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Expressive Virtual Characters for Social Demonstration Games
KTH, School of Computer Science and Communication (CSC), Computational Science and Technology (CST).ORCID iD: 0000-0002-3089-0345
KTH, School of Computer Science and Communication (CSC), Computational Science and Technology (CST).
KTH, School of Computer Science and Communication (CSC).
KTH, School of Computer Science and Communication (CSC).
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2017 (English)In: 2017 9th International Conference on Virtual Worlds and Games for Serious Applications, VS-Games 2017 - Proceedings, IEEE, 2017, p. 217-224Conference paper, Published paper (Refereed)
Abstract [en]

Virtual characters are an integral part of many game and learning environments and have practical applications as tutors, demonstrators or even representations of the user. However, creating virtual character behaviors can be a time-consuming and complex task requiring substantial technical expertise. To accelerate and better enable the use of virtual characters in social games, we present a virtual character behavior toolkit for the development of expressive virtual characters. It is a midlleware toolkit which sits on top of the game engine with a focus on providing high-level character behaviors to quickly create social games. The toolkit can be adapted to a wide range of scenarios related to social interactions with individuals and groups at multiple distances in the virtual environment and supports customization and control of facial expressions, body animations and group formations. We describe the design of the toolkit, providing an examplar of a small game that is being created with it and our intended future work on the system.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
IEEE, 2017. p. 217-224
Series
International Conference on Games and Virtual Worlds for Serious Applications, ISSN 2474-0470
National Category
Computer and Information Sciences
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:kth:diva-224103DOI: 10.1109/VS-GAMES.2017.8056604ISI: 000425228700038Scopus ID: 2-s2.0-85029005495ISBN: 978-1-5090-5812-9 (print)OAI: oai:DiVA.org:kth-224103DiVA, id: diva2:1189702
Conference
9th International Conference on Virtual Worlds and Games for Serious Applications (VS-Games), SEP 06-08, 2017, Athens, Greece
Funder
EU, Horizon 2020, 644204
Note

QC 20180312

Available from: 2018-03-12 Created: 2018-03-12 Last updated: 2025-02-18Bibliographically approved
In thesis
1. Simulating Group Interactions through Machine Learning and Human Perception
Open this publication in new window or tab >>Simulating Group Interactions through Machine Learning and Human Perception
2020 (English)Doctoral thesis, comprehensive summary (Other academic)
Abstract [en]

Human-Robot/Agent Interaction is well researched in many areas, but approaches commonly either focus on dyadic interactions or crowd simulations. However, the intermediate structure between individuals and crowds, i.e., small groups, has been studied less. In small group situations, it is challenging for mobile robots or agents to approach free-standing conversational groups in a socially acceptable manner. It requires the robot or agent to plan trajectories that avoid collisions with people and consider the perception of group members to make them feel comfortable. Previous methods are mostly procedural with handcrafted features that limit the realism and adaptation of the simulation. In this thesis, Human-Robot/Agent Interaction is investigated at multiple levels, including individuals, crowds, and small groups. Firstly, this thesis is an exploration of proxemics in dyadic interactions in virtual environments. It investigates the impact of various embodiments on human perception and sensitivities. A related toolkit is developed as a foundation for simulating virtual characters in the subsequent research. Secondly, this thesis extends proxemics to crowd simulation and trajectory prediction by proposing neighbor perception models. It then focuses on group interactions in which robots/agents approach small groups in order to join them. To address the challenges above, novel procedural models based on social space and machine learning models, including generative adversarial neural networks, state refinement LSTM, reinforcement learning, and imitation learning, are proposed to generate approach behaviors. A novel dataset of full-body motion-captured markers was also collected in order to support machine learning approaches. Finally, these methods are evaluated in scenarios involving humans, virtual agents, and physical robots.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
KTH Royal Institute of Technology, 2020
National Category
Robotics and automation Computer graphics and computer vision Social Sciences
Research subject
Computer Science
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:kth:diva-287337 (URN)
Public defence
2021-01-25, VIC Studio, Lindstedtsvägen 5, plan 4, KTH, 114 28 Stockholm, Stockholm, 10:00 (English)
Opponent
Supervisors
Note

QC 20201208

Available from: 2020-12-08 Created: 2020-12-07 Last updated: 2025-02-05Bibliographically approved

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Yang, FangkaiLi, ChengjiePalmberg, RobinPeters, Christopher

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Yang, FangkaiLi, ChengjiePalmberg, RobinVan der Heide, EwoudPeters, Christopher
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