Stefan Rank

I am ...

• member of the Intelligent Software Agents and New Media group at OFAI

Projects

• CYBEREMOTIONS, Collective Emotions in Cyberspace
• IRIS, Network of Excellence on Integrating Research in Interactive Storytelling

Some of the previous projects I was involved in:

• SERA, Social Engagement with Robots and Agents
• HUMAINE, the Human-Machine Interaction Network on Emotion, was a Network of Excellence (NoE) in the EU's Sixth Framework Programme
• COAST, Competence Network for Advanced Speech Technologies
• L2C, Learning to Collaborate, was a Specific targeted research project (STREP) in the EU's Sixth Framework Programme
• SELP and RASCALLI, Responsive Artificial Situated Cognitive Agents that Live and Learn on the Internet
• In the eBusiness project (Artificial Intelligence Methods for eBusiness) I was investigating the use of AI in eLearning
• Prerequisites of the Development of a Personalised Virtual Butler
• Increasing the Fascination of Synthetic Actors in Computer Games by Developing "Neurotic" Personality Agents

Research Interests

Development and application of computational models of affective behavior, at different levels of granularity, for interactive applications in new media and appliances in everyday life. Implementations in software agents for interactive entertainment and agent-based simulation, for a narrative purpose in (virtual or real) environments, and the study of the implications of affective processes for controlling intelligent agents in general.

Areas: Intelligent Software Agents, Affective Computing, New Media, Game Design, AI and Interactive Entertainment, Pedagogical Applications, Human-Computer Interaction, Multi-Agent Based Simulation, Interactive Narrative, Privacy, User Modelling.

Teaching

• Winter terms: Models of Personality and Emotions (VU 901.967 & SE 901.968), Projectseminar in Cognitive Science (PJ+SE 180.041) and supervision of theses

  for the MEi:CogSci curriculum (Middle European interdisciplinary master programme in Cognitive Science)

Publications

This is a selection of recent publications, presentation slides, and posters. Use the search for a full list of publications.

In case there is not yet a suitable link to an online version that you can access, please contact me by email for a copy!

• Rank S., Skowron M., Garcia D. (2012):

  Dyads to Groups: Modeling Interactions with Affective Dialog Systems.

  International Journal of Computational Linguistics Research, to appear.
• Rank S., Petta P. (2012):

  Backstory Authoring for Affective Agents.

  In: Proceedings of the 5th International Conference on Interactive Storytelling (ICIDS 2012), to appear.
• Galik M., Rank S. (2012):

  Modeling the emotional trajectories of individuals in an online chat environment.

  In: Proceedings of the 10th German Conference on Multiagent System Technologies (MATES 2012), to appear.
• Rank S., Hoffmann S., Struck H.-G., Spierling U., Mayr S., Petta P. (2012):

  Authoring vs. Configuring: Affective Agents for Interactive Storytelling.

  Applied Artificial Intelligence, to appear.
• Rank S., Hoffmann S., Struck H.-G., Spierling U., Petta P. (2012):

  Creativity in Configuring Affective Agents for Interactive Storytelling.

  In Mary Lou Maher et al. (eds.): Proceedings of the Third International Conference on Computational Creativity, Dublin Ireland, May 2012, pp.165-169.

  (online as pdf,

  pre-print technical report: http://www.ofai.at/cgi-bin/tr-online/number+2012-02)
• Rank S. (2012):

  What Issue Should Your Virtual Butler Solve Next?

  In Trappl R. (ed.): Your Virtual Butler: The Making of, Springer Wien/New York, to appear.
• Skowron M., Rank S. (2012):

  Affect Listeners - From dyads to group interactions with affective dialog systems.

  In: AISB/IACAP World Congress 2012 - Alan Turing 2012, Symposium on Linguistic and Cognitive Approaches To Dialog Agents - LaCATODA 2012, Birmingham UK, June 2-6 2012.

  (pre-print technical report: http://www.ofai.at/cgi-bin/tr-online?number+2012-13)
• Rank S. (2011):

  Behaviour Coordination for Models of Affective Behaviour.

  Künstliche Intelligenz 25(3):265-268.

  (doi:10.1007/s13218-011-0111-1)
• Heylen D., op den Akker R., ter Maat M., Petta P., Rank S., Reidsma D., Zwiers J. (2011):

  On the Nature of Engineering Social Artificial Companions.

