Understanding the Mechanism ofSonzai-Kan
ATR Intelligent Robotics and Communication
Laboratories

Where does the Sonzai-Kan, the feeling of one's presence, suchas the atmosphere, the authority, come from? How can it becaptured, revived, and transmitted?
We developed a new real-person based android, “Geminoid”,
which owns its researcher as its archetype, but also is tightlyconnected with its master being. Geminoid was developed forstudying the science and technology of Sonzai-Kan.

Geminoid HI-1

Copyright(C) 2006 ATR Intelligent Robotics and Communication Laboratories

The Effect of Semi-Autonomous Remote Control

Robots’ artificial intelligence have still not reached the level ofadult mankind. With Geminoid’s remote controlling function, it
is possible to avoid this problem, and conduct variousresearches toward the implementation on high-level humaninteraction, including the study on Sonzai-Kan.

Copyright(C) 2006 ATR Intelligent Robotics and Communication Laboratories

Reason to make a researcher’s copy
Research using androids requires various information on the“master”: from physical natures to social relationships, in detail.
With Geminoid, whose “master” is a researcher, acceleration inscientific investigations on understanding human nature can beexpected.

Copyright(C) 2006 ATR Intelligent Robotics and Communication Laboratories

Appropriate teleoperation methods

It is necessary to study the method to tele-operate an android in order to convey“presence”, which is quite different with traditional teleoperation for mobile
robots and industrial robots. We will study a method to autonomously control anandroid by transferring a motion of an operator measured by a motion capturingsystem. Also, a method to autonomously control eye-gaze and small motion will
be investigated.

Previous accomplishments

Motion generalization among different robots
Teleoperation of communication robots

Autonomous control of body movements
Copyright(C) 2006 ATR Intelligent Robotics and Communication Laboratories

Natural behavior production matched withspeech utterances on teleoperation

We will investigate how to produce natural behaviors during speech utterances,in order to transmit “presence” by tele-operation of an android. Besides theinformation transmitted by words during speech utterances, we will study theeffects on non-verbal communication, by investigating not only synchronizationof speech and lip movements, but also the effects of facial expressions, head andeven the whole body movements.

Previous accomplishments[ k o Nn i ch i w a ]Speech-driven lip synchronization
Automatic extraction of paralinguistic
information for non-verbal communication

SpeechSpeaking styleextraction: prosody,
voice quality

Paralinguistic information
extraction: intentions,attitudes, emotions

To a dialogue
or behavior
processing

Copyright(C) 2006 ATR Intelligent Robotics and Communication Laboratories

Understanding and transmitting Sonzai-Kan
We will investigate the effect of transmitting “Sonzai-Kan” from aremote place, such as participating to a meeting instead of the person
himself. Moreover, we will investigate “what is presence” throughexperiments. For example, we will study whether the android canrepresent authority of the person himself, by comparing the person
himself and the android.

Internet
Operator

Previous accomplishments

Geminoid

Analysis of humanoid appearances
Do people react in same manner to robots withdifferent appearances? We found that, in simple
reactive behaviors as greetings, the response timediffers.

Showing of inter-robot communication
Copyright(C) 2006 ATR Intelligent Robotics and Communication Laboratories