What They Say
Researchers from Australia, New Zealand and India have used facial recognition technology to use users’ expressions to trigger actions in virtual environments, potentially reducing the need for hand-held controllers. Smiling, frowning and jaw clenching can trigger specific actions. The expressions are detected using an EEG headset. Professor Billinghurst of the University of Australia said:
“Overall, we expected the handheld controllers to perform better as they are a more intuitive method than facial expressions, however people reported feeling more immersed in the VR experiences controlled by facial expressions.”
In addition to providing a novel way to use VR, the technique will also allow people with disabilities—including amputees and those with motor neurone disease—to interact hands free in VR, no longer needing to use controllers designed for fully abled people.
More information: Arindam Dey et al, Effects of interacting with facial expressions and controllers in different virtual environments on presence, usability, affect, and neurophysiological signals, International Journal of Human-Computer Studies (2021). DOI: 10.1016/j.ijhcs.2021.102762
What We Think
I’m intrigued by the use of an EEG headset as when I saw the headline, I had assumed that the system might use a camera system, as HP’s headset does. It seems likely to me that combining the two modes of detection would enable even more flexibility and a wider range of possible actions. (BR)
Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain
