Make-a-Face: A hands-free, non-intrusive device for tongue/mouth/cheek input using EMG

Abstract

Current devices aim to be more hands-free by providing users with the means to interact with them using other forms of input, such as voice which can be intrusive. We propose Make-a-Face; a wearable device that allows the user to use tongue, mouth, or cheek gestures via a mask-shaped device that senses muscle movement on the lower half of the face. The significance of this approach is threefold: 1) It allows a more non-intrusive approach to interaction, 2) we designed both the hardware and software from the ground-up to accommodate the sensor electrodes and 3) we proposed several use-case scenarios ranging from smartphones to interactions with virtual reality (VR) content.