I want one too! Domestication of Assistive Robots

Abstract in UndeterminedThe aim of the PhD project is to understand and learn about the characteristics that influence old adults’ acceptance of assistive robots and of robots as social companions. It is also to explore participatory design methods in order to involve old adults in the design process of new technologies. The goal is to apply/implement the results in two robotics systems developed to support old adults in their homes.Through an interactive multi-step design process, a design specification of a robot will be proposed. A first prototype will then be built based on this specification. The prototype will be tested and evaluated with “real” users in a lab setting. The findings will result in an improved design specification and a second prototype will then be built and evaluated by users in their home environments

Effects of Experience and Workplace Culture in Human-Robot Team Interaction in Robotic Surgery: A Case Study

International audienceRobots are being used in the operating room to aid in surgery, prompting changes to workflow and adaptive behavior by the users. This case study presents a methodology for examining human-robot team interaction in a complex environment, along with the results of its application in a study of the effects of experience and workplace culture, for human-robot team interaction in the operating room. The analysis of verbal and non-verbal events in robotic surgery in two different surgical teams (one in the US and one in France) revealed differences in workflow, timeline, roles, and communication patterns as a function of experience and workplace culture. Longer preparation times and more verbal exchanges related to uncertainty in use of the robotic equipment were found for the French team, who also happened to be less experienced. This study offers an effective method for studying human-robot team interaction and has implications for the future design and training of teamwork with robotic systems in other complex work environments

Adaptive Optimal Control in Physical Human-Robot Interaction

abstract: What if there is a way to integrate prosthetics seamlessly with the human body and robots could help improve the lives of children with disabilities? With physical human-robot interaction being seen in multiple aspects of life, including industry, medical, and social, how these robots are interacting with human becomes even more important. Therefore, how smoothly the robot can interact with a person will determine how safe and efficient this relationship will be. This thesis investigates adaptive control method that allows a robot to adapt to the human's actions based on the interaction force. Allowing the relationship to become more effortless and less strained when the robot has a different goal than the human, as seen in Game Theory, using multiple techniques that adapts the system. Few applications this could be used for include robots in physical therapy, manufacturing robots that can adapt to a changing environment, and robots teaching people something new like dancing or learning how to walk after surgery. The experience gained is the understanding of how a cost function of a system works, including the tracking error, speed of the system, the robot’s effort, and the human’s effort. Also, this two-agent system, results into a two-agent adaptive impedance model with an input for each agent of the system. This leads to a nontraditional linear quadratic regulator (LQR), that must be separated and then added together. Thus, creating a traditional LQR. This new experience can be used in the future to help build better safety protocols on manufacturing robots. In the future the knowledge learned from this research could be used to develop technologies for a robot to allow to adapt to help counteract human error.Dissertation/ThesisMasters Thesis Engineering 201

Addressing joint action challenges in HRI: Insights from psychology and philosophy

The vast expansion of research in human-robot interactions (HRI) these last decades has been accompanied by the design of increasingly skilled robots for engaging in joint actions with humans. However, these advances have encountered significant challenges to ensure fluent interactions and sustain human motivation through the different steps of joint action. After exploring current literature on joint action in HRI, leading to a more precise definition of these challenges, the present article proposes some perspectives borrowed from psychology and philosophy showing the key role of communication in human interactions. From mutual recognition between individuals to the expression of commitment and social expectations, we argue that communicative cues can facilitate coordination, prediction, and motivation in the context of joint action. The description of several notions thus suggests that some communicative capacities can be implemented in the context of joint action for HRI, leading to an integrated perspective of robotic communication.French National Research Agency (ANR) ANR-16-CE33-0017 ANR-17-EURE-0017 FrontCog ANR-10-IDEX-0001-02 PSLJuan de la Cierva-Incorporacion grant IJC2019-040199-ISpanish Government PID2019-108870GB-I00 PID2019-109764RB-I0

A Survey on Human-aware Robot Navigation

Intelligent systems are increasingly part of our everyday lives and have been integrated seamlessly to the point where it is difficult to imagine a world without them. Physical manifestations of those systems on the other hand, in the form of embodied agents or robots, have so far been used only for specific applications and are often limited to functional roles (e.g. in the industry, entertainment and military fields). Given the current growth and innovation in the research communities concerned with the topics of robot navigation, human-robot-interaction and human activity recognition, it seems like this might soon change. Robots are increasingly easy to obtain and use and the acceptance of them in general is growing. However, the design of a socially compliant robot that can function as a companion needs to take various areas of research into account. This paper is concerned with the navigation aspect of a socially-compliant robot and provides a survey of existing solutions for the relevant areas of research as well as an outlook on possible future directions.Comment: Robotics and Autonomous Systems, 202

