Jascha Grübel

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Grübel

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Jascha

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0000-0002-6428-4685

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Publications 1 - 10 of 45

The Open Digital Twin Platform (ODTP)
Grübel, Jascha; Vivar Rios, Carlos; Zuo, Chenyu; et al. (2023)
We use a five-component Digital Twin model for the Open Digital Twin Platform (ODTP) to capture quantities of interest from reality and represent higher order processes such as mobility in Switzerland. Digital Twins are represented in ODTP with Traces. A Trace describes how data moves through a digital twin from the data source to the last service providing output for users. Traces allow for the reproduction of a digital twin. ODTP relies on the cloud-based automation with micro-services to provide the five environments for the digital twin model. The first prototype “CH on the move” of the Swiss Mobility System uses MATSim , Eqasim and EasySynth to provide mobility simulations.
Computer-Aided Experimentation for Human Behaviour Analysis
Grübel, Jascha (2022)
The implementation of behavioural experiments in various disciplines has relied on computers for the last five decades. Interestingly, the use of computers has both facilitated and hindered different aspects of the experimental process. Over time, frameworks have been developed that make it easier to design experiments and conduct them. At the same time, the multiplicity of frameworks and the lack of documentation have made the replication of experiments a difficult endeavour. The reproducibility crisis is not unique to computer-aided experiments but is severely aggravated by it. Most experimental research focuses on translating a research question into an actionable hypothesis that can be falsified through experiments. However, the process of conducting the experiment—experimentation—is often left to the researchers' whims. While method sections in papers are meant to ameliorate this by giving an overview of how the research was conducted, it often omits several steps supposedly for clarity. This approach is following in the footsteps of Karl Popper to "omit with advantage" but the reproducibility crisis has shown that it is not easy to tell a priori what actually can be omitted with advantage. In this dissertation, I address this issue by formalising Computer-Aided Experimentation (CAE). The focus of previous research has been on reproducing experimental outcomes instead of creating a theoretical foundation for reproducible experimentation. Here, I rely on concepts from industrial research such as "Digital Twins", cloud research such as the "_ as Code" revolution, and insights from behavioural research on reproducibility to define Computer-Aided Experimentation for Human Behaviour Analysis. This thesis proposes a three-fold approach of theories, systems and applications to define CAE. First, I outline my theoretical framework behind CAE that relies on the three concepts: the "Experiments as Digital Twins" perspective, the "Experiments as Code" paradigm, and the "Design, Experiment, Analyse, and Reproduce" (DEAR) principle. Subsequently, I present five systems that employ the theoretical concepts of CAE. Each system addresses human behaviour analysis across a wide range of disciplines. Lastly, I report how these five systems are put to a test in domain science applications that have advanced their respective research fields. I conclude this dissertation with a discussion on the importance of these new theoretisations of experimentation and point towards future tasks in Computer-Aided Experimentation for Human Behaviour Analysis.
EVE: A Framework for Experiments in Virtual Environments
Grübel, Jascha; Weibel, Raphael; Jiang, Mike H.; et al. (2017)
Lecture Notes in Computer Science ~ Spatial Cognition X
EVE is a framework for the setup, implementation, and evaluation of experiments in virtual reality. The framework aims to reduce repetitive and error-prone steps that occur during experiment-setup while providing data management and evaluation capabilities. EVE aims to assist researchers who do not have specialized training in computer science. The framework is based on the popular platforms of Unity and MiddleVR. Database support, visualization tools, and scripting for R make EVE a comprehensive solution for research using VR. In this article, we illustrate the functions and flexibility of EVE in the context of an ongoing VR experiment called Neighbourhood Walk.
Fused Twins: A Cognitive Approach to Augmented Reality Media Architecture
Grübel, Jascha; Gath Morad, Michal; Aguilar, Leonel; et al. (2021)
MAB20: Media Architecture Biennale 20. Proceedings of the 5thMedia Architecture Biennale Conference
