Bridging the uncanny valley — From 3D humanoid characters to virtual tutors

If it was possible for 3D humanoid characters with a realistic appearance to move in a natural fashion, they would perfectly resemble real people as seen on television or in films. Characters with such traits would thus fulfill the necessary conditions for application as virtual tutors. In order to realize such humanoid characters, researchers have been grappling with the daunting challenge of finding solutions to the problems posed, which has come to be known as Uncanny Valley. The work which lay the basis for this paper focused on the conceptualization and development of a user-friendly tool with which the visual behavior of humans can be replicated and reanimated realistically and precisely. A prerequisite for the development of the tool was the construction of a 3D humanoid character with which it would be possible to imitate all human movements anatomically correctly. This paper presents an overview of the relevant research and development.