Abstract:
Social robots are being studied for a variety of user populations, such as older adults, but programming these robots typically requires deep technical knowledge. In this study, the researchers developed a no-code end-user robot programming interface aimed at empowering individuals without programming backgrounds to easily create social robot interactions with older adults using natural language.
To evaluate the interface, five individuals with connections to adults over 65 and without robot programming experience were asked to design a simple conversation with the robot. Their experiences were recorded using a survey. The results showed that participants successfully used the interface to enable the robot to communicate with older adults. Overall, participants found the interface easy to use and enjoyed the process. Based on these findings, the researchers provide recommendations for further improving no-code end-user robot programming interfaces.
Reference:
Manasi Swaminathan, Long-Jing Hsu, Min Min Thant, Kyrie Jig Amon, Anna S. Kim, Katherine M. Tsui, Selma Sabanović, David J. Crandall, and Weslie Khoo. 2024. If [YourName] Can Code, So Can You! End-User Robot Programming For Non-Experts. In Companion of the 2024 ACM/IEEE International Conference on Human-Robot Interaction (HRI ’24). Association for Computing Machinery, New York, NY, USA, 1033–1037. https://doi.org/10.1145/3610978.3640644