Quantifying videotaped activity patterns: video translation software and training methodologies.
Valerie G. Zartarian, Alesia Ferguson, Chin-Ann Ong, James O. Leckie · PubMed · 1997
Questionnaires and diaries, the current methods of human activity data collection, do not accurately capture the detail necessary to quantify exposure incurred through the dermal and non-dietary ingestion routes. Stanford University's Environmental Engineering and Science Program has developed methodologies and software (VideoTraq) for training video translators, determining inter-observer reliability, and translating videotaped micro-activity patterns into computer text files. VideoTraq output files contain duration, in seconds, for each combination of location, activity, and object contacted corresponding to the sequential micro-activities of a videotaped subject's contact boundary (e.g., left hand, right hand, mouth). Such output allows for detailed analyses of micro-activity data, including contact frequency and duration. When coupled with environmental concentrations, these data will allow for more accurate exposure assessments, particularly for the dermal and non-dietary ingestion exposure routes.