Visual Interest Contingent Presentation Agents

This research proposes an interactive presentation system that employs eye gaze as an intuitive and unobtrusive input modality. Attentive behavior is an excellent clue to users' (visual) interest and preference. By analyzing and interpreting human eye movements in real- time, the interface can adapt to the current interest of the user and provide a more personalized or 'attentive' experience of the presentation to the user. Our system implements a virtual presentation room, where research content is presented by a team of two highly realistic 3D agents in a dynamic, interactive, and story-like way. The agents are capable of adapting their presentation according to the information from a non- contact video based eye tracker, thereby accounting for the user's focus and shift of visual interest in the presented material. A demo video based on this system won the GALA Award5 as the best application of life-like agents at an international event.