Project Number

202

Title

Talking Head

Description

Prototype physical avatar interface for video conferencing.

Contact

Gesellschaft fuer Mediales Gestalten Mbh

Affiliation

"The Virtual Company"

Address

Kantstrasse 165 
10623 Berlin, Germany

E-mail

chris@well.com

WWW

Year

1997

Reference

SIGGRAPH 97 Visual Proceedings

Project Details

"Talking Head" is a prototype product for a new generation of video conferencing. 
 
Video images of participants are projected onto a physical head model to give a true three-dimensional impression of their conversation partner. Implementation compensation algorithms generate eye-to-eye contact during the communication. 
 
The overall effect takes some getting used to, but over time, the participant adjusts to the paradigm and even "forgets" about the fact that the conversation partner is not real.

Sight

video cameras, focused projector, image processor

Sound

two-way audio

Touch

Smell

Taste

Other

Emergence

1 - Innovation, Custom, Research

Intent

3 - Application (expression, enabler)

Primary

311 - communication

Secondary

206 - avatar / agent

Remarks

Implementation details undocumented.

 


Last updated: 5 Jul 2002
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