As our dependence on intelligent machines continues to grow, so does the demand for more transparent and interpretable models. In addition, the ability to explain the model generally is now the gold standard for building trust and deployment of artificial intelligence systems in critical domains. Explainable artificial intelligence (XAI) aims to provide a suite of machine learning techniques that enable human users to understand, appropriately trust, and produce more explainable models. Selecting an appropriate approach for building an XAI-enabled application requires a clear understanding of the core ideas within XAI and the associated programming frameworks. We survey state-of-the-art programming techniques for XAI and present the different phases of XAI in a typical machine learning development process. We classify the various XAI approaches and, using this taxonomy, discuss the key differences among the existing XAI techniques. Furthermore, concrete examples are used to describe these techniques that are mapped to programming frameworks and software toolkits. It is the intention that this survey will help stakeholders in selecting the appropriate approaches, programming frameworks, and software toolkits by comparing them through the lens of the presented taxonomy.

Computer vision-based assistive technology solutions can revolutionise the quality of care for people with sensorimotor disorders. The goal of this work was to enable trans-radial amputees to use a simple, yet efficient, computer vision system to grasp and move common household objects with a two-channel myoelectric prosthetic hand. We developed a deep learning-based artificial vision system to augment the grasp functionality of a commercial prosthesis. Our main conceptual novelty is that we classify objects with regards to the grasp pattern without explicitly identifying them or measuring their dimensions. A convolutional neural network (CNN) structure was trained with images of over 500 graspable objects. For each object, 72 images, at [Formula: see text] intervals, were available. Objects were categorised into four grasp classes, namely: pinch, tripod, palmar wrist neutral and palmar wrist pronated. The CNN setting was first tuned and tested offline and then in realtime with objects or object views that were not included in the training set. The classification accuracy in the offline tests reached [Formula: see text] for the seen and [Formula: see text] for the novel objects; reflecting the generalisability of grasp classification. We then implemented the proposed framework in realtime on a standard laptop computer and achieved an overall score of [Formula: see text] in classifying a set of novel as well as seen but randomly-rotated objects. Finally, the system was tested with two trans-radial amputee volunteers controlling an i-limb UltraTM prosthetic hand and a motion controlTM prosthetic wrist; augmented with a webcam. After training, subjects successfully picked up and moved the target objects with an overall success of up to [Formula: see text]. In addition, we show that with training, subjects' performance improved in terms of time required to accomplish a block of 24 trials despite a decreasing level of visual feedback. The proposed design constitutes a substantial conceptual improvement for the control of multi-functional prosthetic hands. We show for the first time that deep-learning based computer vision systems can enhance the grip functionality of myoelectric hands considerably.

The perception of fog computing is to bring a virtual presence into day-to-day objects. The lowest layer of the fog architecture is the Internet of Things (IoT), which created a revolution by changing ordinary objects into smart objects that automatically sense and process data. In the IoT, smart objects connected over the Internet communicate with each other and exchange data with the fog server to improve services to customers. There are some challenges to achieving the benefits of the IoT. This article discusses a three-layered fog architecture and highlights potential security threats and solutions at each layer. Finally, open research issues are discussed at all three layers of the fog hierarchy.

Social media has played a significant role in disaster management, as it enables the general public to contribute to the monitoring of disasters by reporting incidents related to disaster events. However, the vast volume and wide variety of generated social media data create an obstacle in disaster management by limiting the availability of actionable information from social media. Several approaches have therefore been proposed in the literature to cope with the challenges of social media data for disaster management. To the best of our knowledge, there is no published literature on social media data management and analysis that identifies the research problems and provides a research taxonomy for the classification of the common research issues. In this paper, we provide a survey of how social media data contribute to disaster management and the methodologies for social media data management and analysis in disaster management. This survey includes the methodologies for social media data classification and event detection as well as spatial and temporal information extraction. Furthermore, a taxonomy of the research dimensions of social media data management and analysis for disaster management is also proposed, which is then applied to a survey of existing literature and to discuss the core advantages and disadvantages of the various methodologies.

The Internet of Things (IoT) has emerged as an important concept, bridging the physical and digital worlds through interconnected devices. Although the idea of interconnected devices predates the term “Internet of Things”, which was coined in 1999 by Kevin Ashton, the vision of a seamlessly integrated world of devices has been accelerated by advancements in wireless technologies, cost-effective computing, and the ubiquity of mobile devices. This study aims to provide an in-depth review of existing and emerging IoT simulators focusing on their capabilities and real-world applications, and discuss the current challenges and future trends in the IoT simulation area. Despite substantial research in the IoT simulation domain, many studies have a narrow focus, leaving a gap in comprehensive reviews that consider broader IoT development metrics, such as device mobility, energy models, Software-Defined Networking (SDN), and scalability. Notably, there is a lack of literature examining IoT simulators’ capabilities in supporting renewable energy sources and their integration with Vehicular Ad-hoc Network (VANET) simulations. Our review seeks to address this gap, evaluating the ability of IoT simulators to simulate complex, large-scale IoT scenarios and meet specific developmental requirements, as well as examining the current challenges and future trends in the field of IoT simulation. Our systematic analysis has identified several significant gaps in the current literature. A primary concern is the lack of a generic simulator capable of effectively simulating various scenarios across different domains within the IoT environment. As a result, a comprehensive and versatile simulator is required to simulate the diverse scenarios occurring in IoT applications. Additionally, there is a notable gap in simulators that address specific security concerns, particularly battery depletion attacks, which are increasingly relevant in IoT systems. Furthermore, there is a need for further investigation and study regarding the integration of IoT simulators with traffic simulation for VANET environments. In addition, it is noteworthy that renewable energy sources are underrepresented in IoT simulations, despite an increasing global emphasis on environmental sustainability. As a result of these identified gaps, it is imperative to develop more advanced and adaptable IoT simulation tools that are designed to meet the multifaceted challenges and opportunities of the IoT domain.