Grant: Applied Research and Development Grants - Level 2

Sheridan College proposes to partner with three companies (Secret Location, AMD, and SEED Interactive) to help them achieve breakthrough delivery of media and entertainment sector solutions integrating human-virtual human social interaction within multiplatform user experiences. Virtual humans are computer-generated characters that exhibit human-like qualities and communicate with humans and each other using natural human modalities including facial expressions, speech and gesture. The proposed project will focus on evaluation of modules and technologies required for an end-to-end virtual human architecture with attention to the potential integration with multiple media and entertainment sector production workflows. The potential for dramatic growth in commercial application of virtual humans is being enabled by developments in two significant areas of predicted international market growth over the next five years: virtual and augmented reality; and artificial intelligence. Commercialization opportunities ultimately exist within media and entertainment; training and simulation across all sectors; and supplementary support for human- to-human provision of services in areas such as healthcare, aging in place, and education. At the present time, however, commercialization is hampered by a variety of factors including the complexity of the technologies required within an end-to-end solution. The proposed project will enable a team of Sheridan researchers from the digital arts, computer sciences, and social sciences to work together with industry partners to identify solutions that benefit individual companies within the media and entertainment sector while having secondary benefit throughout multiple Canadian economic and social welfare sectors.