Modern speech-language pathology practices (SLPPs) have adopted tablet games in recent years. Research is needed to take advantage of the potential benefits tablets can offer and to explore the factors that influence its introduction. This paper discusses a survey that was conducted to investigate the factors that influence speech-language pathologists’ (SLPs) beliefs and the actual use of tablets in SLPPs. The results of the survey, conducted among Slovenian SLPs, indicated that their most positive beliefs concerning tablets relate to social influence. Specifically, the beliefs relate to children’s interest and practice with tablets and have a significant impact on the decision-making of SLPs concerning introducing tablets in therapy. Conversely, SLPs’ most negative beliefs relate to the conditions for facilitating tablet use, particularly the lack of Slovenian applications. This paper discusses a separate case study that was conducted in which tablet game-supported therapy was introduced to a group of 44 children. The case study results indicated that the children accepted the use of tablet games for therapy purposes and the games had a positive impact on the children’s motivation and satisfaction.

The paper proposes a phase-space based algorithm applying the Euclidian distance measure enabling detection of heartbeats and characteristic (fiducial) points from a single-lead electrocardiogram (ECG) signal. It extends the QRS detection in the phase space by detecting the P and T fiducial points. The algorithm is derived by reconstructing the ECG signals in a two-dimensional (2D) phase space according to the delay method and utilizes geometrical properties of the reconstructed phase portrait of the signal in the phase space for the heartbeat and fiducial-point detection. It uses adaptive thresholding and the Euclidian distance measure between the signal points in the phase portrait as an alternative to the phase-portrait area calculation (Lee et al., 2002). It was verified with the QT Database (2011) and its performance was assessed using sensitivity (Se) and the positive predictive value (PPV). Results for the proposed algorithm are 99.06%, 99.75% and 99.66% for Se and 94.87%, 99.75% and 99.66% for PPV for the P points, heartbeats and T points, respectively.

This paper presents measurement results of frequency characteristics of the high-voltage power line in low radio-frequency range: amplitude and phase characteristic, group delay, and input impedance. Measurement results for the 400-kV overhead power-line under operation are presented together with the developed measurement methodology. The methodology provides a method to measure amplitude and phase characteristics, group delay and the return loss of the HV power line for a geographically distributed system utilizing an optical link as a return path. The measurement results confirm very low attenuation with a linear phase, but with oscillations present in all characteristics caused by reflection of the signal on the power line. The complete knowledge of frequency characteristics of the HV power line and noise description is crucial for the design of digital power-line carrier (PLC) systems.