“The ultimate goal is to develop a method that enables humans to interact in an unconscious with some parts of the virtual environment more intensely than others, and is induced only by their own physiological responses to virtual reality displays , ” Christoph explains to SINC Groenegress , co-author and researcher at the University of Barcelona.

The system, whose details have been published recently in the journal The Visual Computer, measured with three sensors and wireless devices in real time physiological parameters : heart rate , respiration, and galvanic response (electrical ) of the skin of a person. Instantly, the data is processed with software that is used to control the behavior of a virtual character who is sitting in a waiting room.

The heart rate is reflected in the movements of the character’s feet , breathing in the hills of his chest ( exaggerated to be noticed ) and galvanic response in the more or less reddish color of the face.

The researchers conducted an experiment to see if the people who recorded their physiological parameters had any preference for the virtual actor that incorporated , without them knowing it a priori. But the result was negative, “probably because the choice is influenced by other factors such as the appearance of the character or situation in the scene. ” The team is now studying how to solve this problem.

To tell stories and rehabilitation

Scientists suggest that unconscious processes can be a useful tool for storytelling ” in a video game , for example , or to arouse the interest of the participants when performing a sequence of tasks, such as those conducted in patients undergoing rehabilitation.

“We hold that the anchoring of subjective bodily states to virtual reality can enhance the sense of realism that a person has it and eventually create a stronger bond between humans and this virtual reality , “concludes Groenegress .

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Citation :

Groenegress Christoph , Bernhard Spanlang and Mel Slater. “The Physiological mirror – a system for control of a virtual Unconscious Through Physiological activity environment . ” The Visual Computer 26 ( 6-8) : 649-657 , 2010. DOI : 10.1007/s00371-010-0471-9 .

Source: SINC