Brunel Launches Research into Emotion Recognition Technology

Brunel University's Department of Information Systems and Computing (DISC) is to run a three-year research project into emotion recognition technology to improve how we relate to PCs.

This research is being funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (ESPRC). It aims to investigate how we can benefit from working with computers which can recognise how we're feeling. Based on the premise that a PC can read our facial expressions, the research will investigate how we might respond to a computer that can be sensitive to mood and will test how we change our behaviour when we interact with this new technology.

Investigating how people naturally express emotion when they know they are interacting with an emotion-detecting computer, the Brunel researchers will identify the conditions where emotion recognition may lead to improvements provide guidelines for future use.

Some potential uses have been identified as:
* Intelligent 'tutors' which change the pace or content of a computer-based learning programme based on sensing the levels of interest or puzzlement of the user
* Intelligent computing applications such as a CD player which selects music on the basis of the users' mood
* Entertainment applications such as games or interactive movies where the action changes based on the emotional response of the user
* Help systems that can detect user frustration or confusion and offer appropriate user feedback.

Dr Kate Hone, research leader at Brunel University says: 'Facial expression is particularly important in the communication of emotion. We can understand and identify facial indicators for happiness, surprise, fear, sadness, anger and disgust as well as general body language and tone of voice.'

She points out that there are also a number of psycho-physiological indicators of emotion, such as pulse rates and respiration - most of which are not easily detected by human observers, but which could be made available to computers given appropriate sensing equipment.

She identified certain challenges, 'for example, just as the characteristics of speech vary from person to person, so do the characteristics of emotional expression'.

Initially the research will investigate the use of facial expression recognition.

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