Cette thèse s'inscrit dans le cadre du projet Européen intégré VERE (Virtual Embodiement and Robotics re-Embodiement). Il s'agit de proposer une architecture logicielle intégrant un ensemble de stratégies de contrôle et de retours informationnels basés sur la "fonction tâche" pour incorporer (embodiment) un opérateur humain dans un humanoïde robotique ou un avatar notamment par la pensée. Les problèmes sous-jacents peuvent se révéler par le démonstrateur suivant (auquel on souhaite aboutir à l'issue de cette thèse). Imaginons un opérateur doté d'une interface cerveau-ordinateur ; le but est d'arriver à extraire de ces signaux la pensée de l'opérateur humain, de la traduire en commandes robotique et de faire un retour sensoriel afin que l'opérateur s'approprie le "corps" robotique ou virtuel de son "avatar". Une illustration cinématographique de cet objectif est le film récent "Avatar" ou encore "Surrogates". Dans cette thèse, on s'intéressera tout d'abord à certains problèmes que l'on a rencontré en travaillant sur l'utilisation des interfaces cerveau-ordinateur pour le contrôle de robots ou d'avatars, par exemple, la nécessité de multiplier les comportements ou les particularités liées aux retours sensoriels du robot. Dans un second temps, nous aborderons le cœur de notre contribution en introduisant le concept d'interface cerveau-ordinateur orienté objet pour le contrôle de robots humanoïdes. Nous présenterons ensuite les résultats d'une étude concernant le rôle du son dans le processus d'embodiment. Enfin, nous montrerons les premières expériences concernant le contrôle d'un robot humanoïde en interface cerveau-ordinateur utilisant l'électrocorticographie, une technologie d'acquisition des signaux cérébraux implantée dans la boîte crânienne. / This thesis is part of the European project VERE (Virtual Embodiment and Robotics re-Embodiment). The goal is to propose a software framework integrating a set of control strategies and information feedback based on the "task function" in order to embody a human operator within a humanoid robot or a virtual avatar using his thoughts. The underlying problems can be shown by considering the following demonstrator. Let us imagine an operator equipped with a brain-computer interface; the goal is to extract the though of the human operator from these signals, then translate it into robotic commands and finally to give an appropriate sensory feedback to the operator so that he can appropriate the "body", robotic or virtual, of his avatar. A cinematographic illustration of this objective can be seen in recent movies such as "Avatar" or "Surrogates". In this thesis, we start by discussing specific problems that we encountered while using a brain-computer interface for the control of robots or avatars, e.g. the arising need for multiple behaviours or the specific problems induced by the sensory feedback provided by the robot. We will then introduce our main contribution which is the concept of object-oriented brain-computer interface for the control of humanoid robot. We will then present the results of a study regarding the role of sound in the embodiment process. Finally, we show some preliminary experiments where we used electrocorticography (ECoG)~--~a technology used to acquire signals from the brain that is implanted within the cranium~--~to control a humanoid robot.

Innovative technologies and their ability to grow rapidly are known to be a great source of controversy and paranoid reactions amongst people. The aim of this research is to examine the acceptance and perception of the technology of digital supermodels and influencers. This will be done in the global market of end-users where this technology has proliferated or has the potential to emerge. Digital supermodels and influencers were regarded specifically in a marketing context for this research, since the whole essence of their existence is for marketing purposes, and was approached as a new innovative technology. The research was divided into two parts, first was about conducting a questionnaire to analyse people’s acceptance of the technology, more specifically to examine the possible change in their purchasing behaviour. The purpose of the second part of given research was to examine people’s reactions and perception towards this technology through a content analysis of Instagram comments for the Instagram accounts of digital supermodels and influencers. The addressed innovative technology of digital influencers and supermodels is mostly perceived positively or neutrally. The significant amount of neutral positions in both parts of given research states the presence of confusion and the need for answers rather than lack of interest, which is to be addressed by the creators and users of digital avatars in marketing in the fashion industry.

