Information processing apparatus, display control method, and display control program

Abstract

To make it identifiable whether an object is acting under control of a human or acting via artificial intelligence.SOLUTION: An information processing apparatus includes: a determination unit 101 for determining whether an object displayed as an agent of action is acting under control of a human or acting via artificial intelligence; and a display control unit 102 for causing a display manner of the object to be in accordance with the result of the determination made by the determination unit 101.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an information processing device, a display control method, and a display control program. [Background technology]

[0002] Technologies relating to the metaverse are attracting attention. One example of the technologies relating to the metaverse is the information management device described in Patent Document 1. The information management device described in Patent Document 1 collects and analyzes various information related to an avatar, which is an alter ego of a user, when conducting business using a three-dimensional virtual space, and makes the information available for marketing. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2011-216073 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In the information management device described in Patent Document 1, one avatar is linked to one user. That is, in the information management device, the behavior of the avatar in the three-dimensional virtual space is analyzed as the behavior of the user linked to the avatar. However, in recent years, with the advancement of artificial intelligence, it has become possible to operate an avatar as if it were controlled by a person. If the behavior of the avatar operated by artificial intelligence is regarded as the behavior of the user, the validity of the analysis results will be lost.

[0005] Furthermore, the need to distinguish whether a displayed object is operating under human control or artificial intelligence is not limited to marketing using avatars in a three-dimensional virtual space as described in Patent Document 1.

[0006] An exemplary objective of the present disclosure is to provide a technique that makes it possible to distinguish whether a displayed object is operating under human control or through artificial intelligence. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] An information processing device according to an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure includes a determination means for determining whether an object displayed as an operating subject is operating under human control or by artificial intelligence, and a display control means for setting the display mode of the object according to the determination result by the determination means.

[0008] A display control method according to an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure includes a determination process in which one or more processors determine whether an object displayed as the operating subject is operating under human control or under artificial intelligence, and a display control process in which a display mode of the object is set according to a determination result of the determination process.

[0009] A display control program according to an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure causes a computer to function as a determination means for determining whether an object displayed as the operating subject is operating under human control or under artificial intelligence, and as a display control means for setting the display mode of the object according to the determination result by the determination means. Effect of the Invention

[0010] According to one exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, an exemplary effect is provided in which a technology can be provided that makes it possible to identify whether a displayed object is operating under human control or under artificial intelligence. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1] 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of an information processing device according to the present disclosure. [Diagram 2]1 is a flow diagram showing the flow of a display control method according to the present disclosure. [Diagram 3] 1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a display control system according to the present disclosure. [Figure 4] FIG. 13 is a block diagram showing a configuration of another information processing device according to the present disclosure. [Diagram 5] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a display form of an avatar. [Figure 6] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example in which an avatar is made to execute a predetermined task, and based on the execution result, it is determined whether the avatar is operating under human control or AI. [Figure 7] 5 is a flowchart showing a flow of processing executed by the information processing device shown in FIG. 4. [Figure 8] 5 is a diagram illustrating an example in which the information processing device illustrated in FIG. 4 is applied to display a chat screen. [Figure 9] FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a computer that functions as an information processing device according to the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0012] The following are examples of embodiments of the present invention. However, the present invention is not limited to the exemplary embodiments shown below, and various modifications are possible within the scope of the claims. For example, an embodiment obtained by appropriately combining the technical means employed in each of the exemplary embodiments shown below may also be included in the scope of the present invention. In addition, an embodiment obtained by appropriately omitting a part of the technical means employed in each of the exemplary embodiments shown below may also be included in the scope of the present invention. In addition, the effects mentioned in each of the exemplary embodiments shown below are examples of effects expected in the exemplary embodiments, and do not define the scope of the present invention. In other words, an embodiment that does not exhibit the effects mentioned in each of the exemplary embodiments shown below may also be included in the scope of the present invention.

[0013] First Exemplary Embodiment A first exemplary embodiment, which is an example of an embodiment of the present invention, will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. This exemplary embodiment is the basic form of each exemplary embodiment described later. The scope of application of each technical means adopted in this exemplary embodiment is not limited to this exemplary embodiment. That is, each technical means adopted in this exemplary embodiment can be adopted in other exemplary embodiments included in this disclosure to the extent that no particular technical obstacle occurs. In addition, each technical means shown in the drawings referred to for explaining this exemplary embodiment can also be adopted in other exemplary embodiments included in this disclosure to the extent that no particular technical obstacle occurs.

[0014] (Configuration of information processing device 1) The configuration of the information processing device 1 will be described with reference to Fig. 1. Fig. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the information processing device 1. As shown in Fig. 1, the information processing device 1 includes a determination unit 101 and a display control unit 102.

[0015] The determination unit 101 determines whether an object displayed as an operating subject is operating under human control or by artificial intelligence. Here, the above-mentioned "operation" may include the general behavior of an object. For example, the above-mentioned "operation" includes movement on a screen or in a virtual space, changes in posture or direction, changes in facial expression, and speech. Furthermore, "speech" includes not only outputting a voice, but also displaying text indicating the contents of the speech in the form of a speech bubble or the like. Furthermore, the above-mentioned "object" may be anything that can be recognized as an operating subject, and may be an imitation of a person or an animal, or may be a figure or a combination thereof.

[0016] In addition, "operated by artificial intelligence" means that a part or all of the operation is controlled by AI, or the content of the operation is determined by artificial intelligence. In addition, "artificial intelligence" here means an artificial realization of functions such as inference and judgment. For example, operating an object using a trained model generated by machine learning, or determining the content of the object's operation (e.g., the content of an utterance), corresponds to operating an object by artificial intelligence. In the following, artificial intelligence is also called AI (Artificial Intelligence).

