Research Topics

We investigate human-robot interaction and minimal social robots, operationalizing methods from the performing arts to bootstrap the development of robot character and intelligence.

SOCIAL PRIVACY

We use Theater Methods in making implicit human social expectations about a robot’s use of their personal data explicit. Our papers A Robot Barista Comments on its Clients: Social Attitudes Toward Robot Data Use is published at the International Conference of Human-Robot Interaction. Later papers using this method have applied theater methods to the development of a Robot Waiter or even Underwater In-Contact Manipulation!

CHAIRBOTS

Several projects in the lab make use of our low-cost ChairBot platform, constructed of the NeatoBotvac, IKEA Chair and connecting hardware. We are exploring multi-robot multi-human social interaction, minimal social robots, and have had a variety of artistic collaborations using this platform. For example, we added Force Sensitive Resisters to enable human-robot partner dancing and micro-adjustments.

VIRTUAL REALITY

Human social attributions toward simple robots are influenced by their behaviors, but also their physical appearance. Our virtual reality effort explored the impact of robot materiality on human interpretation of robot intent, capability, and character, winning an Audience award at the Technological Advances in Human Robot Interaction Symposium. The robots bump into the participants in both VR and the physical room.