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Detection of Student Behavior Profiles Applying Neural Networks and Decision Trees

2020 , Guevara Maldonado, César Byron , Sanchez-Gordon S. , Arias Flores, Hugo Patricio , Varela Aldas, José , Castillo Salazar, David Ricardo , Borja M. , Fierro-Saltos W. , Rivera R. , Hidalgo-Guijarro J. , Yandún-Velasteguí M.

Education worldwide is a significant aspect for the development of the peoples and much more in developing countries such as those in Latin America, where less than 22% of its inhabitants have higher education. Research in this field is a matter of interest for each of the governments to improve education policies. Therefore, the analysis of data on the behavior of a student in an educational institution is of utmost importance, because multiple aspects of progress or student dropout rates during their professional training period can be identified. The most important variables to identify the student’s behavior are the socio-economic ones, since the psychological state and the economic deficiencies that the student faces while is studying can be detected. This data provides grades, scholarships, attendance and information on student progress. During the first phase of the study, all the information is analyzed and it is determined which provides relevant data to develop a profile of a student behavior, as well as the pre-processing of the data obtained. In this phase, voracious algorithms are applied for the selection of attributes, such as greedy stepwise, Chi-squared test, Anova, RefiefF, Gain Radio, among others. In this work, we apply the artificial intelligence techniques, the results obtained are compared to generate a normal and unusual behavior of each student according to their professional career. In addition, the most optimal model that has had a higher accuracy percentage, false positive rate, false negative rate and mean squared error in the tests results are determined. © Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020.

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Analysis of the Level of Accessibility of Scientific Online Conferences for Blind Participants

2021 , Arias Flores, Hugo Patricio , Sanchez-Gordon S. , Calle-Jimenez T.

The change generated by the virtualization of activities due to the COVID-19 pandemic has transformed the way people participate in countless activities. Scientific conferences, like many other events, were forced by the circumstances to change from face-to-face to online overnight. The goal of this study is to identify the accessibility barriers that the platforms used by scientific online conferences pose for blind participants. The research methodology used was experiential introspection complemented by automated testing. Exploratory tests were conducted by a blind researcher using the JAWS screen reader. Besides, the accessibility evaluation tool WAVE was used to identify non-conformances with the web content accessibility guidelines WCAG. As a result, it was found in some cases a null level of accessibility and, in other cases, complexity was detected in the access to activities. As for no conformances with WCAG, two of the most prominent were empty links and the absence of headings for efficient screen reader navigation. The automated tool showed errors and alerts that need to be fixed in the teleconferencing platforms evaluated. It is presumed that, unfortunately, the moderately or even basic concepts for the participation of users with visual disabilities and blind are not being considered in the platforms used to host virtual scientific conferences. © 2021, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

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Financial Marketing at the Border: A View from Customers

2022 , Arias Flores, Hugo Patricio , Quinde-Sari F. , Jadán Guerrero, Janio , Ramos Galarza, Carlos

Border activities are developed with unconventional rules or are not aligned with large cities in their total context. Thus, the modalities of exchange of currency between borders, is an activity that is carried out personally and without intermediaries, that is, person to person, both on one side and the other, the rules of the sale of currency are governed in some way with the limits that are established in each country, there are more bands in which the money changers move. The exchange is carried out in a public square, in which the marketing is done by shouting to attract customers, in this sense the question arises, how well known or used are the digital media of financial entities on the border? A survey was carried out on the clients of two financial entities on the Colombian-Ecuadorian border, to establish how well known and used digital media are by clients and if the website complies with or maintains any marketing strategy toward the client. The results of the exploratory factor analysis identified two factors: functional and safety. On the other hand, convergent validity is favorable with a mean variance extracted close to 0.5. Evidence that the factorial structure establishes a timely adjustment for the confirmatory factor analysis. The hypothesis has been proven that frontier financial institutions are ready to jump into the third stage of the expanded e-commerce model. © 2022, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.

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Control of an Arm-Hand Prosthesis by Mental Commands and Blinking

2020 , Varela Aldas, José , Castillo Salazar, David Ricardo , Borja Galeas, Carlos , Guevara Maldonado, César Byron , Arias Flores, Hugo Patricio , Fierro-Saltos, W. , Rivera, R. , Hidalgo-Guijarro, J. , Yandún-Velasteguí, M.

Patients who lack upper and lower extremities have difficulties in carrying out their daily activities. The new technological advances have allowed the development of robotic applications to support people with disabilities, also, portable electroencephalographic (EEG) sensors are increasingly accessible and allow the development of new proposals which involve the mental control of electronic systems. This work presents the control by mental orders of an arm-hand prosthesis using low-cost devices, the objective is to command the arm using the user’s attention and blinking, where the components are a brain signal sensor, a prosthesis, an Arduino board, six servomotors, and a computer. The developed program in Matlab allows controlling the arm by means of an attention level y blinking. The results show the functioning of the system through experimental tests and a usability test is applied, finally, the conclusions establish adequate coordination in the movements of the prosthesis and the patient indicate satisfaction with the proposal. © Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020.

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Development of a Model for the Construction of Corporate Manuals with QR Codes

2024 , Borja Galeas, Carlos , Arias Flores, Hugo Patricio , Piedra M.