[0017] The display control unit 102 sets the display mode of the object according to the determination result by the determination unit 101. The display mode may be any mode that allows the user to recognize whether the object is operating under human control or under AI. Note that any display device may be used to display the object, and may be provided in the information processing device 1 or in another device.

[0018] (Effects of information processing device 1) As described above, the information processing device 1 includes the determination unit 101 that determines whether an object displayed as an operating subject is operating under human control or by AI, and the display control unit 102 that sets the display mode of the object according to the determination result by the determination unit 101. Therefore, the information processing device 1 has the effect of making it possible to distinguish whether a displayed object is operating under human control or by AI.

[0019] (Display control program) The above-mentioned functions of the information processing device 1 can also be realized by a program. The display control program according to this exemplary embodiment causes a computer to function as a determination means for determining whether an object displayed as an operating subject is operating under human control or AI, and as a display control means for changing the display mode of the object according to the determination result by the determination means. Therefore, according to the display control program according to this exemplary embodiment, it is possible to obtain an effect that it is possible to distinguish whether an object is operating under human control or AI.

[0020] (Flow of display control method) The flow of the display control method will be described with reference to Fig. 2. Fig. 2 is a flow diagram showing the flow of the display control method. Note that the execution subject of each step in this display control method may be a processor included in the information processing device 1, or may be a processor included in another device, or each step may be a processor provided in a different device.

[0021] In S1 (determination process), one or more processors determine whether an object displayed as the subject of an action is operating under human control or is operating under AI.

[0022] In S2 (display control process), one or more processors cause the display mode of the object to correspond to the determination result in S1.

[0023] (Effects of display control methods) As described above, the display control method includes a determination process in which one or more processors determine whether an object displayed as an operating subject is operating under human control or artificial intelligence, and a display control process in which the display mode of the object is made to correspond to the determination result in the determination process. Therefore, the display control method has the effect of making it possible to distinguish whether a displayed object is operating under human control or artificial intelligence.

[0024] Second Exemplary Embodiment A second exemplary embodiment, which is an example of an embodiment of the present invention, will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Components having the same functions as those described in the above exemplary embodiment will be given the same reference numerals, and their description will be omitted as appropriate. The scope of application of each technical means adopted in this exemplary embodiment is not limited to this exemplary embodiment. That is, each technical means adopted in this exemplary embodiment can be adopted in other exemplary embodiments included in this disclosure, as long as no particular technical hindrance occurs. In addition, each technical means shown in each drawing referred to for explaining this exemplary embodiment can be adopted in other exemplary embodiments included in this disclosure, as long as no particular technical hindrance occurs.

[0025] (Configuration of display control system 5) The configuration of the display control system 5 will be described with reference to Fig. 3. Fig. 3 is a diagram showing the configuration of the display control system 5. The display control system 5 is a system having a function of controlling the display of objects in a three-dimensional virtual space. Fig. 3 also shows a virtual space SP, which is an example of a three-dimensional virtual space that is the target of display control by the display control system 5.

[0026] As shown in the figure, the display control system 5 includes an information processing device 1A, a language model 2, and a terminal device 3. The information processing device 1A and the language model 2 are components of a metaverse PF (platform) that allows a user to make his or her avatar perform various activities in a three-dimensional virtual space. Note that the metaverse PF may include various components other than the devices shown in the figure. In addition, the numbers of the information processing devices 1A, language models, and terminal devices 3 included in the display control system 5 are all arbitrary and are not limited to the example shown in the figure.

[0027] The information processing device 1A judges whether an avatar, which is an object displayed as a subject of various actions in the virtual space SP, is operating under human control or artificial intelligence, and sets the display mode of the avatar according to the judgment result. This provides an effect that it is possible to distinguish whether an avatar displayed in the virtual space SP is operating under human control or artificial intelligence.

[0028] For example, in the virtual space SP shown in Fig. 3, two stores are arranged, and three avatars, a1 to a3, are arranged. Among them, the avatar a2 is the avatar of the user (hereinafter, referred to as the target user) who is displaying the virtual space SP on his / her terminal device 3. On the other hand, a1 and a3 are avatars of other users.

[0029] The target user can display an image of the virtual space SP on the terminal device 3. The image of the virtual space SP is generated by at least one of the metaverse PF and software running on the terminal device 3. The target user can also move the avatar a2 in the virtual space SP and make the avatar a2 speak by operating the terminal device 3. In the example of FIG. 3, a speech bubble b2 is displayed in association with the avatar a2. In this way, the text input by the user is displayed in the speech bubble b2 as the speech of the avatar a2.

[0030] In the example of Fig. 3, a speech bubble b1 indicating the speech of the avatar a1 is displayed in association with the avatar a1. Similarly, a speech bubble b3 indicating the speech of the avatar a3 is displayed in association with the avatar a3. Conventionally, it has been difficult for a target user to recognize whether the speech of such other avatars is performed under the control of a human or by an AI.

[0031] Therefore, in the display control system 5, the information processing device 1A judges whether the avatars a1 and a3 are operated by human control or by AI, and sets the display mode of the avatars according to the judgment result. Specifically, the avatar a1 is displayed in association with judgment result information c1 indicating that the avatar a1 is unlikely to be operated by AI (in other words, that the avatar a1 is likely to be operated by human control). In addition, the avatar a3 is displayed in association with judgment result information c2 indicating that the avatar a3 is likely to be operated by AI (in other words, that the avatar a3 is unlikely to be operated by human control). This allows the target user to end a conversation with the avatar a3, which is unlikely to be operated by human control, and talk to the avatar a1, which is likely to be operated by human control.