Recent advances in Augmented Reality (AR), the Internet of Things (IoT), cloud computing, and Digital Twins transform the types, rates, and volume of information generated in buildings as well as the mediums through which they can be perceived by users. These advances push the standard approach of media architecture to embed screens in the built environment to its limits because screens lack the immersive capacity that newer media afford. To bridge this gap, we propose a novel AR approach to media architecture that uses a Digital Twin as a platform for structuring and accessing data from various sources, including IoT and simulations. Our technical contribution to media architecture is threefold. First, we extend the possibilities of media architecture beyond embedded screens to three dimensions by presenting a Digital Twin using AR with a head-mounted display. This approach results in a shared and consistent augmented experience across large architectural spaces. Second, we use the Digital Twin to integrate and visualize real physical sensor information. Third, we make artificial occupancy simulations accessible to everyday users by presenting them within their natural context in the Digital Twin. Observing the Digital Twin in situ of the Physical Twin also has applications beyond media architecture. Fusing the two twins using AR can reduce the cognitive load of users from consuming big and complex information sources and enhance their experience. We present two use cases of the proposed Fused Twins in a university building at ETH Zürich. In the first use case, we visualize a dense indoor sensor network (DISN) with 390 IoT sensors that collected data from March 2020 to May 2021. In the second use case, we immerse visitors in agent-based simulations to enable insights into the real and projected uses of space. This * All three authors contributed equally to this research. Asterdam/Utrecht, The Netherlands Grübel, Gath-Morad, Aguilar et al. work brings forward an ambitious vision for media architecture beyond traditional flat screens, and showcases its potential through fusing state of the art simulations, sensor data integration and augmented reality, finally making the jump from fiction to reality.
The design, experiment, analyse, and reproduce principle for experimentation in virtual reality
Grübel, Jascha (2023)
Frontiers in Virtual Reality
Conducting experiments in virtual reality (VR) requires a complex setup of hardware, software, experiment design and implementation, and data collection which is supported by frameworks that provide pre-determined features for scientists to implement their experiment in VR. These VR frameworks have proliferated exponentially since the start of the millennia, and unfortunately, they both only differ slightly from one another and often miss one or more of the key features required by the researcher. Therefore, it has become less clear to researchers which framework to choose for what task and to what benefit. I introduce the design, experiment, analyse, and reproduce (DEAR) principle to develop a new perspective on VR frameworks through a holistic approach to experimentation (i.e., the process of conducting an experiment). The DEAR principle lays out the core components that future frameworks should entail. Most previous VR frameworks have focussed on the design phase and sometimes on the experiment phase to help researchers create and conduct experiments. However, being able to create an experiment with a framework is not sufficient for wide adoption. Ultimately, I argue that it is important to take reproducibility seriously to overcome the limitations of current frameworks. Once experiments are fully reproducible through automation, the adaptation of new experiments becomes easier. Hopefully, researchers can find ways to converge in the use of frameworks or else frameworks may become a hindrance instead of a help.
Video for Presentation "The Feasibility of Dense Indoor LoRaWAN Towards Passively Sensing Human Presence"
Grübel, Jascha; Thrash, Tyler; Helal, Didier; et al. (2021)
The talk was given in the Best Paper Candidate session at 11:30am CET on the 24th of March 2021 at the 19th IEEE International Conference on Pervasive Computing and Communications (PerCom 2021) in Kassel, Germany. This version of the talk was pre-recorded as a backup by the author. The teaser summarized the paper in one minute and has been circulated on Twitter before the conference and is stored here for reference. The paper and talk introduces the concept of a Dense Indoor Sensor Network (DISN) and investigates whether Long Range Wide Area Networks (LoRaWAN) are a feasible technology to underpin a DISN. We test a DISN with 390 sensor devices in an office building at ETH Zürich for 5 months in 2020 - however, the system is still collecting data until at least December 2021. We find that the a gateway every 30m and 5 floors provides an effective coverage for a DISN based on LoRaWAN ensuring both signal quality and redundancy. The paper and talk also aim towards passively sense human presence based on a DISN. They give a preview of the collected data by using the COVID-19 induced lockdown as a natural experiment to expose the human-activity related variation in sensor measurements in the building.
