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		   B O S T O N   U N I V E R S I T Y
                                       
		      Computer Science Department
                                       
			  C O L L O Q U I U M
                                       
                   Robust Behaviors for Animated Characters

                               Nancy Pollard
                  Graphics, Visualization & Usability Center
             College of Computing,  Georgia Institute of Technology

                           Wednesday, March 4th
                                       
			        11:00am 
		       (Coffee served at 10:45pm)
                                       
			 Seminar Room / MCS 135
                                       

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     Animation of human motion has exciting potential applications in
     education, biomechanics, and entertainment.  These application areas
     require animated motion that is both realistic and easy to use.
     Although computer graphics researchers have created impressive
     examples of realistic animated behaviors, adapting animated behaviors
     to new characters, environments, or tasks is still difficult.
     
     In this talk, I will describe two techniques for making simulated
     behaviors more robust.  The first is an algorithm to adapt existing
     grasps to fit new object geometries in a way that is guaranteed to
     meet task constraints.  This approach has been used to synthesize
     enveloping grasps of three-dimensional objects for an articulated
     hand.  The second technique allows an existing dynamic behavior to be
     applied to a new character.  The algorithm uses a two step scaling and
     tuning process to adapt the parameters of the behavior to the physical
     properties of the character.  The technique has been used to animate
     running and cycling behaviors for a variety of characters by modifying
     working control systems for an adult man.
     

Host: Wayne Snyder (snyder@cs.bu.edu)

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     This is a talk by a candidate for a faculty position. 
     For more information on Ms. Pollard and her research , see:
           http://www.cc.gatech.edu/gvu/people/faculty/nancy.pollard/
     
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For colloquium info, including directions, see http://cs-www.bu.edu/colloquium
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