[0032] An avatar is an example of an object displayed as an action subject. The object of display control by the information processing device 1A may be any object displayed as an action subject. For this reason, the "avatar" in the above and following descriptions may be read as any "object." In addition, in this exemplary embodiment, an example is described in which it is determined whether the speech of an avatar is controlled by a human or by an AI. However, the information processing device 1A is also capable of determining whether any action other than speech is controlled by a human or by an AI.

[0033] The language model 2 is a model constructed by machine learning the arrangement of components (such as words) in a sentence expressed in a natural language, and the arrangement of sentences in a text. A user of the Metaverse PF can have his / her avatar speak automatically using the language model 2. This is a convenient function when, for example, the user temporarily suspends operation of the avatar. Note that the user may also be allowed to have the avatar speak using a language model outside the Metaverse PF. An avatar that speaks using a language model is an avatar that speaks using AI.

[0034] The terminal device 3 is a device used by a user of the metaverse PF to use the metaverse PF. The terminal device 3 may be a device including, for example, a display unit that displays the virtual space SP, an input unit that accepts operations for moving an avatar in the virtual space SP or for making the avatar speak, a communication unit that communicates with the information processing device 1A, etc. The terminal device 3 may be, for example, a portable device such as a smartphone or a tablet terminal, or a stationary device such as a desktop PC (Personal Computer).

[0035] (Configuration of information processing device 1A) The configuration of the information processing device 1A will be described with reference to FIG. 4. FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the information processing device 1A. As shown in the figure, the information processing device 1A includes a control unit 10A that controls each unit of the information processing device 1A, and a storage unit 11A that stores various data used by the information processing device 1A. The information processing device 1A also includes a communication unit 12A that allows the information processing device 1A to communicate with other devices (e.g., terminal device 3), an input unit 13A that accepts input of various data to the information processing device 1A, and an output unit 14A that allows the information processing device 1A to output various data. As shown in the figure, the control unit 10A of the information processing device 1A includes a determination unit 101A, a display control unit 102A, an authentication unit 103A, an object control unit 104A, a feature information generation unit 105A, and an information presentation unit 106A.

[0036] The determination unit 101A, like the determination unit 101 included in the information processing device 1 of the exemplary embodiment 1, determines whether an avatar displayed as an action subject is moving under the control of a person or an AI. The determination method by the determination unit 101A will be described later in the sections "Determination method 1" to "Determination method 4".

[0037] The display control unit 102A, like the display control unit 102 included in the information processing device 1 of the exemplary embodiment 1, sets the display mode of the avatar according to the determination result by the determination unit 101A. The specific display mode will be described later in the section "Display example of object."

[0038] The authentication unit 103A authenticates a person associated with an avatar displayed in the virtual space SP, that is, a user of the metaverse PF. For example, the authentication unit 103A may authenticate a user based on whether or not registration information registered in advance by the user to start using the metaverse PF matches input information entered by the user. The registration information may be a password or the like, but may also be biometric information (for example, a fingerprint, finger vein, voiceprint, face image, etc.). In other words, the authentication unit 103A may perform biometric authentication.

[0039] The object control unit 104A controls the behavior of the avatars in the virtual space SP. Details will be described later with reference to Fig. 6, but the object control unit 104A can also control the behavior of an arbitrary avatar, for example, to cause the avatar that is the subject of judgment by the judgment unit 101A to execute a predetermined task.

[0040] The feature information generating unit 105A generates feature information indicating features of the action of the avatar. The details of the feature information generating unit 105A will be described later in the section "Determination method 1."

[0041] The information presenting unit 106A presents predetermined information to the avatar that the determining unit 101A has determined to be operating under the control of a human. This allows the user controlling the avatar to efficiently recognize the information. The information to be presented is not particularly limited. For example, the information presenting unit 106A may present advertisements for products, services, etc. This makes it possible to avoid unnecessary advertisements for avatars operated by AI and to perform efficient advertisements targeted at humans. In addition, for example, the information presenting unit 106A may present notices to the user. This makes it possible to avoid a situation in which a notice is given to an avatar controlled by AI and the notice is not conveyed to the user.

[0042] (Example of object display) As described above, the display control unit 102A sets the display mode of the avatar according to the determination result by the determination unit 101A. This display mode may be any mode that allows the target user to distinguish whether the displayed avatar is operating under human control or under AI control. For example, the display control unit 102A may display determination result information c1 or c2 that explicitly indicates the determination result in association with the avatar, as in the example of FIG. 3.

[0043] Also, for example, the display control unit 102A may be able to distinguish whether an avatar is operating under human control or under AI control, based on each aspect shown in Fig. 5. Fig. 5 is a diagram showing examples of avatar display aspects. Fig. 5 shows five examples, EX1 to EX5.

[0044] EX1 is an example in which it is possible to distinguish whether an avatar is operating under human control or AI control by an icon displayed in association with the avatar. That is, in EX1, the shape of the icon displayed in association with an avatar controlled by a human is different from the shape of the icon displayed in association with an avatar operated by AI. This allows the user to distinguish whether the avatar is operating under human control or AI control by checking the icon associated with the avatar.

[0045] The display control unit 102A may display an icon superimposed on the avatar. Instead of changing the shape of the icon, the display control unit 102A may change the color or size of the icon, making it possible to distinguish whether the avatar is operating under human control or under AI. The display control unit 102A may display a predetermined icon or determination result information indicating the determination result by the determination unit 101A on either the avatar operating under human control or the avatar operating under AI.

