Smart-Glasses: Exposing and Elucidating the Ethical Issues

Exploring social perceptions of everyday smartglass use in Australia

Smartglasses like Ray-Ban Stories by Meta are now commercially available, offering users features like photography, videography, music playback, phone calls, and content sharing. While existing research identifies barriers to adoption, no study has investigated the social acceptability of these commercially available devices. This is crucial because devices like Ray-Ban Stories are considered precursors to Augmented Reality-enabled smartglasses, and understanding current public perceptions is vital before further advancements. This study aimed to examine the social acceptability of everyday smartglass use. An online survey recruited 1037 Australian residents aged 18+ (58.6% owners, n = 608; 41.4% non-owners, n = 429). The WEAR scale assessed social acceptability. Owners perceived the device as aligning with their desired self-image, while non-owners expressed stronger concerns regarding privacy, anti-social behaviour, and potential harm. The WEAR scores highlight contrasting expectations between owners and non-owners regarding appropriate technology use, suggesting a potential source of social tension. Further research is needed to understand how individuals negotiate the use of these devices in public spaces.

Use of Augmented Reality as a Tool to Support Cargo Handling Operations at the CARGO Air Terminal

(1) Background: A current trend observed in the logistics sector is the use of Industry 4.0 tools to improve and enhance the efficiency of cargo handling processes. One of the popular solutions is an augmented reality system that supports operators in everyday tasks. The article aims to present design assumptions for implementing an augmented reality system to support air cargo handling at the warehouse. (2) Methods: Research was carried out based on a five-stage analytical procedure, aiming to analyze the current state and identify the potential for implementing the AR system. The following methods were used to collect data: co-participant observations, process analysis, direct interviews, analysis of internal documentation, and applicable legal regulations. (3) Results: The conducted research allowed for identifying information flows accompanying cargo flows and developing a project to automate selected information flows. The obtained results made it possible to identify operations for which the AR system's implementation will increase their effectiveness and efficiency. (4) Conclusions: The obtained results identified the need to develop a hybrid algorithm for arranging cargo in the warehouse and to build a system supporting self-verification of markings on air cargo.

Impact of Virtual and Augmented Reality on Quality of Medical Education During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Systematic Review

Background

The COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent mandatory social distancing led to widespread disruption of medical education. This contributed to the accelerated introduction of virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) technology in medical education.

Objective

The objective of this quantitative narrative synthesis review is to summarize the recent quantitative evidence on the impact of VR and AR on medical education.

Methods

A literature search for articles published between March 11, 2020 and January 31, 2022 was conducted using the following electronic databases: Embase, PubMed, MEDLINE, CINAHL, PsycINFO, AMED, EMCARE, BNI, and HMIC. Data on trainee confidence, skill transfer, information retention, and overall experience were extracted.

Results

The literature search generated 448 results, of which 13 met the eligibility criteria. The studies reported positive outcomes in trainee confidence and self-reported knowledge enhancement. Additionally, studies identified significant improvement in the time required to complete surgical procedures in those trained on VR (mean procedure time 97.62±35.59) compared to traditional methods (mean procedure time 121.34±12.17). However, participants also reported technical and physical challenges with the equipment (26%, 23 of 87).

Conclusions

Based on the studies reviewed, immersive technologies offer the greatest benefit in surgical skills teaching and as a replacement for lecture- and online-based learning. The review identified gaps that could be areas for future research.