  Applied Artificial Intelligence 25(6):549-574.

  (doi:10.1080/08839514.2011.587156,

  pre-print technical report: http://www.ofai.at/cgi-bin/tr-online?number+2011-25)
• Skowron M., Pirker H., Rank S., Paltoglou G., Ahn J., Gobron S. (2011):

  No peanuts! Affective Cues for the Virtual Bartender.

  In: Proceedings of the Twenty-Fourth International FLAIRS Conference, AAAI Publications, pp.117-122.

  (online as pdf)
• Skowron M., Rank S., Theunis M., Sienkiewicz J. (2011):

  The good, the bad and the neutral: affective profile in dialog system-user communication.

  In: Proceedings of the fourth bi-annual Affective Computing and Intelligent Interaction Conference (ACII 2011), LNCS, Springer, Heidelberg, pp.337-346.

  (doi:10.1007/978-3-642-24600-5_37)
• Gobron S., Ahn J., Silvestre Q., Thalmann D., Rank S., Skowron M., Paltoglou G., Thelwall M. (2011):

  An Interdisciplinary VR-architecture for 3D chatting with non-verbal communication.

  In Coquillart S., Steed A., Welch G. (eds.): Joint Virtual Reality Conference of EuroVR (EGVE 2011), Eurographics Association, pp.87-94.

  (doi:10.2312/EGVE/JVRC11/087-094)
• Skowron M., Theunis M., Rank S., Borowiec A. (2011):

  Effect of affective profile on communication patterns and affective expressions in interactions with a dialog system.

  In: Proceedings of the fourth bi-annual Affective Computing and Intelligent Interaction Conference (ACII 2011), LNCS, Springer, Heidelberg, pp.347-356.

  (doi:10.1007/978-3-642-24600-5_38)
• Szilas N., Boggini T., Axelrad M., Petta P., Rank S. (2011):

  Specification of an Open Architecture for Interactive Storytelling.

  In Si M. et al. (eds.): Interactive Storytelling, Fourth International Conference on Interactive Digital Storytelling, ICIDS 2011, November 28 – December 1 2011, Vancouver BC Canada. Proceedings, Springer Berlin/Heidelberg, pp.330-333.

  (doi:10.1007/978-3-642-25289-1_41,

  pre-print technical report: http://www.ofai.at/cgi-bin/tr-online?number+2011-23)
• Ahn J., Borowiec A., Buckley K., Cai D., Chmiel A., Czaplicka A., Dabrowski G., Garas A., Garcia D., Gobron S., Hillmann R., Holyst J., Kappas A., Küster D., Mitrovich M., Paltoglou G., Pirker H., Rank S., Schweitzer F., Sienkiewicz J., Skowron M., Sobkowicz P., Thalmann D., Thelwall M., Theunis M., Trier M., Tsankova E., Weronsk P. (2011):

  CYBEREMOTIONS – Collective Emotions in Cyberspace.

  In: Proceedings of the 2nd European Future Technologies Conference and Exhibition 2011 - FET 11, Procedia Computer Science (7).
• Rank S. (2010):

  Docking Agent-based Simulation of Collective Emotion to Equation-based Models and Interactive Agents.

  In Oeren T., Yilmaz L. (eds.): Proceedings of Agent-Directed Simulation Symposium at the 2010 Spring Simulation Conference, SpringSim 2010, Orlando FL USA, The Society for Modeling & Simulation International (SCS), pp.82-89.

  (doi:10.1145/1878537.1878544)
• Rank S. (2010):

  Designing an Agent-based Simulation of Collective Emotions.

  In Trappl R. (ed.): Cybernetics and Systems 2010 - Proceedings of the Twentieth Meeting on Cybernetics and Systems Research, Austrian Society for Cybernetic Studies, Vienna, pp.521-526.
• Skowron M., Pirker H., Rank S. (2009):

  CYBEREMOTIONS: Interactive computer tools for acquiring data on individual and collective emotions of online communities.

  In: Symposium "CYBEREMOTIONS: Collective emotions in cyberspace pose challenges to emotion research and theory" at ISRE 2009, Leuven, Belgium, August 6-8.
• Rank S. (2009):

  Behaviour Coordination for Models of Affective Behaviour.

  Dissertation, Vienna University of Technology, carried out at the Austrian Research Institute for Artificial Intelligence (OFAI).

