169 research outputs found
Exploring the Design Space of Extra-Linguistic Expression for Robots
In this paper, we explore the new design space of extra-linguistic cues
inspired by graphical tropes used in graphic novels and animation to enhance
the expressiveness of social robots. To achieve this, we identified a set of
cues that can be used to generate expressions, including smoke/steam/fog, water
droplets, and bubbles. We prototyped devices that can generate these fluid
expressions for a robot and conducted design sessions where eight designers
explored the use and utility of the cues in conveying the robot's internal
states in various design scenarios. Our analysis of the 22 designs, the
associated design justifications, and the interviews with designers revealed
patterns in how each cue was used, how they were combined with nonverbal cues,
and where the participants drew their inspiration from. These findings informed
the design of an integrated module called EmoPack, which can be used to augment
the expressive capabilities of any robot platform
Toward Family-Robot Interactions: A Family-Centered Framework in HRI
As robotic products become more integrated into daily life, there is a
greater need to understand authentic and real-world human-robot interactions to
inform product design. Across many domestic, educational, and public settings,
robots interact with not only individuals and groups of users, but also
families, including children, parents, relatives, and even pets. However,
products developed to date and research in human-robot and child-robot
interactions have focused on the interaction with their primary users,
neglecting the complex and multifaceted interactions between family members and
with the robot. There is a significant gap in knowledge, methods, and theories
for how to design robots to support these interactions. To inform the design of
robots that can support and enhance family life, this paper provides (1) a
narrative review exemplifying the research gap and opportunities for
family-robot interactions and (2) an actionable family-centered framework for
research and practices in human-robot and child-robot interaction
Sprout: Designing Expressivity for Robots Using Fiber-Embedded Actuator
In this paper, we explore how techniques from soft robotics can help create a
new form of robot expression. We present Sprout, a soft expressive robot that
conveys its internal states by changing its body shape. Sprout can extend,
bend, twist, and expand using fiber-embedded actuators integrated into its
construction. These deformations enable Sprout to express its internal states,
for example, by expanding to express anger and bending its body sideways to
express curiosity. Through two user studies, we investigated how users
interpreted Sprout's expressions, their perceptions of Sprout, and their
expectations from future iterations of Sprout's design. We argue that the use
of soft actuators opens a novel design space for robot expressions to convey
internal states, emotions, and intent.Comment: 10 pages, 5 figure
Factors that Affect Personalization of Robots for Older Adults
We introduce a taxonomy of important factors to consider when designing
interactions with an assistive robot in a senior living facility. These factors
are derived from our reflection on two field studies and are grouped into the
following high-level categories: primary user (residents), care partners,
robot, facility and external circumstances. We outline how multiple factors in
these categories impact different aspects of personalization, such as adjusting
interactions based on the unique needs of a resident or modifying alerts about
the robot's status for different care partners. This preliminary taxonomy
serves as a framework for considering how to deploy personalized assistive
robots in the complex caregiving ecosystem.Comment: Presented at CONCATENATE Workshop at HRI 2023 in Stockholm, Swede
Understanding Large-Language Model (LLM)-powered Human-Robot Interaction
Large-language models (LLMs) hold significant promise in improving
human-robot interaction, offering advanced conversational skills and
versatility in managing diverse, open-ended user requests in various tasks and
domains. Despite the potential to transform human-robot interaction, very
little is known about the distinctive design requirements for utilizing LLMs in
robots, which may differ from text and voice interaction and vary by task and
context. To better understand these requirements, we conducted a user study (n
= 32) comparing an LLM-powered social robot against text- and voice-based
agents, analyzing task-based requirements in conversational tasks, including
choose, generate, execute, and negotiate. Our findings show that LLM-powered
robots elevate expectations for sophisticated non-verbal cues and excel in
connection-building and deliberation, but fall short in logical communication
and may induce anxiety. We provide design implications both for robots
integrating LLMs and for fine-tuning LLMs for use with robots.Comment: 10 pages, 4 figures. Callie Y. Kim and Christine P. Lee contributed
equally to the work. To be published in Proceedings of the 2024 ACM/IEEE
International Conference on Human-Robot Interaction (HRI '24), March 11--14,
2024, Boulder, CO, US
Making Informed Decisions: Supporting Cobot Integration Considering Business and Worker Preferences
Robots are ubiquitous in small-to-large-scale manufacturers. While
collaborative robots (cobots) have significant potential in these settings due
to their flexibility and ease of use, proper integration is critical to realize
their full potential. Specifically, cobots need to be integrated in ways that
utilize their strengths, improve manufacturing performance, and facilitate use
in concert with human workers. Effective integration requires careful
consideration and the knowledge of roboticists, manufacturing engineers, and
business administrators. We propose an approach involving the stages of
planning, analysis, development, and presentation, to inform manufacturers
about cobot integration within their facilities prior to the integration
process. We contextualize our approach in a case study with an SME collaborator
and discuss insights learned.Comment: 9 pages, 9 figures. To be published in Proceedings of the 2024
ACM/IEEE International Conference on Human-Robot Interaction (HRI '24
Periscope: A Robotic Camera System to Support Remote Physical Collaboration
We investigate how robotic camera systems can offer new capabilities to
computer-supported cooperative work through the design, development, and
evaluation of a prototype system called Periscope. With Periscope, a local
worker completes manipulation tasks with guidance from a remote helper who
observes the workspace through a camera mounted on a semi-autonomous robotic
arm that is co-located with the worker. Our key insight is that the helper, the
worker, and the robot should all share responsibility of the camera view--an
approach we call shared camera control. Using this approach, we present a set
of modes that distribute the control of the camera between the human
collaborators and the autonomous robot depending on task needs. We demonstrate
the system's utility and the promise of shared camera control through a
preliminary study where 12 dyads collaboratively worked on assembly tasks.
Finally, we discuss design and research implications of our work for future
robotic camera systems that facilitate remote collaboration.Comment: This is a pre-print of the article accepted for publication in PACM
HCI and will be presented at CSCW 202
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