Is hugging a robot weird? Investigating the influence of robot appearance on users' perception of hugging

Gabriele Trovato, Martin Do, Ömer Terlemez, Christian Mandery, Hiroyuki Ishii, Nadia Bianchi-Berthouze, Tamim Asfour, Atsuo Takanishi

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contribution

12 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Humanoid robots are expected to be able to communicate with humans using physical interaction, including hug, which is a common gesture of affection. In order to achieve that, their physical embodiment has to be carefully planned, as a user-friendly design will facilitate interaction and minimise repulsion. In this paper, we investigate the effect of manipulating the visual/tactile appearance of a robot, covering wires and metallic parts with clothes, and the auditory effect by enabling or disabling the connector of the hand. The experiment consists in a hugging interaction between the participants and the humanoid robot ARMAR-IIIb. Results after participation of 24 subjects confirm the positive effect from using clothes to modify the appearance and the negative effect of noise and vibration.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationHumanoids 2016 - IEEE-RAS International Conference on Humanoid Robots
PublisherIEEE Computer Society
Pages318-323
Number of pages6
ISBN (Electronic)9781509047185
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2016 Dec 30
Event16th IEEE-RAS International Conference on Humanoid Robots, Humanoids 2016 - Cancun, Mexico
Duration: 2016 Nov 152016 Nov 17

Publication series

NameIEEE-RAS International Conference on Humanoid Robots
ISSN (Print)2164-0572
ISSN (Electronic)2164-0580

Other

Other16th IEEE-RAS International Conference on Humanoid Robots, Humanoids 2016
Country/TerritoryMexico
CityCancun
Period16/11/1516/11/17

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition
  • Hardware and Architecture
  • Human-Computer Interaction
  • Electrical and Electronic Engineering

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