Special Session 16

In recent years, the gaming industry, a key sector at the crossing point of technological innovation and the demand for entertainment has experienced significant growth, attracting a global audience. This growth has introduced numerous technical and health-related challenges, opening new possibilities for technological innovation and scientific research. One area that remains under-explored is integrating the Internet of Things (IoT) and virtual sensors in gaming. These technologies can transform how we understand and interact with video games, providing a more immersive and interactive experience. The application of IoT and virtual sensors in gaming enhances entertainment value and has potential therapeutic uses, such as improving the quality of life for the ageing population. The role of Artificial Intelligence in this context is particularly intriguing as it has the potential to significantly alter the dynamics of game design, user interaction, and adaptive gaming environments. Furthermore, this abstract explores the intersection of IoT, virtual sensors, social factors, gamification, virtual reality, and AI in the gaming industry. The potential for breakthrough developments and the need for further research in this evolving field will be highlighted.

This special session invites contributions that are both experiential and experimental in scenarios. Relevant topics for submission may include, but are not limited to, the following areas: Game Theory, Gamification, Game Artificial intelligence, Virtual reality, Consumer Technologies and Games, IoT and games, Game for change, Game psychology.

Antonio Lanata, is an Associate Professor of Bioengineering at the Department of Information Engineering, University of Florence, Italy. His research interests include designing and implementing wearable systems for physiological monitoring and statistical and nonlinear biomedical signal processing. Applications of his research include the assessment of the autonomic nervous system on affective computing, assessment of mood and mental/neurological disorders, and human/animal/robot interaction. He is the author of more than 150 international scientific contributions. He is an Associate Editor of several International journals, such as IEEE Transactions on Affective Computing, Frontiers Bioelectronics, MDPI Bioengineering, Bioelectronics, Biosensors, Algorithms, Electronics, and Animals. He is currently the head of the Laboratory B3Lab (Biosystems, Biosignals, and Bioimaging) of the University of Florence and is responsible for the Computational Physiology and Biomedical Systems (ComPBioS) Research Group. A. Lanata is a member of the IEEE, the IEEE Circuits and Systems Society, Engineering in Medicine and Biology, Information Theory Society, and Signal Processing Society.

Andrea Guazzini, is an Italian researcher at the Department of Education, Literatures, Intercultural Studies, Languages and Psychology at the University of Florence and an associate researcher at the Centre for the Study of Complex Dynamics (CSDC) of the University of Florence. AG is an experimental psychologist and received his Ph.D. in Complex Systems and Nonlinear Dynamics from the University of Florence (2008). Currently, his research interests range from the computational modelling of human cognition and (virtual) social dynamics to studying the psychology of virtual environments. Finally, he is currently the supervisor of the Laboratory for the Study of Human Virtual Dynamics - VirtHuLab at the University of Florence.

Lorenzo Frassineti, received the B.S. degree in Electronic and Telecommunications Engineering and the M.S. in Biomedical Engineering from the University of Florence, Italy, in 2015 and 2018, respectively. He received the Ph.D. degree in Genetics, Oncology and Clinical Medicine at the University of Siena (Italy) in 2023. His research interests include studying machine learning algorithms for biomedical applications, automatic detection of neurological disorders, pediatric bioengineering applications, and high-level signal processing. In 2019, he received a Research Grant from the University of Florence to study and implement contactless systems to support the personalization of the rehabilitative, therapeutic intervention of children with neurodevelopmental disorders. In 2023, he received a Research Grant from the University of Florence regarding the development of artificial models and algorithms to characterize and recognize the level of psychophysiological well-being in fragile subjects.

Mustafa Can Gursesli, received his master's degree in Clinical Psychology from Bergamo University, Italy, in 2020. He worked in Emerging Technologies Lab as an assistant researcher at Tampere University, Finland. He is currently pursuing his PhD in Information Engineering at the University of Firenze and working in the Virtual Human Dynamics Laboratory. Mustafa Can Gursesli is an IEEE Entertainment and Gaming (ENT) Technical Committee member. His research interests are Clinical Psychology, Game Studies, Social Psychology, Artificial Intelligence, and Computer Vision.