[0046] EX2 is an example in which the display mode of the contour of an avatar operated by AI is different from the display mode of the contour of an avatar operated by human control. Specifically, in EX2, the contour of an avatar operated by AI is a dashed line. This allows the user to intuitively recognize that an avatar operated by AI has no substance (a user operating it). In this way, the display control unit 102A may indicate that the avatar is operated by AI by changing the display mode of the avatar determined to be operated by AI.

[0047] EX3 is an example where the shadow of an avatar controlled by a human is drawn, but the shadow of an avatar controlled by an AI is not drawn. Even when this display mode is applied, as with EX2, the user can intuitively recognize that the avatar controlled by the AI ​​does not have a physical body (a user operating it).

[0048] EX4 shows the eye part of an avatar operated by human control and the eye part of an avatar operated by AI. In this example, the eyeball color is made different between the avatar operated by human control and the avatar operated by AI. In this way, the display control unit 102A may make it possible to distinguish whether the avatar is operated by human control or by AI by making the display mode of some of the parts constituting the avatar different. For example, the display control unit 102A may hide some parts such as the iris or nose of the avatar operated by AI. In this way, by making the appearance of the avatar operated by AI feel strange to the user, it is possible to intuitively recognize that the avatar operated by AI does not have a substance (a user operating it).

[0049] EX5 shows an example in which an image imitating a specific item is displayed in association with an avatar operated by AI. Specifically, in EX5, an avatar operated by AI has an earring displayed in its ear. In this way, the display control unit 102A may display an avatar wearing a specific item in a virtual space, thereby making it possible to distinguish whether the avatar is operating under human control or AI control. The display control unit 102A may also make it possible to distinguish whether the avatar is operating under human control or AI control by various accessories such as necklaces, rings, and bracelets, glasses, clothes, hats, etc., in addition to earrings and earrings.

[0050] In addition, the display control unit 102A may make at least one of the background, frame color or design, and font of the characters displayed in a speech bubble indicating the speech of an avatar operated by AI different from that of an avatar operated by human control.

[0051] (Determination method 1: Determination based on the characteristics of the object's movement) As described above, the determination unit 101A determines whether the avatar is moving under the control of a human or under the control of artificial intelligence. The determination method used by the determination unit 101A will be described below.

[0052] For example, the determination unit 101A may determine whether the avatar is operating under human control or AI control, using feature information indicating the features of the avatar's actions. Here, whether the avatar is operating under human control or AI control may be expressed as a difference in the avatar's actions. Therefore, according to the above configuration, in addition to the effects of the information processing device 1, an effect is obtained in that a valid determination result can be obtained based on objectively observable information, namely the avatar's actions. Note that the above "avatar's actions" include any actions performed mainly by the avatar. For example, in addition to the avatar's movements (including movements of a part or the whole body, changes in facial expressions, etc.), speaking actions by the avatar are also included.

[0053] As a specific example, the feature information may be information indicating the time from when an action is made to the avatar to be judged to speak until the avatar speaks (which may also be called a response speed). This is because there is a difference in the time from when an action is made to speak until the avatar speaks between an avatar that speaks by AI and an avatar that operates under human control. In other words, an avatar that speaks by AI tends to take a shorter time to speak and tends to have less variation (or no variation) in the time to speak compared to an avatar that operates under human control. Therefore, by using the feature information indicating the time until the avatar speaks, in addition to the effect of the information processing device 1, an effect is obtained in that it is possible to obtain a valid judgment result for the avatar that speaks.

[0054] The feature information is generated by the feature information generating unit 105A. The feature information generating unit 105A can generate feature information indicating the time by monitoring the speech by the avatar and measuring the time from when an action requesting speech is performed until the avatar speaks. When the avatar speaks multiple times, the feature information generating unit 105A may generate feature information for each utterance. In this case, the determination unit 101A makes a determination using any one or multiple pieces of the generated feature information. When multiple pieces of feature information are used, the determination unit 101A may make a determination using a representative value (e.g., average value, variance, median, mode, maximum value, minimum value, etc.) of the time until speech indicated in each piece of feature information. In addition, the feature information generating unit 105A may generate one piece of feature information by integrating multiple utterances. In this case, the feature information generating unit 105A may generate feature information indicating a representative value of the time until speech for each utterance.

[0055] The feature information is not limited to the above example, as long as it indicates the features of the actions of the avatar. For example, feature information indicating the time interval of the action performed by the avatar, grammatical errors in speech, variations in expression, unnatural expressions, hesitations, repetitions, the number of characters when the speech is converted into text, typos, omissions, etc., may be used. Since an avatar operated by AI has features such as moving regularly, speaking long sentences at a speed that a human cannot type, and having no (or few) human errors in the speech content, each of the above information can be used as feature information. In addition, the determination unit 101A may perform determination by using multiple pieces of feature information in combination. This makes it possible to improve the accuracy of the determination.

[0056] (Determination method 2: Determination based on task execution results) Moreover, the information processing device 1A includes an object control unit 104A that causes the avatar to execute a predetermined task. Therefore, the determination unit 101A may determine whether the avatar is operating under human control or AI based on the execution result of the task. This provides an effect of improving the determination accuracy in addition to the effect of the information processing device 1. Note that the task to be executed by the avatar may be a task that produces a difference in the execution result depending on whether the avatar is operating under human control or AI.

[0057] Fig. 6 is a diagram showing an example in which an avatar is made to execute a predetermined task, and based on the execution result, it is determined whether the avatar is operating under human control or AI. Fig. 6 shows three avatars, a4 to a6. Of these, avatar a4 is an avatar that makes other avatars execute a predetermined task, and is controlled by object control unit 104A. On the other hand, avatars a5 and a6 are avatars that are the subject of the determination as to whether they are operating under human control or AI.