"Dispatcher, Can You Help Me? A Woman Is Giving Birth". A Pilot Study of Remote Video Assistance with Smart Glasses

Smart glasses (SG) could be a breakthrough in emergency situations, so the aim of this work was to assess the potential benefits of teleassistance with smart glasses (SG) from a midwife to a lifeguard in a simulated, unplanned, out-of-hospital birth (OHB). Thirty-eight lifeguards were randomized into SG and control (CG) groups. All participants were required to act in a simulated imminent childbirth with a maternal−fetal simulator (PROMPT Flex, Laerdal, Norway). The CG acted autonomously, while the SG group was video-assisted by a midwife through SG (Vuzix Blade, New York, NY, USA). The video assistance was based on the OHB protocol, speaking and receiving images on the SG. The performance time, compliance with the protocol steps, and perceived performance with the SG were evaluated. The midwife’s video assistance with SG allowed 35% of the SG participants to perform the complete OHB protocol. No CG participant was able to perform it (p = 0.005). All OHB protocol variables were significantly better in the SG group than in the CG (p < 0.05). Telemedicine through video assistance with SG is feasible so that a lifeguard with no knowledge of childbirth care can act according to the recommendations in a simulated, unplanned, uncomplicated OHB. Communication with the midwife by speaking and sending images to the SG is perceived as an important benefit to the performance.

ARLEAN: An Augmented Reality Learning Analytics Ethical Framework

The emergence of the Learning Analytics (LA) field contextualised the connections in various disciplines and the educational sector, acted as a steppingstone toward the reformation of the educational scenery, thus promoting the importance of providing users with adaptive and personalised learning experiences. At the same time, the use of Augmented Reality (AR) applications in education have been gaining a growing interest across all the educational levels and contexts. However, the efforts to integrate LA techniques in immersive technologies, such as AR, are limited and scarce. This inadequacy is mainly attributed to the difficulties that govern the collection and interpretation of the primary data. To deal with this shortcoming, we present the “Augmented Reality Learning Analytics” (ARLEAN) ethical framework, tailored to the specific characteristics that AR applications have, and focused on various learning subjects. The core of this framework blends the technological, pedagogical, and psychological elements that influence the outcome of educational interventions, with the most widely adopted LA techniques. It provides concrete guidelines to educational technologists and instructional designers on how to integrate LA into their practices to inform their future decisions and thus, support their learners to achieve better results.

Google Glass-Supported Cooperative Training for Health Professionals: A Case Study Based on Using Remote Desktop Virtual Support

Purpose

Observation of medical trainees’ care performance by experts can be extremely helpful for ensuring safety and providing quality care. The advanced technology of smart glasses enables health professionals to video stream their operations to remote supporters for collaboration and cooperation. This study monitored the clinical situation by using smart glasses for remote cooperative training via video streaming and clinical decision-making through simulation based on a scenario of emergency nursing care for patients with arrhythmia.

Participants and Methods

The clinical operations of bedside trainees, who is Google Glass Enterprise Edition 2(Glass EE2) wearers, were live streamed via their Google Glasses, which were viewed at a remote site by remote supporters via a desktop computer. Data were obtained from 31 nursing students using eight essay questions regarding their experience as desktop-side remote supporters.

Results

Most of the participants reported feeling uneasy about identifying clinical situations (84%), patients’ condition (72%), and trainees’ performance (69%). The current system demonstrated sufficient performance with a satisfactory level of image quality and auditory communication, while network and connectivity are areas that require further improvement. The reported barriers to identifying situations on the remote desktop were predominantly a narrow field of view and motion blur in videos captured by Glass EE2s, and using the customized mirror mode.

Conclusion

The current commercial Glass EE2 can facilitate enriched communication between remotely located supporters and trainees by sharing live videos and audio during clinical operations. Further improvement of hardware and software user interfaces will ensure better applicability of smart glasses and video streaming functions to clinical practice settings.

Applications of Smart Glasses in Applied Sciences: A Systematic Review

The aim of this study is to review academic papers on the applications of smart glasses. Among 82 surveyed papers, 57 were selected through filtering. The papers were published from January 2014 to October 2020. Four research questions were set up using the systematic review method, and conclusions were drawn focusing on the research trends by year and application fields; product and operating system; sensors depending on the application purpose; and data visualization, processing, and transfer methods. It was found that the most popular commercial smart glass products are Android-based Google products. In addition, smart glasses are most often used in the healthcare field, particularly for clinical and surgical assistance or for assisting mentally or physically disabled persons. For visual data transfer, 90% of the studies conducted used a camera sensor. Smart glasses have mainly been used to visualize data based on augmented reality, in contrast with the use of mixed reality. The results of this review indicate that research related to smart glasses is steadily increasing, and technological research into the development of smart glasses is being actively conducted.