The creation of a brand manual that includes QR triggers makes it possible to unify and update the traditional editorial design with new technologies. The present study exposes a construction model of these corporate identity manuals and all the processes that must be carried out to obtain positive results in their application. The unit of analysis of this research was developed with three brand manuals from companies in the city of Quito, to which augmented reality QR triggers were included, which allowed access to complementary audiovisual material that helps the suppliers of these companies to use and apply the mark appropriately. © 2024, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.

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Technology in Favor of Disability: Prevalence Study in Ecuador

2021 , Arias Flores, Hugo Patricio , Acosta-Rodas P. , Jadán Guerrero, Janio , Ramos Galarza, Carlos

People with disabilities and special needs are very important part of the society, their needs have not been covered over time. Globalization and technological development helped identify the importance of various groups with disabilities. In Ecuador, this identification allows this social group to be visible and particularly people with visual disabilities, who represent approximately 11% of the population with disabilities. The objective of this research is to identify Ecuador’s cities that maintain a higher prevalence of people with disabilities. To comply with the study, a descriptive analysis was conducted from public information about people registered by the authorized government control body. Obtaining this information makes it possible to establish a baseline of attention with real data, which allows getting a greater focus on the development of this social group and the attention they should receive. © 2021, The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

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Long-Distance Relationships: Use of Technology Advances in Communication, Idealization and Satisfaction

2021 , Acosta-Rodas P. , Arias Flores, Hugo Patricio , Ramos Galarza, Carlos

Long distance romantic relationships are becoming more and more common nowadays. There can be various concrete reasons that are the causes for this occurrence, among the most common, the pursuit of career opportunities, educational goals, military service, and migratory issues. The aim of this study is answering the question: how is possible to maintain this kind of relationship? This is explained from two variables: the first one refers to the technology advances which help the communication and the second one studied from the psychological periscope, the romantic idealization. It is approach the perception of this new type of relationships in the general population. Understanding technology influences in human life could help to develop more technological advances to the people to feel closer and to keep healthy relationships with themselves and the others, as well, it could bring lights to counseling and psychological therapy. © 2021, The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

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Gamified Proposal to Stimulate Reading in Primary School Students

2024 , Arias Flores, Hugo Patricio , Montenegro B. , Zapata M.

The lack of motivation and interest in reading in students is a fundamental problem since the minimum levels of reading competence for their age and educational level are not being reached. This research was developed with the aim of identifying motivation problems and using gamification as a pedagogical strategy to encourage reading in students. The study had a quantitative and descriptive approach that involved 30 students. Data were collected through the survey technique. The results of the research showed that reading demotivation is due to the lack of support at home, boredom and low reading comprehension that results from the use of traditional resources such as books that fail to capture and maintain the attention and interest of students. In addition, it was identified that the students present as main reading difficulties: problems of recognition of compound phonemes, lack of reading habit and motivation, as well as the deficit of reading comprehension, so it was necessary to implement a virtual strategy based on gamification through the digital tools Genially and Classflow. With the development of the research, it is concluded that the use of gamification as a pedagogical tool allows to motivate the reading of children, since its interactive elements and rewards create a stimulating and pleasant atmosphere that generates a positive impact on the performance of the student body. © 2024, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.

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Value Proposal: A Participatory Brand Construction Model

2023 , Borja Galeas, Carlos , Arias Flores, Hugo Patricio

The brand is not only from the Unagotion, goes further, it is as if the consumer inner-Izara the product or service. It is searching from consistency, preubey, pursuit, trust, content, and reaching the client, and these elements are the way for the construction of the brand. The corporate image is created from a cultural internalization of management and will be reflected in the identity that will be reflected toward the whole world, and this design is born from the participation of the designer and the senior executives, who transform the ideas through the use of tools innovative The objective of this research is to generate a model that integrates the use of the business model canvas and participatory design, identifying the value proposition of the company. By using a heuristic matrix, which plasma the differentiating elements of the company, iconic elements represent them, together with the colors and typographies that together build the brand with its components: (1) morphology, (2) color, and (3) typography. The participatory design of the actors at each stage accelerates the brand construction, the results are integrated into the best corporate identity, and resistors are avoided in their adoption. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.

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Adoption of Technological Products and Services in an Ecuadorian University for External Consumers

2021 , Palacio-Fierro A. , Arias Flores, Hugo Patricio

This article describes the experiences, initiatives and advances in disability issues for external consumers at a university in Ecuador, which has promoted collaboration agreements with various institutions. This synergy has allowed technological solutions to be developed in the field of disability. These include software for blind students, an augmentative communication board app for people with hearing disabilities, a telerehabilitation platform using the Kinect sensor for those with physical disabilities, a literacy kit with tangible interfaces and RFID sensors. Also, an inclusive board for people with intellectual disabilities which integrates Braille code, QR codes and augmented reality. These technologies have transcended academic frontiers and today, thanks to projects of connection with society, they support a vulnerable and traditionally forgotten population. In terms of educational inclusion, figures and initiatives that the university carries out through its Academic Department and Research Institute are presented. In the workplace, the institution developed a MOOC platform to raise awareness on the treatment of people with disabilities, through which nearly 800,000 public sector workers have been trained. Thanks to all these technological initiatives, a teleworking proposal was generated, which is still in development to connect people with disabilities and companies in carrying out intellectual tasks through a technological platform. The result of all these initiatives has left gratifying experiences and increasingly higher challenges in favor of educational and labor inclusion, especially of people with disabilities where there are more barriers in society than due to their abilities. © 2021, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.