Anthropomorphism of Artificial Agents: A Comparative Survey of Expressive Design and Motion of Virtual Characters and Social Robots

Abstract

Autonomous virtual characters and social robots are meant to interact with humans. They should be able to communicate, express emotions and exhibit personality. Their social skills are highly dependent on their physical design, as well as on their motion capabilities. This paper presents a comparative survey of design choices and motion generation techniques used in the computer animation community and in the robotics community when creating social agents. It addresses the central question of anthropomorphism of artificial agents and discusses the points of convergence and divergence between computer animation and robotics research.