Nurse anesthetists' experiences using smart glasses to monitor patients' vital signs during anesthesia care: A qualitative study

PURPOSE

To describe nurse anesthetists' experiences using smart glasses to monitor patients' vital signs during anesthesia care.

METHODS

Data was collected through individual semi-structured interviews with seven nurse anesthetists who had used smart glasses, with a customized application for monitoring vital signs, during clinical anesthesia care. Data was analyzed using thematic content analysis.

RESULTS

An overarching theme became evident during analysis; Facing and embracing responsibility. Being a nurse anesthetist entails a great responsibility, and the participants demonstrated that they shouldered this responsibility with pride. The theme was divided in two sub-themes. The first of these, A new way of working, comprised the categories Adoption and Utility. This involved incorporating smart glasses into existing routines in order to provide safe anesthesia care. The second sub-theme, Encountering side effects, consisted of the categories Obstacles and Personal affect. This sub-theme concerned the possibility to use smart glasses as intended, as well as the affect on nurse anesthetists as users.

CONCLUSION

Smart glasses improved access to vital signs and enabled continuous monitoring regardless of location. Continued development and improvement, both in terms of the application software and the hardware, are necessary for smart glasses to meet nurse anesthetists' needs in clinical practice.

Smart Glasses for Caring Situations in Complex Care Environments: Scoping Review

Background

Anesthesia departments and intensive care units represent two advanced, high-tech, and complex care environments. Health care in those environments involves different types of technology to provide safe, high-quality care. Smart glasses have previously been used in different health care settings and have been suggested to assist health care professionals in numerous areas. However, smart glasses in the complex contexts of anesthesia care and intensive care are new and innovative. An overview of existing research related to these contexts is needed before implementing smart glasses into complex care environments.

Objective

The aim of this study was to highlight potential benefits and limitations with health care professionals' use of smart glasses in situations occurring in complex care environments.

Methods

A scoping review with six steps was conducted to fulfill the objective. Database searches were conducted in PubMed and Scopus; original articles about health care professionals’ use of smart glasses in complex care environments and/or situations occurring in those environments were included. The searches yielded a total of 20 articles that were included in the review.

Results

Three categories were created during the qualitative content analysis: (1) smart glasses as a versatile tool that offers opportunities and challenges, (2) smart glasses entail positive and negative impacts on health care professionals, and (3) smart glasses' quality of use provides facilities and leaves room for improvement. Smart glasses were found to be both a helpful tool and a hindrance in caring situations that might occur in complex care environments. This review provides an increased understanding about different situations where smart glasses might be used by health care professionals in clinical practice in anesthesia care and intensive care; however, research about smart glasses in clinical complex care environments is limited.

Conclusions

Thoughtful implementation and improved hardware are needed to meet health care professionals’ needs. New technology brings challenges; more research is required to elucidate how smart glasses affect patient safety, health care professionals, and quality of care in complex care environments.