  (http://strank.info/phd/Rank2009-Dissertation-final.pdf)
• Rank S., Petta P. (2007):

  From ActAffAct to BehBehBeh: Increasing Affective Detail in a Story-World.

  In Cavazza M., Donikian S. (eds.), Virtual Storytelling: Fourth International Conference (ICVS 2007), St.Malo, France, EU, December 2007. Proceedings, Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg, pp.206-209.

  (doi:10.1007/978-3-540-77039-8_20)
• Rank S. (2007):

  Building a computational model of emotion based on parallel processes and resource management.

  In Cowie R., Rosis F.de (eds.), Proceedings of the Doctoral Consortium, The Second International Conference on Affective Computing and Intelligent Interaction, September 12-14, 2007, Lisbon, Portugal, pp.102-109.

  (pre-print technical report: http://www.ofai.at/cgi-bin/tr-online?number+2007-03,

  poster: Rank2007-ACII-DC.poster.pdf)
• Rank S., Petta P. (2007):

  Basing artificial emotion on process and resource management.

  In Paiva A. et al. (eds.), Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference on Affective Computing and Intelligent Interaction, September 12-14, 2007, Lisbon, Portugal, Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg, pp.350-361.

  (doi:10.1007/978-3-540-74889-2_31,

  pre-print technical report: http://www.ofai.at/cgi-bin/tr-online?number+2007-02,

  slides: RankPetta2007-ProcessesAndResources (html))
• Hermann C., Melcher H., Rank S., Trappl R. (2007):

  Neuroticism - A Competitive Advantage (Also) for IVAs?.

  In Pelachaud C. et al. (eds.), Intelligent Virtual Agents, Springer, Berlin/Heidelberg/New York, pp.64-71.

  (doi:10.1007/978-3-540-74997-4_7,

  slides: HermannETAL2007-IVA.slides.odp (pdf))
• Rank S., Petta P. (2006):

  Comparability is Key to Assess Affective Architectures.

  In Trappl R. (ed.), Cybernetics and Systems 2006, Austrian Society for Cybernetic Studies, Vienna, pp.643-648.

  (pre-print technical report: http://www.ofai.at/cgi-bin/tr-online?number+2006-04,

  slides: RankPetta2006-ComparabilityIsKey (html),

  related presentation @ Humaine WP10 workshop: RankPetta2006-wp10ws (html))
• Rank S., Petta P., Trappl R. (2006):

  Features of emotional planning in software agents.

  In Della Riccia G., Dubois D., Kruse R., Lenz H.-J. (eds.): Decision Theory and Multi-Agent Planning, Springer Wien/New York.

  (pre-print technical report: http://www.ofai.at/cgi-bin/tr-online?number+2004-23,

  slides: RankETAL2004-FOEPISA-issek04.slides.pdf)
• Rank S., Petta P. (2005):

  Appraisal for a Character-based Story-World.

  In Panayiotopoulos T. et al. (eds.), Intelligent Virtual Agents, 5th International Working Conference, IVA 2005, Kos, Greece, September 2005, Proceedings, Springer Berlin Heidelberg, pp.495-496.

  (pre-print technical report: http://www.ofai.at/cgi-bin/tr-online?number+2005-10,

  poster: RankPetta2005-IVA2005.poster.pdf)
• Rank S. (2005):

  Toward Reusable Roleplayers Using an Appraisal-based Architecture.

  In Payr S. (ed.): Educational Agents and (e-)Learning, Applied Artificial Intelligence 19(3-4):313-340.

  (doi:10.1080/08839510590910138)
• Rank S., Anjos P.L., Petta P., Aylett R. (2005):

  What is In an Affective Architecture for Situated Agents?

  In Canamero L. (ed.): Humaine Deliverable D7a: WP7 Workshop Proceedings, King's College London UK EU, July 4-5.

  (pre-print technical report: http://www.ofai.at/cgi-bin/tr-online?number+2005-11)
• Rank S., Petta P. (2005):

  Motivating Dramatic Interactions.

  In Agents that Want and Like: Motivational and Emotional Roots of Cognition and Action, Proceedings of the AISB05 Symposium, April 12-15 2005, University of Hertfordshire, Hatfield, UK, pp.102-107.

