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.
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Interaction Needs and Opportunities for Failing Robots
The inevitable increase in real-world robot applications will, consequently, lead to more opportunities for robots to have observable failures. Although previous work has explored interaction during robot failure and discussed hypothetical danger, little is known about human reactions to actual robot behaviors involving property damage or bodily harm. An additional, largely unexplored complication is the possible influence of social characteristics in robot design. In this work, we sought to explore these issues through an in-person study with a real robot capable of inducing perceived property damage and personal harm. Participants observed a robot packing groceries and had opportunities to react to and assist the robot in multiple failure cases. Prior exposure to damage and threat failures decreased assistance rates from approximately 81% to 60%, with variations due to robot facial expressions and other factors. Qualitative data was then analyzed to identify interaction design needs and opportunities for failing robots.
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- PAR ID:
- 10104790
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Proceedings of the 2019 on Designing Interactive Systems Conference
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- 659 to 670
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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