços offline. Estes dois modelos foram aplicados no desenvolvimento do protótipo web apresentado. Palavras-chave: Plataforma de serviços web. Acessibilidade digital. Interfaces multimodais. Inclusão. Pessoas com deficiência ou incapacidade. "Services to Empower YOU" - Inclusive Multimodal Interfaces in a Service Platform for People with Disabilities Abstract: “Services to Empower YOU” (SEU) responds to a societal challenge that aims to provide people with disabilities with an aggregating and inclusive tool through which they can confidently request services that are appropriate to them. This article presents the initial results achieved in project SEU, which comprises the study of the design and implementation of digital interfaces adapted to the specific needs of each user, as well as the study of a business model that allows service providers to offer services for an audience with special characteristics. Starting from the survey of the needs of people with disabilities and the study of digital accessibility standards, two models were proposed: an Adaptation Model for designing interfaces according to the characteristics of each type of user; and a Services Model, which extends the base model of platforms facilitating offline services. These two models were instantiated in the initial web prototype presented. Keywords: Web services platform. Digital accessibility. Multimodal user-interfaces. Inclusion. People with disabilities.

This paper presents an ongoing research work that aims to develop governance models and ICTs to enable and empower persons with disabilities according to the orientations settled in the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Starting from the study of the current model of Independent Living Support adopted in Portugal and its practical limitations, we propose a model based on the collaborative networks scientific discipline. This new model aims to guarantee an environment in which all the involved participants can improve and combine their contributions toward providing Personal Assistance to persons with disabilities. The paper also presents aWeb platform (SEU - Services to Empower yoU) designed to support offline services acquisition, providing a user interaction adapted to different types of disabilities. Furthermore, we propose an update to the platform SEU to be compliant with the proposed collaborative model.

Aging in place happens when people age in the residence of their choice, usually their homes because it is their preference for living as long as possible. This paper introduces the implementation of a computational platform to support active aging in place with a particular focus on the caregivers and their requirements to accomplish their tasks with engagement and comfort. The platform is supported by IoT, using low-cost technology to increment the platform modularly. It is a modular platform capable of responding to specific needs of seniors aging in place and their caregivers, obtaining data regarding the person under supervision, as well as providing conditions for constant and more effective monitoring, through modules and tools that support decision making and tasks for active living. The paper describes the platform principles and its modular architecture. Preliminary results are presented in the form of an experimental installation scenario.

The current environmental, social, and political pressure for more efficient use of energy led to the emergence of new legislation and directives both at National and European levels and, as a consequence, to the creation of various focused technological initiatives. In this line, several developments are being carried out to increase energy efficiency by reducing the energy consumption of buildings, costs, and carbon emissions, while providing adequate levels of comfort to the building's occupants. This work intends to contribute to this area, by proposing a conceptual architecture, based on collaborative networks of physical components/devices virtualized as services to compute and communicate information to support efficient energy management of building ecosystems. The architecture is designed considering the functional requirements, the most relevant technological challenges, and the implementation strategies.

ONParkinson is an integrated platform that aims to provide smart assistance towards the empowerment of the triad comprised of people with Parkinson’s disease, their caregivers and healthcare professionals. Initial studies have shown the importance of providing patients and their caregivers with accessible and credible information to allow them to deal with clinical issues. Over the last two decades, a substantial body of evidence has shown the potential benefits of using embodied conversational agents for health-related purposes. This paper presents the design of a conversational agent, which is being integrated into the ONParkinson’s mobile healthcare app, aiming to respond to questions about Parkinson’s disease posed by people with Parkinson’s disease and their caregivers. A detailed evaluation plan that comprises technological performance, user experience, and health research is also presented.

Stuttering is a multifactorial speech disorder that usually has several impacts on daily life, especially regarding loss of confidence in social situations and increased anxiety levels. BroiStu is a mobile health application that was developed to address the impacts of stuttering on people who stutter, allowing them to be more aware of their speech disorder in their everyday life. The personalisation of the user experience may be particularly important to maintain the patient engaged with the application towards a long-term use to take full advantage of the application’s features. This paper presents the implementation of personalisation aspects in BroiStu, introducing the model that is being followed, describing the features used, and presenting the results obtained with a preliminary experiment. The personalisation mechanisms are provided by a cloud-based platform that is designed to serve different applications. Interesting findings and further work are presented.