Image/speech processing that adopts an artistic approach-toward integration of art and technology

In the areas of image/speech processing, researchers have long dreamed of producing computer agents that can communicate with people in a human-like way. Although the non-verbal aspects of communications, such as emotions-based communications, play very important roles in our daily lives, most research so far has concentrated on the verbal aspects of communications and has neglected the non-verbal aspects. To achieve human-like agents we have adopted a two-way approach. 1. To provide agents with non-verbal communications capability, engineers have started research on emotions recognition and facial expressions recognition. 2. Artists have begun to design and generate the reactions and behaviors of agents, to fill the gap between real human behaviors and those of computer agents