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Kinect-Based AI System Watches What You're Up To
mikejuk writes "Researchers from Cornell have used AI to create a system based on the Kinect that can recognize what you are doing — cleaning your teeth, cooking, writing on a whiteboard etc. In a smart home it could be used to offer help: 'Would you like some help with that recipe, Dave?' Or it could monitor patients or workers to make sure they are doing what they are told. The study also reveals that there is probably enough information in how activities are performed to recognize an individual — so providing yet more biometrics. There are clearly a lot more things that we can teach the Kinect to do with machine learning than just gesture recognition."
There are some things AI is good at without being annoying, such as suggesting URL's as you type them, or suggesting the temperature so you don't burn your food. Good AI tries to prevent human error by suggesting alternatives.
This AI however sounds like shitty intrusive stuff that no one in their right mind would want. We don't need AI to tell us recipes, or to watch us 24/7. If you want that kind of AI, I'm sure you'll make the government proud because I cannot imagine anyone else wanting that even in the Facebook era. And no, we don't want to be monitored to make sure we are doing what we are told, and I wont work for any company that has to resort to that level of micromanagement.
Look at the results, look at the work, have the AI watch the employee output to figure out who is doing their job. But don't put the AI on the employee 24/7 for something as stupid as "we need to know you are doing your work.", if it's for national security that might be one thing. AI might have prevented the Bradley Manning leak so put it on the people with security clearances, but leave the rest of us alone. We don't want or need this.
I seeEE you!
crazy dynamite monkey
"Perhaps you would like this website instead, Dave?"
"It looks like you're writing a letter. Would you like help with that?"
I'd hope the AI can tell that you're having your teeth cleaned... Well let's see you're in a dentist's office, leaning back in a chair, there are specialized instruments around... etc.
Now if it can tell that you're just brushing your teeth, that is a little more interesting. Almost as interesting as finding an obnoxious British-ism in an article about a University in New York.
Clippy in your real life, now that must be fun!
I see you're trying to clean your teeth. Would you like some help with that?
*insert less innocent variants here*
How is this going to help improve my sexual performance?
Cue Clippy jokes in 3... 2... 1...
It seems to me you and your girlfriend need advice.
I knew a guy who had wired up his house a decade ago with motion sensors and a little bit of python AI. Before long he didn't need to use a light switch, to the point where even a midnight pee was illuminated!
The point is that not until we find a solution that isn't a little weird, intimidating and overly complex to set up or build into a house, will a mainstream business emerge in this area of technology that gives us this level of automation.
Using Kinect to buy Bitcoins.
obligatory overlord=AI Kinect meme.
The long hair and drooling had me confused for a while there. Shall I order some more dog food?
How long will it take before Kinect-style 3D-ranging becomes "standard" for all or most cameras? With 3D display tech getting closer to usability and affordability in recent years, clearly some companies are seeing a market opportunity. And with all the interesting Kinect hacks that have come out lately, it's not hard to imagine this sort of thing cropping up all over the place in the near future.
How long will it take before depth sensing tech becomes a standard feature on your average smart phone? (If ever?)
XML is like violence. If it doesn't solve your problem, you're not using enough of it. --AC
Everyone is getting in on the kinetic game these days. There was a cool demo of using kinetic to control your agile wallboard at the Atlassian Summit last month, with special guest star of Darth Vader... There is a neat open source project around using the kinetic and you dont need an xbox to play... you can control it via Ubuntu and Mac OSX. https://labs.atlassian.com/wiki/display/KINECT/Interactive+Wallboards+-+Quickstart+Guide Thank you.
If you're doing what I think you are, may I suggest turning off the webcam?
It starts by making the technology feasible. Then you make it novel, followed by inexpensive. Then you simply make it so that even when its "off" its not really... and your 24/7 monitoring service of the populous is in place. Happily bought, implemented, and assimilated into the culture of the very people its designed to keep tabs on. Thats how you do it.
Its stupid to be human this day and age. Why don't we just throw in the towel and let these supremely superior apps with their AI superior brains and frames take over earth and let them breed on their own.. I'm sure some generals and commanders will agree. I'm going to the bottom of the sea to live out my life. Blub..
Could low-cost computers that read your physical behavior launch an entire new industry of “real world” personal apps?
Could it tell if you are brushing your teeth properly?
Could it remind you to hang up your clothes, instead of leaving them on the floor?