[0058] In the example of Fig. 6, the object control unit 104A controls the avatar a4 to ask the avatars a5 and a6 the utterance shown in the speech bubble b4, i.e., the question "If you were a vegetable, what would you be?" In other words, in Fig. 6, the task to be executed by the avatar to be judged is the task of answering the above question. In this way, the object control unit 104A may cause multiple avatars to execute tasks simultaneously, or may cause each avatar to execute a task individually.

[0059] In response to this question, avatar a5 gives the answer shown in speech bubble b5. This answer is such that the avatar is unable to give a clear answer to the question and instead asks to repeat it. Since it is considered that most users have never likened themselves to a vegetable, this kind of answer is a natural human response. Therefore, based on the answer of avatar a5 shown in speech bubble b5 (i.e., the result of executing the task), determination unit 101A determines that avatar a5 is operating under human control.

[0060] On the other hand, in response to the same question, avatar a6 gives an answer shown in speech bubble b6. This answer is a clear response to the question, and contains sufficient content including the reason for the answer. Since it is considered that most users have never likened themselves to a vegetable, this kind of answer is unnatural for a human to give. Therefore, based on the answer of avatar a6 shown in speech bubble b6 (i.e., the result of executing the task), determination unit 101A determines that avatar a6 is operating by AI.

[0061] The determination unit 101A can perform the above-mentioned determination by analyzing the text of the answers of the avatars a5 and a6. In addition, the characteristic information generating unit 105A may generate characteristic information about the answers of the avatars a5 and a6. For example, the characteristic information generating unit 105A may generate the time from when a question is asked until the answer is output as characteristic information, may generate the number of characters of the answer as characteristic information, or may generate the ratio of the number of characters of the answer to the time until the answer is output as characteristic information. In this case, the determination unit 101A performs a determination about the avatars a5 and a6 using the generated characteristic information. For example, the determination unit 101A may determine that the avatars are operating under human control if the time until the answer is output, which is indicated in the characteristic information, is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold, and may determine that the avatars are operating under AI if the time is less than the threshold. In addition, for example, the determination unit 101A may determine that the avatars are operating under AI if the number of characters of the answer, which is indicated in the characteristic information, is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold, and may determine that the avatars are operating under human control if the time is less than the threshold.

[0062] The tasks to be performed by the avatar may be tasks that a human being can answer accurately in a short time, but that are difficult for an AI to answer accurately. For example, the avatar may be made to read a string of numbers or letters written in multiple fonts, some of which overlap, or to answer an image of a specified subject from multiple images. In the example of FIG. 6, the object control unit 104A controls the avatar a4 to make the avatars a5 and a6 execute the tasks, but the method of making the avatars a5 and a6 execute the tasks is arbitrary.

[0063] (Determination method 3: Determination by authentication) As described above, the information processing device 1A includes an authentication unit 103A that authenticates a person associated with an avatar. Since a user does not usually have an AI perform authentication, the determination unit 101A may determine that an avatar corresponding to a person who has been successfully authenticated is operating under human control.

[0064] Generally, a user who has been authenticated often controls an avatar for a while after the authentication. For this reason, the determination unit 101A may determine that an avatar corresponding to a person who has been successfully authenticated is operating under human control until a predetermined time has passed since the successful authentication. This provides an effect that a valid determination result can be obtained by simple processing, in addition to the effect of the information processing device 1. This determination method also has the advantage that a valid determination result can be obtained for an avatar that is not performing an action such as speaking, or an avatar whose action is difficult to determine whether it is operating under human control or AI.

[0065] Furthermore, the authentication unit 103A may perform authentication for each user who is using the metaverse PF at predetermined time intervals. This allows the determination unit 101A to detect an avatar whose operation has been switched from human control to AI control while using the metaverse PF.

[0066] (Judgment Method 4: Other Judgment Methods) 3, the metaverse PF may include a language model 2 that the user can use. In this way, when the language model that the user can use is predetermined, the determination unit 101A may determine whether the avatar is operating under human control or under AI control based on the usage status of the language model.

[0067] This provides an advantage that a valid judgment result can be obtained easily. In addition, this judgment method has the advantage that a valid judgment result can be obtained for an avatar that is not performing an action such as speaking, or an avatar whose action makes it difficult to determine whether it is operating under human control or AI. Note that the language model available to the user is not limited to the language model 2 included in the metaverse PF. When the user uses a language model that is not included in the metaverse PF, the judgment unit 101A may obtain information indicating the usage status of the language model and make a judgment.

[0068] Specifically, if a predetermined language model is used when the avatar to be judged speaks, the judgment unit 101A may determine that the avatar is operating under AI. On the other hand, if a predetermined language model is not used when the avatar to be judged speaks, the judgment unit 101A may determine that the avatar is operating under AI.

[0069] In addition, the determination unit 101A may perform the determination using a determination model that has been machine-learned to determine the relationship between the above-mentioned feature information generated about the avatar to be determined and whether the avatar is operating under human control or AI. In this case, the determination unit 101A inputs the feature information generated by the feature information generating unit 105A about the target avatar into the determination model to determine whether the avatar is operating under human control or AI. For example, if the model used outputs a numerical value indicating the likelihood that the target avatar is operating under AI, the determination unit 101A may determine that the avatar is operating under AI when the numerical value is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold value.

[0070] When the determination unit 101A performs the determination using the determination model described above, the display control unit 102A may display a numerical value indicating the likelihood that the avatar is operated by AI (or the likelihood that the avatar is controlled by a human) in association with the avatar. The display control unit 102A may also set the display mode of the target avatar according to this numerical value. For example, when identifying an avatar by the state of its contour as in EX in FIG. 5, the display control unit 102A may make the contour thinner (the greater the difference from the contour of an avatar operating under human control) as the likelihood that the avatar is operated under AI increases. In this case, the display control unit 102A may also make the contour thicker (the smaller the difference from the contour of an avatar operating under human control) as the likelihood that the avatar is operated under human control increases.

