The Stockholm HMI Center

Project 6. Models for human interaction with mobile service robots

This project concerns the development of models for human interaction with and control of mobile service robots. This is a new research area, which has been actualized through recent advances in robotics. The project is performed in collaboration with the SSF centre "Autonomous systems" at KTH.

An autonomous service robot operates in the users' own environment, performing independent tasks to reach a user's goals. Applications include e.g. delivery agents in hospitals and factories, and cleaning robots in the home or in supermarkets. The proposed interaction models should apply to users that are not computer experts, and must consider both normal and deviant situations. The work touches on many central HMI issues, including the following:

• What are the conditions for humans' acceptance of a service robot in their immediate physical environment?
• How can "natural" interaction with a robot be designed, e.g. in terms of suitable channels and modes for communication? What metaphors might underly the design?
• How can the robot's perception, competence, and awareness of the world be represented in a form accessible to the user?
• How can the interaction design ensure safety, by allowing users to easily stop the robot or change its instructions?

Contact person: Kerstin Severinson Eklundh <kse@nada.kth.se>

Longer description

Last updated o2-04-04 by Henrry Rodríguez <henrry@nada.kth.se>