Rights for Robots

Bringing a unique perspective to the burgeoning ethical and legal issues surrounding the presence of artificial intelligence in our daily lives, the book uses theory and practice on animal rights and the rights of nature to assess the status of robots.Through extensive philosophical and legal analyses, the book explores how rights can be applied to nonhuman entities. This task is completed by developing a framework useful for determining the kinds of personhood for which a nonhuman entity might be eligible, and a critical environmental ethic that extends moral and legal consideration to nonhumans. The framework and ethic are then applied to two hypothetical situations involving real-world technology—animal-like robot companions and humanoid sex robots. Additionally, the book approaches the subject from multiple perspectives, providing a comparative study of legal cases on animal rights and the rights of nature from around the world and insights from structured interviews with leading experts in the field of robotics. Ending with a call to rethink the concept of rights in the Anthropocene, suggestions for further research are made.An essential read for scholars and students interested in robot, animal and environmental law, as well as those interested in technology more generally, the book is a ground-breaking study of an increasingly relevant topic, as robots become ubiquitous in modern society

Rights for Robots

"Bringing a unique perspective to the burgeoning ethical and legal issues surrounding the presence of artificial intelligence in our daily lives, the book uses theory and practice on animal rights and the rights of nature to assess the status of robots. Through extensive philosophical and legal analyses, the book explores how rights can be applied to nonhuman entities. This task is completed by developing a framework useful for determining the kinds of personhood for which a nonhuman entity might be eligible, and a critical environmental ethic that extends moral and legal consideration to nonhumans. The framework and ethic are then applied to two hypothetical situations involving real-world technology—animal-like robot companions and humanoid sex robots. Additionally, the book approaches the subject from multiple perspectives, providing a comparative study of legal cases on animal rights and the rights of nature from around the world and insights from structured interviews with leading experts in the field of robotics. Ending with a call to rethink the concept of rights in the Anthropocene, suggestions for further research are made. An essential read for scholars and students interested in robot, animal and environmental law, as well as those interested in technology more generally, the book is a ground-breaking study of an increasingly relevant topic, as robots become ubiquitous in modern society.

Methodik zur systematischen Analyse der Prozessgestaltung einer Mensch-Roboter-Interaktion in der Montage

Die steigenden Anforderungen, die durch volatile Märkte, den Fachkräftemangel sowie wechselnde Regularien an das Produktionssystem im Automobilbau gestellt werden, erfordern eine stetige Weiterentwicklung. Die Integration einer flexiblen Mensch-Roboter-Interaktion in die Montage bietet eine Möglichkeit den Herausforderungen zu begegnen und eröffnet Potentiale für neuartige Produktionskonzepte. Für die Realisierung einer solchen kollaborativen Roboterapplikation ist sowohl die Kenntnis der Bedarfe, als auch die der spezifischen Anforderungen des Anwendungsumfelds erforderlich. Anhand der Vorstellung des Stands der Forschung werden diesbezüglich Fragestellungen ermittelt, die vor dem Hintergrund der Montage in der Automobilindustrie über eine zweistufige Potentialanalyse konkretisiert werden. Darin rückt neben der Gestaltung einer Schnittstelle insbesondere die Interaktion der Partner in den Fokus. Das primäre Ziel besteht darin, die Auswirkungen der Interaktion des Menschen mit dem Roboter auf den Prozess mittels einer geeigneten Methode abbilden zu können und dafür ein passendes Schnittstellenkonzept bereitzustellen. Auf Basis dessen werden Schnittstellenkonzepte sowie eine Methodik zur Prozessanalyse entworfen, deren Eignung im Rahmen mehrerer experimenteller Untersuchungen evaluiert wird. Der erste Experimentalblock widmet sich der Eignungsprüfung der Schnittstellenkonzepte, um eine negative Beeinflussung der Interaktion vor dem Einsatz in einem kollaborativen Anwendungsfall auszuschließen und erste Implikationen zu erfassen. Der zweite Block dient der Validierung der entwickelten Methodik sowie der Ermittlung des Effekts von Gestaltung und Nutzung der Schnittstelle auf den Prozessablauf. Dies erfolgt anhand einer adaptierten Montageapplikation aus einem Automobilwerk. Die Ergebnisse zeigen auf, dass ein kollaborativer Prozess anhand des aufgestellten Modells ganzheitlich erfassbar ist und die resultierende Aussage sowohl eine effiziente Prozessaufteilung, als auch die subjektive Wahrnehmung des menschlichen Prozessteilnehmers widerspiegelt. Im Anschluss an die experimentellen Untersuchungen werden Implikationen für die Gestaltung des Montageprozesses und die Eignung von Schnittstellen diskutiert. Neben den identifizierten Grenzen werden darin Potentiale zur Weiterentwicklung sowie eine Empfehlung zur Gestaltung aufgezeigt