Abstract Purpose - The purpose of this master thesis is to research the Generation Y’s online purchase intention for fashion items while creating and using a customised avatar. Overall, the objective is to create a better understanding of this technology’s potential, formulate managerial implications for fashion businesses and strengthen business viability. Design/Methodology/Approach - The research approach of this study is deductive, whereby hypotheses derive from the Decomposed Theory of Planned Behaviour. After secondary data is reviewed, a single quantitative data collection is applied, thus following a mono-method. This primary data is gathered virtually through a self-administered online questionnaire. A total number of 205 qualified responses from the Generation Y are statistically analysed using a structural equation modelling. This descriptive research design is chosen to conduct the relationships between the latent variables and the behavioural intention. Findings - The empirical findings reveal, that the attitude, subjective norm and perceived behavioural control significantly and positively influence the Generation Y’s online purchase intention to create and use a customised avatar. While the attitude, with the behavioural belief of perceived usefulness specifically, shows the strongest influence on the behavioural intention, the research sample also sees a fit to all technology facilitating conditions, affecting the perceived behavioural control. In comparison to this, the subjective norm influences the behavioural intention in a weaker manner, whereby the research sample is influenced more by external than interpersonal factors. Implications - To enlarge the Generation Y’s online fashion purchase intention while creating and using a customised avatar, fashion marketers are advised to highlight and improve the usefulness of the technology. Fashion businesses are recommended to implement interactive digital platforms, by employing influencer marketing, in order to endorse and promote the brand awareness in regard to the technology. Originality/Value - This master thesis addresses the online purchase intention for fashion items while creating and using a customised avatar from a commercial perspective. Where prior literature findings lack the link to managerial implications, this study examines the Generation Y’s behavioural intention towards this technology. The Generation Y has an immense and increasing purchasing power, which is accompanied with technical skills, thus making them crucial for the market success of online fashion businesses. Therefore, the authors examine the technology's commercial potential and encompass the whole fashion industry.

Face à une image représentant une personne, nous (les êtres humains) pouvons visualiser les différentes parties de la personne en trois dimensions (tridimensionnellement – 3D) malgré l'aspect bidimensionnel (2D) de l'image. Cette compétence est maîtrisée grâce à des années d'analyse des humains. Bien que cette estimation soit facilement réalisable par les êtres humains, elle peut être difficile pour les machines. Dans ce mémoire, nous décrivons une approche qui vise à estimer des poses à partir de vidéos dans le but de reproduire les mouvements observés par un avatar virtuel. Nous poursuivons en particulier deux objectifs dans notre travail. Tout d'abord, nous souhaitons extraire les coordonnées d’un individu dans une vidéo à l’aide de méthodes 2D puis 3D. Dans le second objectif, nous explorons la reconstruction d'un avatar virtuel en utilisant les coordonnées 3D de façon à transférer les mouvements humains vers l'avatar. Notre approche qui consiste à compléter l’estimation des coordonnées 3D par des coordonnes 2D permettent d’obtenir de meilleurs résultats que les méthodes existantes. Finalement nous appliquons un transfert des positions par image sur le squelette d'un avatar virtuel afin de reproduire les mouvements extraits de la vidéo. / Given an image depicting a person, we (human beings) can visualize the different parts of the person in three dimensions despite the two-dimensional aspect of the image. This perceptual skill is mastered through years of analyzing humans. While this estimation is easily achievable for human beings, it can be challenging for machines. 3D human pose estimation uses a 3D skeleton to represent the human body posture. In this thesis, we describe an approach that aims at estimating poses from video with the objective of reproducing the observed movements by a virtual avatar. We aim two main objectives in our work. First, we achieve the extraction of initial body parts coordinates in 2D using a method that predicts joint locations by part affinities (PAF). Then, we estimate 3D body parts coordinates based on a human full 3D mesh reconstruction approach supplemented by the previously estimated 2D coordinates. Secondly, we explore the reconstruction of a virtual avatar using the extracted 3D coordinates with the prospect to transfer human movements towards the animated avatar. This would allow to extract the behavioral dynamics of a human. Our approach consists of multiple subsequent stages that show better results in the estimation and extraction than similar solutions due to this supplement of 2D coordinates. With the final extracted coordinates, we apply a transfer of the positions (per frame) to the skeleton of a virtual avatar in order to reproduce the movements extracted from the video.