[0071] Furthermore, the determination unit 101A may use a plurality of the above-mentioned determination methods in combination. For example, the determination unit 101A may determine that the avatar is operating under the control of a human if a predetermined time has not passed since the last successful authentication and it is determined from the feature information that the avatar is operating under the control of a human. In this case, even if the determination unit 101A determines that the avatar is operating under the control of a human from the feature information, if a predetermined time has passed since the last successful authentication and another authentication has not been successful, it determines that the avatar is operating under the control of an AI.

[0072] (Processing flow) The flow of processing executed by the information processing device 1A will be described with reference to Fig. 7. Fig. 7 is a flow diagram showing the flow of processing executed by the information processing device 1A. The flow shown in Fig. 7 includes processing constituting a display control method according to this exemplary embodiment.

[0073] In S11, authentication unit 103A authenticates a user (hereinafter, referred to as the target user) who is about to start using the metaverse PF. In S12, authentication unit 103A judges whether the authentication in S11 is successful or not. If the judgment in S12 is NO, that is, if the authentication is unsuccessful, the processing in FIG. 7 ends. On the other hand, if the judgment in S12 is YES, that is, if the authentication is successful, the avatar of the target user is displayed in the virtual space SP, and the target user becomes able to operate the avatar in the virtual space SP. At this time, the display mode of the avatar becomes the display mode when it is controlled by a person. After this, the processing proceeds to S13.

[0074] In S13, the determination unit 101A waits for a predetermined time, and proceeds to the process of S14 after waiting for the predetermined time. By waiting for a predetermined period of time in S13, the determination process of S14 described below is repeated every predetermined time. The predetermined time can be set appropriately. For example, if it is desired to reflect in the display that the control of the avatar has been switched to AI as soon as possible, the predetermined time can be set to a short time, such as about one minute. Note that the determination process of S14 does not necessarily have to be repeated every predetermined time. For example, the determination process of S14 may be performed when an action (e.g., speaking) by the avatar is repeated a predetermined number of times. In this case, the process of S13 is omitted.

[0075] In S14 (determination process), the determination unit 101A determines whether the target user's avatar is operating under human control or AI. As described above, various methods can be applied to determine whether the target user's avatar is operating under human control or AI. For example, when making a determination using feature information, the feature information generation unit 105A generates feature information indicating the features of the avatar's operation within the above-mentioned predetermined period, and the determination unit 101A makes a determination using the generated feature information.

[0076] Furthermore, when making the determination in S14, the avatar of the target user may be made to execute a predetermined task. In this case, the object control unit 104A may control an avatar other than the avatar of the target user, and cause the avatar of the target user to execute the predetermined task. In this case, the characteristic information generating unit 105A may generate characteristic information indicating characteristics of the avatar's behavior when executing the predetermined task. By using this characteristic information, the determining unit 101A can make a determination based on the execution result of the task.

[0077] Furthermore, when making the judgment in S14, authentication of the target user may be performed. In this case, authentication unit 103A requests re-authentication of the target user. Then, judgment unit 101A judges that the avatar of the target user is controlled by a person (specifically, the target user) if the result of the re-authentication is successful, and judges that the avatar of the target user is operated by an AI if the result of the re-authentication is unsuccessful.

[0078] In S15, the display control unit 102A checks whether or not it was determined in S14 that the avatar is operating under AI. If the determination in S15 is YES, the process proceeds to S16. Then, in S16 (display control process), the display control unit 102A sets the display mode of the target user's avatar to a display mode indicating that the avatar is operating under AI. As a result, the display mode of the avatar becomes one according to the determination result in the determination process in S14. When the process in S16 ends, the process returns to S13.

[0079] On the other hand, if the result of S15 is NO, the display control unit 102A does not change the display mode of the target user's avatar. In this case, the display mode of the target user's avatar is maintained as it is when it is controlled by a person. After this, the process proceeds to S17.

[0080] In S17, the information presenter 106A determines whether or not there is an advertisement to be presented to the target user. If the result of the determination in S17 is NO, the process returns to S13, and if the result of the determination in S17 is YES, the process proceeds to S18. In S18, the information presenter 106A presents an advertisement to the target user. When the process in S18 ends, the process returns to S13. Note that, as described above, the information to be presented to the target user is not limited to advertisements.

[0081] (Example of judgment in chat) As described above, the information processing device 1A can change the display mode of the avatar displayed in the virtual space SP according to the determination result of whether the avatar is operating under human control or under AI control. Also, as described above, the "avatar" in the above description can be read as any "object."

[0082] Here, examples of "objects" other than "avatars" will be described with reference to Fig. 8. Fig. 8 is a diagram showing an example in which the information processing device 1A is applied to displaying a chat screen. More specifically, Fig. 8 shows an example in which the display mode of an icon displayed on the chat screen is changed according to a determination result as to whether an utterance mainly involving the icon is controlled by a person or by an AI.

[0083] In the chat screen shown in Fig. 8, icons a7 and a8 are displayed as subjects of speech. The text displayed in the speech bubble associated with icon a7 is the speech of icon a7, and the text displayed in the speech bubble associated with icon a8 is the speech of icon a8. The speeches of icons a7 and a8 are displayed in chronological order.

[0084] Icon a7 is an icon of a user who is chatting. On the other hand, icon a8 is an icon of the user's chat partner. The user is chatting without knowing whether the chat partner is a human or an AI.

