Human-Computer Interaction Based on Facial Expression Recognition: A Case Study in Degenerative Neuromuscular Disease

Physical disability can, in certain cases, be a barrier for traditional human-computer interaction based on keyboard and mouse devices. Alternative ways of interaction based on computer vision may be successfully adapted in particular cases of disability. This paper purposes a vision-based assistive technology to help a child with a degenerative neuromuscular disease to interact with the computer through facial expression recognition. The proposed algorithm was evaluated in images extracted from videos of the child and the preliminary results indicate that computer-interaction via facial expression recognition can break down barriers for people with reduced mobility regarding their relation with computers.