The integration of the physical capabilities of an industrial collaborative robot with a social virtual character may represent a viable solution to enhance the workers' perception of the system as an embodied social entity and increase social engagement and well-being at the workplace. An online study was setup using prerecorded video interactions in order to pilot potential advantages of different embodied configurations of the cobot-avatar system in terms of perceptions of Social Presence, cobot-avatar Unity and Social Role of the system, and explore the relation of these. In particular, two different configurations were explored and compared: the virtual character was displayed either on a tablet strapped onto the base of the cobot or on a large TV screen positioned at the back of the workcell. The results imply that participants showed no clear preference based on the constructs, and both configurations fulfill these basic criteria. In terms of the relations between the constructs, there were strong correlations between perception of Social Presence, Unity and Social Role (Collegiality). This gives a valuable insight into the role of these constructs in the perception of cobots as embodied social entities, and towards building cobots that support well-being at the workplace.
Matteo Lavit Nicora, Sebastian Beyrodt, Dimitra Tsovaltzi, Fabrizio Nunnari, Patrick Gebhard, Matteo Malosio (2023). Towards social embodied cobots: The integration of an industrial cobot with a social virtual agent.
Towards social embodied cobots: The integration of an industrial cobot with a social virtual agent
Matteo Lavit Nicora
Primo
;
2023
Abstract
The integration of the physical capabilities of an industrial collaborative robot with a social virtual character may represent a viable solution to enhance the workers' perception of the system as an embodied social entity and increase social engagement and well-being at the workplace. An online study was setup using prerecorded video interactions in order to pilot potential advantages of different embodied configurations of the cobot-avatar system in terms of perceptions of Social Presence, cobot-avatar Unity and Social Role of the system, and explore the relation of these. In particular, two different configurations were explored and compared: the virtual character was displayed either on a tablet strapped onto the base of the cobot or on a large TV screen positioned at the back of the workcell. The results imply that participants showed no clear preference based on the constructs, and both configurations fulfill these basic criteria. In terms of the relations between the constructs, there were strong correlations between perception of Social Presence, Unity and Social Role (Collegiality). This gives a valuable insight into the role of these constructs in the perception of cobots as embodied social entities, and towards building cobots that support well-being at the workplace.File | Dimensione | Formato | |
---|---|---|---|
Cobot_Avatar_pilot_study___HRI4Wellness.pdf
accesso aperto
Tipo:
Versione (PDF) editoriale
Licenza:
Creative commons
Dimensione
5.58 MB
Formato
Adobe PDF
|
5.58 MB | Adobe PDF | Visualizza/Apri |
I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.