Insights into low-level avatar animation and MPEG-4 standardization

Referring to the new functionality of video access and coding, the survey presented here lies within the scope of MPEG-4 activities related to virtual character (VC) animation. We first describe how Amendment 1 of the MPEG-4 standard offers an appropriate framework for virtual human animation, gesture synthesis and compression/transmission. Specifically, face and body representation and animation are described in detail in terms of node syntax and animation stream encoding methods. Then, we discuss how this framework is extended within the ongoing standardization efforts by (1) allowing the animation of any kind of articulated model, and (2) addressing advanced modeling and animation concepts as "skin and bones"-based approach. The new syntax for node definition and animation stream is presented and discussed in terms of genericity and additional functionalities. The biomechanical properties, modeled by means of the character skeleton that defines the bone influence on the skin region, as well as the local spatial deformations simulating muscles, are supported by specific nodes. Animating the VC consists in instantiating bone transformations and muscle control curve. Interpolation techniques, inverse kinematics, discrete cosine transform and arithmetic encoding techniques make it possible to provide a highly compressed animation stream. The new animation framework extension tools are finally evaluated in terms of realism, complexity and transmission bandwidth within a sign language communication system.