[0085] The determination unit 101A of the information processing device 1A can determine whether the icon a8 is speaking under the control of a human or by an AI in a dialogue on such a chat screen. In this determination, a method similar to the determination method for the avatar described above can be applied. For example, the feature information generating unit 105A may generate feature information indicating at least any one of the contents of the speech of the icon a8, the response time to the speech by the icon a7 (user), and the number of characters of the spoken text. Then, the determination unit 101A may use the generated feature information to determine whether the icon a8 is speaking under the control of a human or by an AI.

[0086] In the case of chat, the number of utterances by the icon a8 that are used as the basis for the judgment increases as the dialogue progresses. For this reason, the judgment unit 101A may perform a re-judgment every time the icon a8 makes an utterance a predetermined number of times. In the example of FIG. 8, based on the third utterance by the icon a8, the utterance by the icon a8 is judged to be made by an AI. Then, the display control unit 102A accordingly displays the judgment result information c3, which indicates the judgment result that the utterance was made by an AI, in association with the icon a8 that made the third utterance.

[0087] Also, for example, for a user who uses a service that provides online health care advice in chat format, whether the advice is provided by a human or an AI is a matter of interest. In such a case, by using the information processing device 1A, it is possible to distinguish whether the advice is provided by a human or an AI. This allows the user to make a decision as to whether to follow the advice, etc., after considering whether the advice is provided by an AI or a human.

[0088] In addition to chat, the information processing device 1A can also determine whether a character is being controlled by a human or an AI in a game or the like in which the character is controlled, and change the display mode of the character according to the result of the determination.

[0089] [Modifications] The execution subject of each process described in each of the above exemplary embodiments is arbitrary and is not limited to the above examples. That is, the functions of the information processing devices 1 and 1A can be realized by a plurality of devices (which can also be called processors) that can communicate with each other. For example, each process described in the flow charts of Figs. 2 and 7 can be shared and executed by a plurality of processors. That is, the execution subject of the display control method in each of the above embodiments may be one processor or a plurality of processors. For example, the process (determination process) of S14 in Fig. 7 may be executed by a processor included in the information processing device 1A, and the process (display control process) of S16 may be executed by a processor included in the terminal device 3.

[0090] [Software implementation example] Some or all of the functions of the information processing device 1, 1A may be realized by hardware such as an integrated circuit (IC chip), or may be realized by software.

[0091] In the latter case, the information processing devices 1 and 1A are realized by, for example, a computer that executes instructions of a program, which is software that realizes each function. An example of such a computer (hereinafter, referred to as computer C) is shown in Fig. 9. Fig. 9 is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration of the computer C that functions as the information processing devices 1 and 1A.

[0092] The computer C includes at least one processor C1 and at least one memory C2. The memory C2 stores a program (display control program) P for operating the computer C as the information processing device 1 or 1A. In the computer C, the processor C1 reads and executes the program P from the memory C2 to realize each function of the information processing device 1 or 1A.

[0093] The processor C1 may be, for example, a central processing unit (CPU), a graphic processing unit (GPU), a digital signal processor (DSP), a micro processing unit (MPU), a floating point number processing unit (FPU), a physics processing unit (PPU), a tensor processing unit (TPU), a quantum processor, a microcontroller, or a combination thereof. The memory C2 may be, for example, a flash memory, a hard disk drive (HDD), a solid state drive (SSD), or a combination thereof.

[0094] The computer C may further include a RAM (Random Access Memory) for expanding the program P during execution and for temporarily storing various data. The computer C may further include a communication interface for transmitting and receiving data to and from other devices. The computer C may further include an input / output interface for connecting input / output devices such as a keyboard, a mouse, a display, and a printer.

[0095] Furthermore, the program P can be recorded on a non-transitory tangible recording medium M that can be read by the computer C. Such a recording medium M can be, for example, a tape, a disk, a card, a semiconductor memory, or a programmable logic circuit. The computer C can obtain the program P via such a recording medium M. Furthermore, the program P can be transmitted via a transmission medium. Such a transmission medium can be, for example, a communication network or broadcast waves. The computer C can also obtain the program P via such a transmission medium.

[0096] [Additional Note 1] This disclosure includes the techniques described in the following appendices. However, the present invention is not limited to the techniques described in the following appendices, and various modifications are possible within the scope of the claims.

[0097] (Appendix A1) An information processing device comprising: a determination means for determining whether an object displayed as the subject of an action is operating under human control or by artificial intelligence; and a display control means for controlling the display mode of the object in accordance with the determination result by the determination means.

[0098] (Appendix A2) The information processing device according to claim 1, wherein the determination means determines whether the object is operating under human control or artificial intelligence using feature information indicating features of the operation of the object.

[0099] (Appendix A3) The information processing device according to claim 2, wherein the feature information is information indicating a time period from when an action is performed on the object requesting the object to speak until the object speaks.

[0100] (Appendix A4) An information processing device according to any one of appendices A1 to A3, further comprising an object control means for causing the object to execute a predetermined task, and the determination means determines whether the object is operating under human control or artificial intelligence based on a result of the execution of the task.

[0101] (Appendix A5) An information processing device as described in any of Appendices A1 to A4, further comprising an authentication means for authenticating a person associated with the object, and the determination means determines that the object corresponding to the person who has been successfully authenticated is operating under human control until a predetermined time has elapsed after the successful authentication.

[0102] (Appendix A6) The information processing device according to any one of Addendum A1 to A5, further comprising an information presenting means for presenting predetermined information to the object determined by the determining means to be operating under human control.

[0103] (Appendix B1) A display control method including: a determination process in which at least one processor determines whether an object displayed as an operating subject is operating under human control or by artificial intelligence; and a display control process in which the display mode of the object is set according to the determination result in the determination process.