  (pre-print technical report: http://www.ofai.at/cgi-bin/tr-online?number+2005-02,

  slides: RankPetta2005-MDI-AISB05.slides.pdf)
• Rank S. (2004):

  Affective Acting: An Appraisal-based Architecture for Agents as Actors.

  Institut für Medizinische Kybernetik und Artificial Intelligence, Universität Wien, Diplomarbeit.

  (master's thesis as pdf; for the thesis, I was awarded an ‘Anerkennungspreis’ of the Austrian Society for Artificial Intelligence)

• Büscher M., Friedlaender V., Hodgson E., Rank S., Shapiro D. (2000):

  Designs on objects: imaginative practice, aesthetic categorisation, and the design of multimedia archiving support.

  Digital Creativity 11(3):161-172.

  (doi:10.1076/digc.11.3.161.8870)

Talks and Demos

• Talk – Skowron M., Rank S., Theunis M. (2012):

  Affect Listeners @CyberEmotions,

  At: COSI-ICT: Action for the Science of Complex Systems and Socially Intelligent ICT, Brussels Belgium.
• Talk – Skowron M., Rank S., (2011):

  CyberEmotions: the good, the bad, the neutral - effect of an affective profile in dialog system-user online conversations,

  At: Emotions in Cyberspace - Models and Empirical Approaches at the International Society for Research on Emotion conference, Kyoto Japan.
• Demo – Chmiel A., Skowron M., Rank S. (2011):

  Affect Listeners demonstration.

  At: Mid-term Flagship Conference. 24-25 Nov, Warsaw Poland.
• Demo – Skowron M., Chmiel A., Rank S. (2011):

  CyberEmotions project exhibition and Affect Listeners demonstration.

  At: Innovation Convention 2011. Polish Research Projects - Under the Patronage of the Polish Presidency, 5-6 Dec, Brussels Belgium.
• Talk – Rank S. (2011):

  Verhaltenssteuerung und Emotion in Games.

  At: researching games 2011, 24-25 September, Kreativfabrik Wiesbaden Germany.

  (slides: Rank2011-researchinggames.pdf, German abstract on the researching games site)
• Talk – Rank S., Petta P. (2006):

  Implications of Embodiment for Autonomous Personality Agents.

  presentation at the Young Researcher's session of the 3rd Humaine Summer School, September 22-28, 2006, InfoMus Lab - DIST - University of Genova, Italy.

  (slides: RankPetta2006-Embodiment (html))

Press Coverage

• Interview – Research projects at OFAI (2010),

  on the occasion of radical policy changes regarding research funding in Austria,

  on Radio FM4, http://fm4.orf.at/stories/1668077/ (German).
• Interview – Avatars like you and me (2009),

  on current projects at OFAI,

  on derstandard.at http://derstandard.at/1259281994075/Avatare-wie-du-und-ich (German).
• Press Article – Promotio sub auspiciis Praesidentis rei publicae (2009),

  on derstandard.at (German).
• Interview – Project Neurotic Bots for Game AI (2007),

  on Radio FM4 (German).
• Press Article – Project Neurotic Bots for Game AI (2007), on newscientist

  http://www.newscientist.com/blog/technology/2007/10/neurotic-software-is-top-gamer.html

Software

If no web-link is provided, please contact me directly for details and availability.

• ActAffAct – As part of my master thesis I implemented an appraisal-based architecture for software agents that could be part of an emergent narrative.
• BehBehBeh – The appraisal-based agent architecture for behaviour coordination implemented as part of my PhD thesis.
• ActAffAct-based emotion components – Appraisal components based on ActAffAct. These components provide objects and mechanisms to perform appraisal as well as the aggregation of appraisals over time into mood. It is intended as a building block for the integration into agent control architectures in Python. See the included tests and documentation for usage.
• OPARIS ActAffAct theatre – A theatre, in the terminology of the OPARIS API, based on the display component of ActAffAct.
• OPARIS/IRIS theatreprotocol command-line client – Python command-line client and library for interaction, testing, and verification of the client-side OPARIS API. Based on Twisted.
• twobbie – multi-protocol framework for interactive dialog systems, developed as part of the Cyberemotions project.
• CybABMod – multi-agent-based simulation and modelling tool, developed as part of the Cyberemotions project.
• SERA ShowCase – part of the output of the SERA project, includes demonstration and simulation code for interacting with at robot-rabbit.