Affective Computing Timeline

By Brice_Mitchell
  • 10,000 BCE

    Knapping

    Stone tools fashioned as tools for cutting meat, hunting, and breaking things. Knowledge of knapping was passed down from generation to generation among human ancestors, and allowed early humans to hunt, construct, and eat more efficiently. Widely considered the first of human technology.
  • 3400 BCE

    Written Language

    Written Language
    The first written language is attributed to Ancient Mesopotamia and Egypt. Written language served as a method to communicate nonverbally, and to record information.
  • 1400

    Printing Press

    Printing Press
    The printing press allowed mass production of the same text, allowing the public to read identical documents. One of the most prominent texts to come off the printing press was the early Gutenberg Bible. This invention changed society in significant ways as for the first time in history, the public had widespread access to a uniform text.

  • Facial Action Coding System

    Facial Action Coding System
    A taxonomy of human facial expression and corresponding emotion, FACS was developed and published in 1978 by Paul Ekman. This would begin to pave the way towards Affective Computing. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I_03LsSHNgA

  • Galvactivator

    Galvactivator
    Wearable glove that detects skin electrodermal response to measure levels of arousal. A high arousal level will cause the light on the galvactivator to glow. One of the initial applications for this technology is to aid autistic children in detecting arousal/overstimulation.

  • Affdex

    Affdex
    One of the results of Ekman's research and taxonomy of facial expressions/emotions was a development of technology that reads facial expressions and interprets user emotion. Affdex is a type of Affective Computing that draws from large quantities of data to assess a user's facial expression and perceived emotion. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c2CWb5jHmbY

  • DeepMind

    DeepMind
    A form of artificial intelligence that operates as a neural network. DeepMind works to create algorithms and strategies to solve tasks whether playing a game or running tests. https://deepmind.com/about

  • SIRI

    SIRI
    Siri is a revolutionary program purchased by Apple that responds to voice promptings. Rather than simply a search engine, Siri is a "do" application that can respond to commands and hold a dialogue with a human user. Siri represents a significant step towards a human-technology relationship dynamic.

  • Pepper AI

    Pepper AI
    First humanoid robot that can recognize faces, human emotion, and hold a conversation. Pepper is designed as an assistant/secretary that companies/organizations can use to help students, customers, etc. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zJHyaD1psMc

  • AI Personal Assistant

    AI Personal Assistant
    In the near future, combining current affective computing technologies, it does not seem unlikely that we may have personal AI assistants that can keep log of our daily tasks, emotions, exercise, arousal, etc., and can communicate with us to notify, assess, or schedule these things for us. These may come in the form of wearables, a home module, or a vehicle accessory, and may all be linked to the same interface- perhaps even coming in family accessible plans.