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dr. C.M. Epa Ranasinghe (Champika)

Lecturer

About Me

I am a lecturer in Computer Science at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Mathematics, and Computer Science (EEMCS). My current teaching involves Data Physicalization, Human-Computer Interaction, Smart Technology, and Research and Design for User Experience

I received a PhD  from the University of Munster in Germany and a Master's degree in Electronic and Telecommunication Engineering from the University of Moratuwa in Sri Lanka. I also obtained a second Master's degree from the School of Computing, University of Colombo, and a BSc (Honours) degree in Statistics and Computer Science from the University of Kelaniya in Sri Lanka. Prior to joining the University of Twente, I worked as a Content Manager at Innodata (https://innodata.com) and as a Senior Lecturer at the University of Moratuwa in Sri Lanka (https://uom.lk). I completed the University Teaching Qualification (UTQ) and have obtained SEDA (UK) accreditation for teaching, learning, and assessing in higher education.

My research focuses on the overlapping areas of three fields of computer science: Physical Computing, Data Science, and Human-Computer Interaction. I do research that focuses on combining the strengths of these three fields to add tangibility and physicality to computing and to explore ways to integrate and embed computers and data into users' real environments. Thus, my research in this area spans along three main directions: Data  Physicalization, Tangible Learning, and Immersive Analytics.

My current research in Data physicalization focuses on multi sensory representation and perception of data. I explore various means and methods of aligning data representations with human perception to provide more graspable and impactful data experiences. In the area of Immersive Analytics, I explore ways of manipulating physical objects in immersive environments to augment data-related sense making. In Tangible Learning, I investigate ways to combine the physical-digital experiences and explore ways to add tangibility and embodied learning experiences to the classroom. In all three areas, Data Physicalization, Immersive Analytics, and Tangible learning,  I also focus on discovering, characterizing and evaluating the multidimensional aspects of "sense making", experience and impact.

Research

My research focuses on the overlapping areas of three fields of computer science: Physical Computing, Data Science, and Human-Computer Interaction. I do research that focuses on combining the strengths of these three fields to add tangibility and physicality to computing and to explore ways to integrate and embed computers and data into users' real environments. Thus, my research in this area spans along three main directions: Data  Physicalization, Tangible Learning, and Immersive Analytics.

My current research in Data physicalization focuses on multi sensory representation and perception of data. I explore various means and methods of aligning data representations with human perception to provide more graspable and impactful data experiences. In the area of Immersive Analytics, I explore ways of manipulating physical objects in immersive environments to augment data-related sense making. In Tangible Learning, I investigate ways to combine the physical-digital experiences and explore ways to add tangibility and embodied learning experiences to the classroom. In all three areas, Data Physicalization, Immersive Analytics, and Tangible learning,  I also focus on discovering, characterizing and evaluating the multidimensional aspects of "sense making", experience and impact.

Publications

Recent
Postma, D. B. W., de Ruiter, A. , Reidsma, D. , & Ranasinghe, C. (2022). SixFeet: An Interactive, Corona-Safe, Multiplayer Sports Platform. In TEI 2022 - Proceedings of the 16th International Conference on Tangible, Embedded, and Embodied Interaction (pp. 1-7). [3505570] ACM Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1145/3490149.3505570
Epa Ranasinghe, C. M. , & Bouali, N. (2022). Physicalizing Sustainable Development Goals Data: An Example with SDG 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy). In S. Barbosa, C. Lampe, C. Appert, & D. A. Shamma (Eds.), Physicalizing Sustainable Development Goals Data: An Example with SDG 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy) [346] ACM Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1145/3491101.3519638
Ranasinghe, C., Brewster, S. (Ed.), Kun, A. (Ed.), Riener, A. (Ed.), & Shaer, O. (Ed.) (2021). Multimodal (and more physical) Interaction to Improve In-Car User Experience. In Human-Computer Interaction to Support Work and Wellbeing in Mobile Environments (pp. 33-34). (Dagstuhl Reports; Vol. 11, No. 5). Dagstuhl. https://doi.org/10.4230/DagRep.11.5.23
Ranasinghe, C., Holländer, K., Schneegass, S., Currano, R., Sirkin, D., Moore, D., & Ju, W. (2020). Autonomous Vehicle-Pedestrian Interaction Across Cultures: Towards Designing Better External Human Machine Interfaces (eHMIs). In R. Bernhaupt (Ed.), CHI EA '20: Extended Abstracts of the 2020 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (pp. 1–8). ACM Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1145/3334480.3382957
Epa Ranasinghe, C. M., & Kray, C. (2019). Adapting Navigation Support to Location Information Quality: A Human Centered Approach. In G. Gartner, & H. Huang (Eds.), Adjunct Proceedings of the 15th International Conference on Location Based Services (LBS 2019), LBS 2019, 11–13 November 2019, Vienna, Austria (pp. 71-83) https://doi.org/10.34726/lbs2019
Epa Ranasinghe, C. M., Pfeiffer, M., Heitmann, S., & Kray, C. (2019). Evaluating User Experience under Location Quality Variations: A Framework for in-the-wild Studies. In MobileHCI '19: Proceedings of the 21st International Conference on Human-Computer Interaction with Mobile Devices and Services ACM Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1145/3338286.3344392
Ranasinghe, C., Schiestel, N., & Kray, C. (2019). Visualising Location Uncertainty to Support Navigation under Degraded GPS Signals: a Comparison Study. In MobileHCI '19: Proceedings of the 21st International Conference on Human-Computer Interaction with Mobile Devices and ServicesOctober 2019 Article (pp. 1-11). ACM Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1145/3338286.3340128
Epa Ranasinghe, C. M., Heitmann, S., Hamzin, A., Pfeiffer, M., & Kray, C. (2018). Pedestrian navigation and GPS deteriorations: user behavior and adaptation strategies. In OzCHI '18: Proceedings of the 30th Australian Conference on Computer-Human Interaction (pp. 266–277). ACM Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1145/3292147.3292154
Epa Ranasinghe, C. M., Krukar, J., & Kray, C. (2018). Visualizing Location Uncertainty on Mobile Devices: Cross-Cultural Differences in Perceptions and Preferences. Proceedings of the ACM on Interactive, Mobile, Wearable and Ubiquitous Technologies, 2(1), [30]. https://doi.org/10.1145/3191762
Epa Ranasinghe, C. M., & Kray, C. (2018). Location Information Quality: A Review. Sensors (Switzerland), 18(11), [3999]. https://doi.org/10.3390/s18113999

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Affiliated Study Programmes

Bachelor

Master

Courses Academic Year  2022/2023

Courses in the current academic year are added at the moment they are finalised in the Osiris system. Therefore it is possible that the list is not yet complete for the whole academic year.
 

Courses Academic Year  2021/2022

Contact Details

Visiting Address

University of Twente
Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science
Zilverling (building no. 11), room 1054
Hallenweg 19
7522NH  Enschede
The Netherlands

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University of Twente
Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science
Zilverling (building no. 11)
Hallenweg 19
7522NH  Enschede
The Netherlands

Navigate to location

Mailing Address

University of Twente
Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science
Zilverling
P.O. Box 217
7500 AE Enschede
The Netherlands