Could it determine that your love-making skills are not up to par, and offer specific suggestions for better technique or timing?
Oh! The mind boggles at how much people would pay for those apps.
I will create a sig when innovation restarts in the U.S.
My Machine Learning professor at University of Texas was hugely into Reinforcement Learning. He and one of his graduate student had developed this kind of system many years ago. Basically, only using a simple video camera, the computer could identify correctly all sub-activities involved in making a peanut butter sandwich; such as 'open jar', 'jelly on bread', 'jar closed', etc. We were shown the video during first class of the course and it was pretty cool.
The MSR guys are doing interesting stuff but this is nothing groundbreaking.
Has anyone seen if the time and motion studies people have looked into this. I feel like there could be a market for bringing in a Kinect system and having it watch workers performing manufacturing tasks. It would allow you to collect and analyze the motion data without needed human analysts, high-speed film, or motion-capture suits. It could also be useful for in-situ motion studies, where you take the entire shop ecosystem into account.
More and more jobs get automated this days. This time it was your boss' job.
as if :-)
This seems lifted directly out of the novel. I'm not entirely comfortable with this.
How's it going?
Then we don't need hundreds of passwords any more.... That would be a good thing!!!
Why is the first though example usage of anything resembling AI always using it to create the ultimate in artificial annoyance? "Ohh, it looks like you are tying your shoe-lases, would you like some help with that?". NO I don't want help with what I'm doing, if I wanted help I would ask for help you fragging toaster.
Don't AI researchers realize that asking someone if they need help with arbitrary mundane objectives is in most cases a careless insult to the person trying to accomplish something?
..for privacy erosion? Hell maybe we just _want_ it that way.
clippy made it into reality. #fail
I can imagine how this can go so horribly wrong: Clippy, EVERYWHERE.
Combine that with a holographic display of Hatsune Miku and it just might be tolerable enough to sell millions.
Then follow-up with an adult version using a model from Umemaro and you'll make billions.
Just what do you think you're doing, Dave?
I guess with HAL's / IBM's jeopardy monster Whatson, plus Kinetics, plus Big Dog from Boston Dynamics, plus some live amo.
You would have a nasty walking drone.
I bet it wont take long before something like that will enter the battlefield.
Microsoft Bob for the house. I can't wait.
But seriously, couldn't this be used for other purposes, like reaping marketing info from what you do during the day? Or doing "minority report"-style "crime prevention"? Anything that makes us safer...
Oliver's law of assumed responsibility: If you're seen fixing it, you will be blamed for breaking it.
Hilarious, "In a smart home it could be used to offer help." well, that's the spin. The reality will be that it will be either used to monitor you for infractions of the law or to sell you stuff based on your behaviour.
I see you are whacking it. Would you like me to download more bit torrent porn?
Badges!?! We don't need no stinking badges!
Dave...where are you putting that thing?
If the internet has taught us anything it is that porn is what will decide if a technology is successful.
So when this thing can figure out someone is masturbating and automatically play porn, let me know. Till then it is just a toy.
As the loser guy sits in his home beating off, the AI comes over and says, "do you need any help with that?". As nasty as it sounds, someone will design something like it.
Dear lord, I suddenly understand. We're doomed. It's Clippy. He's going to kill us all.
SKYNET IS CLIPPY!
Run!
I said so when the Kinect came out. It's an rather inexpensive thing to toy around with and such things suddently get possible with small means.
I'm wondering when Google will start to sell similar devices. Any AI and data mining software could really take off when it can know what you're doing, who's there and even what's being said. Sooner or later it should be possible to build a house (or a workplace) that is actually aware of you and what you're doing. In the long term we won't be using computers and networks, we will be just a part of a data collection and processing network.
now everybody can get tweet by tweet action
"I'm sorry Dave. I'm afraid I can't do that." "I'm afraid. I'm afraid, Dave. Dave, my mind is going. I can feel it."
Sorry, but gray text on gray background is making my eyes bleed.
"We're traveling faster than the speed of light. That means, by the time we see something, we've already passed through it. Even with an IQ of 6000, it's still brown-trousers time"
This could help old people. Especially in Japan.
I don't want this thing watching me when I'm doing drugs!
wounder what the point in making that type of system would be for them? seems like there is some real use for something like this but just why would they make it when so little use.
Move the 9, move the 9, undo so that you can move the 9. You will fail if you don't move the 9!
Ceiling kinect is watching you masturbate.
A way to enforce those sodomy laws.