An Intuitive Control API for Catroid

In this research, the main objective is to develop an intuitive control API in Catroid to enhance its usability as a graphical programming tool for children and study the human-mobile interaction and experience made possible with this control API. Another objective is to develop this control API in open source development method and benchmark it with the typical software development method.
It would greatly enrich user experience if Catroid can provide support for implementing intuitive control concepts to enhance its usability for children. But currently Catroid do not have control API support to develop intuitive user interaction with the application. In brief, an intuitive control API is missing in Catroid. Without such an API, the potential of Catroid as a programming tool cannot be unleashed.
This research studies the maximization programming power of Catroid and advancement of control API in Catroid into a more intuitive form. This research studies the Open Source Development Model used to develop the control API. The scope of prototype will only covers locating direction, tilting, turning, and shaking motions as the new intuitive control made possible in Catroid
The research methodology is Open Source Development Methodology (OSDM) and the Test-Driven Development Method with Extreme Programming is used for code development. The objective of OSDM is to utilize the online community who is the user and developers of Catroid to review and test source code to improve the software quality.
The intuitive control API where phone sensors are integrated will further improve the user interaction and experience both in using Catroid and its application. The intuitive control API consists of sensor variables and If-Then-Else Command Block. The If-Then-Else Command Block acts as the control and the sensor variables make the control become intuitive. Accelerometer and orientation sensor are implemented in this control API where each of the sensors contributed 3 different values acted as the sensor variables: X-Sensor Acceleration, Y-Sensor Acceleration, Z-Sensor Acceleration, Azimuth, Pitch, and Roll. These sensor variables can be assigned to or removed from any text field in the Command Blocks using the Formula Editor. The usage of the intuitive control API is simple and straight forward. When a sensor variable is assigned to one of the fields in If-Then-Else Command Blocks, the intuitive control is developed. The Command Blocks in between the If-Statement Command Block and End of If Command Block will be executed whenever the logic condition in the If-Statement is true.
Various intuitive user interactions could be developed depending on the creativity of users. The most popular intuitive user interactions are through locating direction, tilting, turning and shaking motions.
Open Source Development Method allows developers to redefine the user requirements along with the software development which reduce the risk of software failure in the end of development.