2022 personal Project

The Handwritten-emotion Exchanger

Computational art work using OCR Technology

overview

How can we transfer physical energy even when physical encounters are restricted?

<The Handwritten-emotion Exchanger> allows individuals to exchange handwritten messages anonymously. Users express their daily emotions through notes, and the machine exchanges them with other users who have experienced similar emotions.

This product is designed to support those facing COVID-19 pandemic-related emotional challenges, fostering connections and empathy during these trying times.

project Type

Solo Project

Duration

1 month

(Jan-Feb 2022)

AI Technologies

OCR (Optical Character Recognition)
Text Mining - Sentimental Analysis

Tools

NAVER Cloud API

Excel

Background

Social isolation of individuals living alone
during the COVID-19 lockdown

Social isolation of individuals living alone during the COVID-19 lockdown

South Korea enforced a year-long lockdown, resulting in the depression of one-person households living in small studios, who were isolated both physically and socially.

A typical studio, 25㎡, where many one-person households live in Seoul, South Korea.

The biggest struggle they faced was their inability to express their concerns and emotions due to the absence of in-person conversations and the loss of physical interaction.

Discussing about depression and struggle during lockdown with friends who are living alone over virtual call.

Questioning

How can we transfer physical energy and empathize with emotions even when physical encounters are restricted?

Handwritten journals

Handwriting holds a unique personal energy that digital text can't fully replicate. Also, keeping a diary can help alleviate depression by encouraging reflection on thoughts and emotions.

Journal exchanging

If individuals exchange handwritten diaries, each infused with their unique energy and emotions, with others who are experiencing similar feelings, it can enable emotional connections between people, even in isolated circumstances.

outcome

If you write a diary before bed,
you will receive someone else's diary the next day.

outcome

How does this machine exchange journals?

process

Text Recognition and Text Mining

Technical Process

I collected 12 handwritten diaries and used the NAVER Cloud's OCR AI API to convert them into digital text. I then employed the Korean sentiment dictionary to conduct sentiment analysis in R, subsequently matching diaries using Jaccard Similarity Measurement through a proxy package.

Charactor Recognition

Sentiment Analysis

Initial Sketches

I designed a unit for both storing personal diaries and receiving diaries from others. The product consists of two sections: the top for storage and scanning, and the bottom for printing diaries from others.