Experiments as DTs
Grübel, Jascha (2024)
Handbook of Digital Twins
DTs (DTs) have become the buzzword of the decade, permeating research, industry and even governance as indicated by Gartner’s hype measure [47]. At the same time, DTs are highly under-specified and each DT is based on a slightly different conceptualisation. So far, most DTs have focused on the digitalisation of crucial components of a system [18]. More recent work has unveiled a methodology to describe the five core components to construct effective DTs [21, 47] but other conceptualisations still prevail [49]. The DT is said to arise by combining five environments that take on different roles in the formation of a DT (see Figure 33.1 and Ref. [21]). First, the Physical Environment captures and changes the reality of the Physical Twin (PT) through sensors and actuators. 1 Second, the Data Environment stores information required to form the DT. This can range from cloud services and subscription to local sensor networks to databases and data warehouses. Third, the Analytical Environment is taking the information as input to some modelling, simulation or analysis. Fourth, the Virtual Environment enables the interaction of users with content in all environments through dashboards [5] and immersive analytics [32] such as Fused Twins [20]. Lastly, the Connection Environment brings together the other Environments by providing APIs and Access Control and standardisation [46]. All connections are bi-directional and allow DTs to interact with the PT. This conceptual framework is generalised to accommodate all kinds of DTs regardless of actual implementation.
A Cognitive Model for Routing in Agent-based Modelling
Grübel, Jascha (2018)
Routing is an essential process for pedestrian Agent-Based Modelling (ABM). ABM is a computational tool to model and analyse human behaviour. The process of routing is well-studied in both Computer Science and Cognitive Science. However, routing in ABM is often taken for granted and both its impact and its implementation are disregarded. In this work, I unpack the blackbox of routing in ABM and take insights from Cognitive Science to improve the realism of routing. In particular, I focus on the agent’s mental representation of the environment and typical errors in encoding this information. I propose to deviate from classical Computer Science paradigm of optimality to capture human behaviour more accurately. The resulting model produces routes that are less prone to typical computational artefacts such as ziggzagging, i. e. turning more often than humans would, and bottlenecks, i. e. always routing through one particular node because it is minimally more efficient.
Physiological and behavioral reactions to renewable energy systems in various landscape types
Spielhofer, Reto; Thrash, Tyler; Wissen Hayek, Ulrike; et al. (2021)
Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews
Renewable energy systems (RES) can impact landscape aesthetics and influence the public's perception of the landscape and their acceptance of large infrastructure projects. Perceptual processes have consequences for both physiological and behavioral reactions to visual landscape changes and have not been systematically assessed in the context of RES. In this paper, we measured participants' physiological (electrodermal activity) and behavioral (i.e., landscape preferences) responses to landscapes with different amounts of RES. The visual stimuli were composed of either a low or high amount of wind turbines and photovoltaic systems in seven different landscape types. Participants were asked to choose their preferred landscape image from pairs of sequentially presented images while we recorded their electrodermal activity. The results revealed that participants were significantly more physiologically aroused while viewing landscapes with high RES compared to landscapes with low RES. We also found that the participants significantly preferred landscapes with low RES to landscapes with high RES and that this effect was larger for some landscapes than others. The results also revealed significant differences in preferences among landscape types. Specifically, participants tended to prefer the more natural landscapes to the more urban landscapes. A systematic analysis of the visual features of these stimuli revealed a positive correlation between physiological arousal and the visual impact of photovoltaic systems. Overall, we conclude that both physiology and behavior can be relevant for studies of landscape perception and that these insights may inform planners and policy makers in the implementation of landscape changes related to RES.
EVE: A Framework for Experiments in Virtual Environments
Grübel, Jascha; Weibel, Raphael; Hölscher, Christoph; et al. (2016)

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