AWOSE - A Process Model for Incorporating Ethical Analyses in Agile Systems Engineering

Ethical, legal and social implications are widely regarded as important considerations with respect to technological developments. Agile Worth-Oriented Systems Engineering (AWOSE) is an innovative approach to incorporating ethically relevant criteria during agile development processes through a flexibly applicable methodology. First, a predefined model for the ethical evaluation of socio-technical systems is used to assess ethical issues according to different dimensions. The second part of AWOSE ensures that ethical issues are not only identified, but also systematically considered during the design of systems based on information and communication technology. For this purpose, the findings from the first step are integrated with approaches from worth-centered development into a process model that, unlike previous approaches to ethical system development, is thoroughly compatible with agile methodologies like Scrum or Extreme Programming. Artifacts of worth-centered development called Worth Maps have been improved to guide the prioritization of development tasks as well as choices among design alternatives with respect to ethical implications. Furthermore, the improved Worth Maps facilitate the identification of suitable criteria for system evaluations in association to ethical concerns and desired positive outcomes of system usage. The potential of the AWOSE methodology has been demonstrated in the context of a technical system (smart glasses for cognitive assistance) that supports elderly and people with particular handicaps.

Stakeholders’ Views on Responsible Assessments of Assistive Technologies through an Ethical HTA Matrix

Assessments of novel assistive technologies for use in home-based services has been documented to be performed in a variety of ways and often with a rather narrow focus on safety and effect or effectiveness. In order better to understand the place for wider forms of assessments of assistive technologies, the current study presents a combination of the Ethical Matrix and the Socratic approach for assessment of health technologies—the Ethical HTA Matrix. This matrix was filled with content based on a case of a GPS localization system, which was validated by stakeholders. In a next step, central decision-makers in assistive technologies and stakeholders were interviewed concerning their views on this methodology. Mainly, the matrix was seen as very comprehensive, but too detailed with an abundance of information. Nevertheless, some informants suggested concrete uses of the matrix in their organizations. Some understood the matrix more as an epistemic tool aiming at providing an overview of the state of knowledge, while others identified a normative potential in the matrix that could be implemented in health innovation processes for the home-based services, in particular when discussing novel solutions and working methods with health professionals and care workers.

Testing Smart Glasses in urology: Clinical and surgical potential applications

OBJECTIVES

We aimed to explore the potential benefits of using smart glasses - wearable computer optical devices with touch-less command features - in the surgery room and in outpatient care settings in urology.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Between April and November 2015, 80 urologists were invited to use Google Glass in their daily surgical and clinical practice, and to share them with other urologists. Participants rated the usefulness of smart glasses on a 10-point scale, and provided insights on their potential benefits in a telephone interview.

RESULTS

During the testing period, 240 urologists used smart glasses, and the 80 initially invited rated their usefulness. Mean scores for usefulness in the surgery room and in outpatient clinics were 7.4 and 5.4, respectively. The interview revealed that the applications of smart glasses considered most promising in surgery were live video streaming and static image playback, augmented reality, laparoscopic navigation, and digital checklist for safety verification. In outpatient settings, participants considered the glasses useful as a viewing platform for sharing test results, for browsing digital vademecum, and for checking medical records in emergency situations.

CONCLUSIONS

Urologists engaged in our experience identified various uses of smart glasses with potential benefits for physician's daily practice, particularly in the urological surgery setting. Further quantitative studies are needed to exploit the actual possibilities of smart glasses and address the technical limitations for their safe use in clinical and surgical practice.

Toward a Method for Exposing and Elucidating Ethical Issues with Human Cognitive Enhancement Technologies

To develop a method for exposing and elucidating ethical issues with human cognitive enhancement (HCE). The intended use of the method is to support and facilitate open and transparent deliberation and decision making with respect to this emerging technology with great potential formative implications for individuals and society. Literature search to identify relevant approaches. Conventional content analysis of the identified papers and methods in order to assess their suitability for assessing HCE according to four selection criteria. Method development. Amendment after pilot testing on smart-glasses. Based on three existing approaches in health technology assessment a method for exposing and elucidating ethical issues in the assessment of HCE technologies was developed. Based on a pilot test for smart-glasses, the method was amended. The method consists of six steps and a guiding list of 43 questions. A method for exposing and elucidating ethical issues in the assessment of HCE was developed. The method provides the ground work for context specific ethical assessment and analysis. Widespread use, amendments, and further developments of the method are encouraged.