Action evaluation apparatus and method

• US 7,523,084 B2
• Filed: 06/21/2006
• Issued: 04/21/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 06/22/2005
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Sawada, Tsutomu
• Primary Examiner(s): STARKS, WILBERT L
• Application Number:
  US11/472,036
• Publication Number:
  US 20060293900A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,035 Days
• Field of Search: 706/52, 706/45
• US Class Current: 706/52
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/22 Procedures used during a speech recognition process, e.g. man-machine dialogue

Abstract

An action evaluation apparatus evaluates a user'"'"'s action corresponding to an action desired by a system, and determines the ongoing of a story using the evaluation result. The action evaluation apparatus includes a recognizer for recognizing the user'"'"'s action through a plurality of modals, and an action evaluator for evaluating the user'"'"'s action based on the recognition result of the respective modals obtained by the recognizer.

Claims

1. An action evaluation apparatus for calculating a user'"'"'s action evaluation values, comprising:

recognition means for recognizing the user'"'"'s action through a plurality of modals;

calculating means for calculating the user'"'"'s action evaluation values based on the recognition result of the associated modals obtained by the recognition means, wherein the calculating means calculates an overall evaluation value through each of the plurality of modals;

determination means for determining if the overall evaluation value is less than a predetermined threshold value; and

notification means for notifying the user of action correction points for modals whose action evaluation value is less than a predetermined threshold value when the overall evaluation value is less than the predetermined threshold value.

2. The action evaluation apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein the action evaluation means evaluates the user'"'"'s action using instructor data for the respective modals.

3. The action evaluation apparatus as set forth in claim 2, wherein

the recognition result data and the instructor data are expressed in the form of a vector, and

the action evaluation means evaluates the user'"'"'s action based on an inter-vector distance between the recognition result data and the instructor data.

4. The action evaluation apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein the action evaluation means calculates a matching probability of the user'"'"'s action and a target action using the Bayesian Network, and evaluates the user'"'"'s action based on the matching probability.

5. The action evaluation apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein the recognition means uses, as modals, at least two items of the face position and direction, visual line direction, face expression, movement of hands and legs, shape of mouth, shape of eyes, shape of eyebrows, posture, contents of speech, and rhythm.

6. An action evaluation method for calculating a user'"'"'s action evaluation values, comprising the steps of:

recognizing the user'"'"'s action through a plurality of modals;

calculating the user'"'"'s action evaluation levels based on the recognition result of the associated modals obtained in the recognition steps, wherein an overall evaluation value is calculated through each of the plurality of modals;

determining if the overall evaluation value is less than a predetermined threshold; and

notifying the user of action correction points for modals whose action evaluation value is less than a predetermined threshold value when the overall evaluation value is less than a predetermined threshold value.

7. An action evaluation apparatus for calculating a user'"'"'s action evaluation levels, comprising:

a recognizer for recognizing the user'"'"'s action through a plurality of modals; and

an action calculator for calculating the user'"'"'s action evaluation levels based on the recognition result of the associated modals obtained by the recognizer, wherein the action calculator calculates an overall evaluation value through each of the plurality of modals;

a determiner for determining if the overall evaluation value is less than predetermined threshold value; and

a notifier for notifying the user of action correction points for modals whose action evaluation value is less than a predetermined threshold value when the overall evaluation value is less than a predetermined threshold value.