Dell Research, a new division of the recently privatized Dell, is conducting early experiments with brain and body sensors to detect a person’s mood for use in computers involved with education and communications. It could also be used to monitor a person’s mood while driving or playing games.
The mood experiments are among others underway at Dell Research that stretch across four broad areas: security, data insights, mobility and the Internet of Things, and cloud and modern data centers, according to Jai Menon, a vice president and Dell’s chief research officer. Dell’s focus on moods and emotions will use a person’s brain waves combined with heart rate, pulse or other body functions in hopes of detecting when a person is happy, sad, anxious, fearful or has other feelings, Menon said in an interview.
Dell's focus on moods and emotions will use a person's brain waves combined with heart rate, pulse or other body functions in hopes of detecting when a person is happy, sad, anxious, fearful or has other feelings, Menon said in an interview.
Eventually, such mood input could be channeled to help a teacher know when students are most alert and ready to learn or to help managers better communicate with workers, he said.
"There's a lot of potential in daily use. Say I'm in my car and calling somebody and sudden fear is sensed. Well, that fear could drive a call to 9-1-1, for example," Menon said. "In gaming, the game can become more interesting depending on our moods, and if a device senses trepidation on my opponent's part, then maybe I can beat you now."
Comments
Log in or sign up to join the conversation.