[0104] (Appendix B2) The display control method described in Appendix B1, wherein in the determination process, the at least one processor determines whether the object is operating under human control or artificial intelligence using feature information indicating characteristics of the object's operation.

[0105] (Appendix B3) The display control method according to Appendix B2, wherein the feature information is information indicating a time period from when an action is performed on the object requesting the object to speak until the object speaks.

[0106] (Appendix B4) A display control method described in any of Appendices B1 to B3, wherein the at least one processor includes an object control process for causing the object to execute a predetermined task, and in the determination process, the at least one processor determines whether the object is operating under human control or artificial intelligence based on a result of execution of the task.

[0107] (Appendix B5) A display control method as described in any of Appendices B1 to B4, including an authentication process in which the at least one processor authenticates a person associated with the object, and in the determination process, the at least one processor determines that the object corresponding to the person who has been successfully authenticated is operating under human control until a predetermined time has elapsed after the successful authentication.

[0108] (Appendix B6) A display control method described in any of Appendices B1 to B5, including an information presentation process in which the at least one processor presents specified information to the object determined in the determination process to be operating under human control.

[0109] (Appendix C1) A display control program that causes a computer to function as a determination means for determining whether an object displayed as the operating subject is operating under human control or by artificial intelligence, and as a display control means for changing the display mode of the object according to the determination result by the determination means.

[0110] (Appendix C2) The display control program according to Appendix C1, wherein the determination means uses feature information indicating characteristics of the operation of the object to determine whether the object is operating under human control or artificial intelligence.

[0111] (Appendix C3) The display control program according to claim 2, wherein the feature information is information indicating a time period from when an action is performed on the object requesting the object to speak until the object speaks.

[0112] (Appendix C4) A display control program as described in any of Appendices C1 to C3, which causes the computer to function as an object control means for causing the object to execute a predetermined task, and the determination means determines whether the object is operating under human control or artificial intelligence based on a result of the execution of the task.

[0113] (Appendix C5) A display control program as described in any of Appendices C1 to C4, wherein the computer functions as an authentication means for authenticating a person associated with the object, and the determination means determines that the object corresponding to the person who has been successfully authenticated is operating under human control until a predetermined time has elapsed after the successful authentication.

[0114] (Appendix C6) A display control program described in any one of appendices C1 to C5, which causes the computer to function as an information presentation means that presents specified information to the object that the determination means has determined to be operating under human control.

[0115] (Appendix D1) An information processing device having at least one processor, the at least one processor executing a determination process for determining whether an object displayed as an operating subject is operating under human control or by artificial intelligence, and a display control process for setting the display mode of the object in accordance with the determination result of the determination process.

[0116] (Appendix D2) The information processing device described in Appendix D1, wherein in the determination process, the at least one processor determines whether the object is operating under human control or artificial intelligence using feature information indicating characteristics of the object's operation.

[0117] (Appendix D3) The information processing device according to claim D2, wherein the feature information is information indicating a time period from when an action is performed on the object requesting the object to speak until the object speaks.

[0118] (Appendix D4) The information processing device described in any of Appendices D1 to D3, wherein the at least one processor executes an object control process that causes the object to perform a predetermined task, and in the determination process, determines whether the object is operating under human control or artificial intelligence based on a result of the execution of the task.

[0119] (Appendix D5) The information processing device described in any of Appendices D1 to D4, wherein the at least one processor executes an authentication process to authenticate a person associated with the object, and in the determination process, determines that the object corresponding to the person who has been successfully authenticated is operating under human control until a predetermined time has elapsed after the successful authentication.

[0120] (Appendix D6) The information processing device described in any of Appendices D1 to D5, wherein the at least one processor executes an information presentation process that presents predetermined information to the object that is determined to be operating under human control in the determination process.

[0121] (Appendix E1) A non-transient recording medium having recorded thereon a display control program that causes a computer to execute a judgment process for judging whether an object displayed as the subject of an action is operating under human control or through artificial intelligence, and a display control process for changing the display mode of the object according to the judgment result of the judgment process. [Explanation of symbols]

[0122] 1. Information processing device 101 Judgment unit (judgment means) 102 Display control unit (display control means) 1A Information processing equipment 101A Judgment unit (judgment means) 102A Display control unit (display control means) 103A Authentication section (authentication means) 104A Object control unit (object control means) 106A Information presentation section (information presentation means)

Claims

1. A determination means for determining whether an object displayed as an operating subject is operating under human control or under artificial intelligence; and a display control means for controlling a display mode of the object according to a result of the determination by the determination means.

2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the determining means determines whether the object is operating under human control or artificial intelligence by using feature information indicating features of the operation of the object.

3. The information processing apparatus according to claim 2 , wherein the feature information is information indicating a time period from when an action is performed on the object requesting the object to speak until the object speaks.

4. an object control means for causing the object to execute a predetermined task, The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the determining means determines whether the object is operating under human control or artificial intelligence based on a result of execution of the task.

5. an authentication means for authenticating a person associated with the object; The information processing device according to claim 1 , wherein the determination means determines that the object corresponding to the person who has been successfully authenticated is operating under human control until a predetermined time has elapsed after the person has been successfully authenticated.

6. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising: information presenting means for presenting predetermined information to the object determined by the determining means to be operating under human control.

7. One or more processors A determination process for determining whether an object displayed as an operating subject is operating under human control or under artificial intelligence; a display control process for controlling a display mode of the object according to a determination result in the determination process.

8. Computer, A determination means for determining whether an object displayed as an operating subject is operating under human control or under artificial intelligence; and a display control program that functions as a display control means for changing a display mode of the object according to a result of the determination by the determination means;

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