Postdoc and PhD position at the IDIAP research institute

The Idiap Research Institute (www.idiap.ch), associated with EPFL ( Swiss Federal
Institute of Technology, Lausanne) seeks qualified candidates for:

* A Post-doc position on Head pose tracking and visual attention modeling
and multi-person interaction analysis.

* A Ph.D Student on 3D face tracking and gaze modeling

For further details about positions and Idiap, see below.
Interested candidates should send a letter of motivation, a detailed CV, and the names
of three referees to

Jean-Marc Odobez (odobez(at)idiap.ch, tel : +41 (0)27 721 77 26)

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* A Post-doc position on Head pose tracking and visual attention modeling
and multi-person interaction analysis.

The research will be conducted in the context of the TA2 project
(http://www.ta2-project.eu) funded by the European Commission. The overall goal
of the project is to develoop tools to favor remote communication and engagement
between groups of people separated in space and time.

More specifically, the postdoc will be involved in the research and development of
algorithms for the analysis of the gaze and visual attention of people engaged in
family video conference scenarios. This research will rely on Idiap’s previous
expertise on the design of multimodal person attention modeling in small group
meetings.

The postdoctoral researcher should have a strong background in computer vision.
Experience in one or several of the following areas is required: visual tracking; head
modeling (detection, recognition), facial feature analysis; human or object detection;
machine learning.
The applicant should also have strong programming skills, with experience in
C/C++ development. The position is initially for one year.

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* A Ph.D Student on 3D face tracking and gaze modeling

The research will be conducted in the project TRACOME (“Robust face tracking,
feature extraction and multimodal fusion for audio-visual
speech recognition and visual attention modeling in complex
environment”) funded by the Swiss Science Foundation. The PhD
candidate will work on the design of new methods for robust face tracking under
natural head movements using 3D deformable models, the tracking of gaze directions,
and its application to attention modeling in human-human or robot-to-group of human
interaction scenarios. The work will be done in collaboration with the LTS 5 laboratory
of EPFL, which will handle the audio-visual speech recognition task of the project.

The successful Ph.D student, who will be enrolled in the EPFL doctoral program, should
have a master in computer science or related field, with a good background in
mathematics. Experience or background in statistical learning theory, image
processing or computer vision is a plus. The applicant should be familiar with C/C++
programming and the Linux environment. Appointment for the PhD student position is
for a maximum of 4 years. Starting date: immediately.

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About Idiap:

Idiap is an independent, non-profit research institute recognized and supported by the
Swiss Government, and affiliated with the Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne
(EPFL). It is located in the town of Martigny in Valais, a scenic region in the south
of Switzerland, surrounded by the highest mountains of Europe, and offering
exciting recreational activities, including hiking, climbing and skiing, as well as varied
cultural activities. It is within close proximity to Geneva and Lausanne. Although Idiap
is located in the French part of Switzerland, English is the working language. Free
French lessons are provided. Idiap offers competitive salaries and
conditions at all levels in a young, dynamic, and multicultural environment. Idiap
is an equal opportunity employer and is actively
involved in the “Advancement of Women in Science” European
initiative. The Institute seeks to maintain a principle of open competition (on the
basis of merit) to appoint the best candidate, provides equal opportunity for all
candidates, and equally encourage both genders to apply.