Event Calendar:
Director of the Department
Prof. Dr. Heinrich H. Bülthoff
heinrich.buelthoff[at]tuebingen.mpg.de
Phone: +49 7071 601-601
Fax: +49 7071 601-616
dagmar.maier[at]tuebingen.mpg.de
Human Perception, Cognition and Action - The World in our Heads
The department is concerned with the fundamental processes of human perception. The primary issues are how objects are remembered in the brain so that humans can recognize and manipulate them as well as how the information from different sense organs is integrated to create a consistent representation of the “world in the head”.
Traditional psychophysics methods are combined with the most up-to-date computer graphics and Virtual Reality systems to research “algorithms of perception”. Psychophysics addresses the mathematical description of associations between physical stimuli and the perceptions they trigger in humans. The use of computer simulations and realistic virtual environments to carry out psychophysical experiments maximizes the possibility of dynamic feedback and interactivity. At the same time, this approach allows complete control over all the aspects of the simulation to reach accurate conclusions about human perception.
The research focuses on object and face recognition, the perception of space, the integration of information from the visual, haptic and balance senses and, based on the results of research into perception, on the development of efficient algorithms for machine vision and computer graphics. The technical equipment for investigating these questions includes hardware such as movement simulators, projection screens for virtual environments, 3D scanners to record the geometry of objects and 3D printers to make objects generated on the computer. The software includes a comprehensive 3D database of morphable faces and facial expressions, which was developed here in the department, and a library for the simulation of virtual environments.
Traditional psychophysics methods are combined with the most up-to-date computer graphics and Virtual Reality systems to research “algorithms of perception”. Psychophysics addresses the mathematical description of associations between physical stimuli and the perceptions they trigger in humans. The use of computer simulations and realistic virtual environments to carry out psychophysical experiments maximizes the possibility of dynamic feedback and interactivity. At the same time, this approach allows complete control over all the aspects of the simulation to reach accurate conclusions about human perception.
The research focuses on object and face recognition, the perception of space, the integration of information from the visual, haptic and balance senses and, based on the results of research into perception, on the development of efficient algorithms for machine vision and computer graphics. The technical equipment for investigating these questions includes hardware such as movement simulators, projection screens for virtual environments, 3D scanners to record the geometry of objects and 3D printers to make objects generated on the computer. The software includes a comprehensive 3D database of morphable faces and facial expressions, which was developed here in the department, and a library for the simulation of virtual environments.
Research Groups of the Department
| Recognition and Categorization | Perception & Action in Virtual Environment |
|  In the Perception & Action in Virtual Environments research group, our aim is to investigate human behavior, perception and cognition using ecologically valid and immersive virtual environments. [more] |
| Cybernetics Approach to Perception and Action | Autonomous Robotics and Human-Machine Systems |
 In the Cybernetics Approach to Perception and Action research group, our aim is to apply information theory, signal theory and advanced control system methods to understanding self-motion perception and action. [more] |  The aim of the group is to study novel control strategies for autonomous machines (robots) that are able to sense the environment, reason about it, take actions to perform some tasks, and possibly cooperate with humans.  [more] |
| Cognitive Engineering | Motion Perception and Simulation |
 The Cognitive Engineering group develops applications based on Computer-Vision, Computer-Graphics and Machine-Learning in combination with methods that analyse Human cognitive processes. [more] |  The aim of the group is to establish a new approach to dynamic simulation. We focus on reproducing the perception of motion, rather than its merely physical characteristics, to increase the simulators performance and the impression of realism. [more] |
Last updated: Tuesday, 07.05.2013