Encoding of multi-modal emotional information via personalized skin-integrated wireless facial interface

Human affects such as emotions, moods, feelings are increasingly being considered as key parameter to enhance the interaction of human with diverse machines and systems. However, their intrinsically abstract and ambiguous nature make it challenging to accurately extract and exploit the emotional information. Here, we develop a multi-modal human emotion recognition system which can efficiently utilize comprehensive emotional information by combining verbal and non-verbal expression data. This system is composed of personalized skin-integrated facial interface (PSIFI) system that is self-powered, facile, stretchable, transparent, featuring a first bidirectional triboelectric strain and vibration sensor enabling us to sense and combine the verbal and non-verbal expression data for the first time. It is fully integrated with a data processing circuit for wireless data transfer allowing real-time emotion recognition to be performed. With the help of machine learning, various human emotion recognition tasks are done accurately in real time even while wearing mask and demonstrated digital concierge application in VR environment. The utilization of human affects, encompassing emotions, moods, and feelings, is increasingly recognized as a crucial factor in improving the interaction between humans and diverse machines and systems. Consequently, there is a growing expectation that technologies capable of detecting and recognizing emotions will contribute to advancements across multiple domains, including HMI device, robotics, marketing, healthcare, education, etc. By discerning personal preferences and delivering immersive interaction experiences, these technologies have the potential to offer more user-friendly and customized services. Nonetheless, decoding and encoding emotional information poses significant challenges due to the inherent abstraction, complexity, and personalized nature of emotions. To overcome these challenges, the successful utilization of comprehensive emotional information necessitates the extraction of meaningful patterns through the detection and processing of combined data from multiple modalities, such as speech, facial expression, gesture, and various physiological signals (e.g., temperature, electrodermal activity). Encoding these extracted patterns into interaction parameters tailored for specific applications also becomes essential. Conventional approaches for recognizing emotional information from humans often rely on analyzing images of facial expressions or speech of verbal expression. However, these methods are frequently impeded by environmental factors such as lighting conditions, noise interference, and physical obstructions. As an alternative, text analysis techniques have been explored for emotion detection, utilizing vast amounts of information available on diverse social media platforms. However, this approach presents challenges due to the diverse ambiguities and new terminologies being introduced, which further complicates the accurate detection of emotions from the text.

Jin Pyo Lee, Hanhyeok Jang, Yeonwoo Jang, Hyeonseo Song, Suwoo Lee, Pooi See Lee, Jiyun Kim