Can translation to sign language be automated?
Sadly no, at least, not yet. It would be nice to have text written in, say, English automatically translated into British Sign Language. Unfortunately, the grammar of sign languages is quite different from that of spoken languages. For example, the signing space round the signer’s body has a number of grammatical functions for which there are no analogues in spoken language. Thus, the translation task is even harder for sign languages than for translation between spoken languages. Some significant work on sign language translation has been done by some of the eSIGN partners in the ViSiCAST project. In addition, the eSIGN project has developed a simple semi-automated solution for restricted language domains. Could I have a different avatar? In principle, yes. It is possible to change the dress, sex and appearance of the avatar to suit, say, your corporate image. However, it is a complex, lengthy, and therefore relatively expensive task. Is there just one sign language? No. Most countrie
