The Magic XRoom: A Flexible VR Platform for Controlled Emotion Elicitation and Recognition

Affective computing has recently gained popularity, especially in the field of human-computer interaction systems, where effectively evoking and detecting emotions is of paramount importance to enhance users’ experience. However, several issues are hindering progress in the field. In fact, the complexity of emotions makes it difficult to understand their triggers and control their elicitation. Additionally, effective emotion recognition requires analyzing multiple sensor data, such as facial expressions and physiological signals. These factors combined make it hard to collect high-quality datasets that can be used for research purposes (e.g., development of emotion recognition algorithms). Despite these challenges, Virtual Reality (VR) holds promise as a solution. By providing a controlled and immersive environment, VR enables the replication of real-world emotional experiences and facilitates the tracking of signals indicative of emotional states. However, controlling emotion elicitation remains a challenging task also within VR. This research paper introduces the Magic Xroom, a VR platform designed to enhance control over emotion elicitation by leveraging the theory of flow. This theory establishes a mapping between an individual’s skill levels, task difficulty, and perceived emotions. In the Magic Xroom, the user’s skill level is continuously assessed, and task difficulty is adjusted accordingly to evoke specific emotions. Furthermore, user signals are collected using sensors, and virtual panels are utilized to determine the ground truth emotional states, making the Magic Xroom an ideal platform for collecting extensive datasets. The paper provides detailed implementation information, highlights the main properties of the Magic Xroom, and presents examples of virtual scenarios to illustrate its abilities and capabilities.