KEY PRINCIPLES BEING APPLIED TO HRI
Required information should be present and clear
Prevent errors if possible, if not, help users diagnose and recover
Use metaphors and language the users already know
Make it efficient to use
Design should be aesthetic and minimalist
Make the architecture scalable and support evolution of platforms
Simplify tasks through autonomy
Allow precise control
Create a positive brand image
Strive for a natural human-human interaction
SOURCES
Sholtz, Nielsen, Schneiderman (modified)
Nielsen, Schneiderman
Sholtz, Nielsen (modified)
Sholtz, Nielsen, Schneiderman
Jenson [ 5], Nielsen
Sholtz
(new)
(new)
(new)
(new)
“Simplify tasks through autonomy.” The fewer tasks the user is
required to assist with, the more
he can focus on high-level planning of his task. As mentioned
earlier, it is simpler to drive the
robot to a location by pointing
with a laser pointer than navigating the robot to the location
by remote control. Similarly, to
simplify telemanipulation, where
users control each joint of the
robot arm, we are testing haptic
interfaces that will automatically
adjust the joints of the robot to
move the robot’s arm into the
desired place.
“Allow precise control.” Although
it is important to use autonomy
to simplify things, the robot
still must be able to accomplish
difficult and complex tasks.
Designers can’t predict all the
tasks or uses of a commercial
robot, once it is in the hands
of the user. For example, when
teleoperating a robot like the
PackBot for Explosive Ordnance
Disposal, the user may need to
be very careful or complete an
action in a specific way when
using the robot’s arm to manipulate objects. There are many
things that robots do not know,
and so it is often important that
users have the capability to exert
precise control over the robot
and its arm.
At iRobot, the ninth principle,
“create a positive brand image,” is
crucial because we’re focusing
on industry and commercial
usage. If branding and name
recognition become part of a
robot, we can expect brand to
influence users’ perceptions of
robots, and their perceptions of
the robots may change how they
interact with one.
“Strive for a natural human-human interaction.” People work
in the physical world, and so
interfaces that also work in the
physical world are the most
effective, the simplest, and the
most natural. If you work with
robots as your teammates, you
want to be able to talk to them
and gesture to them just like you
would to another person—you
don’t want to drop your task and
pick up a laptop. We have begun
several small projects allowing users to gesture or speak to
robots and to allow users to give
commands without using any
additional hardware. While general-purpose gestural interfaces
are a long way off, we consider
other ways to reduce interface
burden on users who are multitasking such as using head-mounted displays and familiar
gaming controllers (similar to
the Playstation 2 controller).
As robots become more complex and as markets become
more competitive, the robotics industry is sure to see a
growth in its need for HCI and
HRI specialists. Similarly, HRI
techniques must be expanded
and improved to be relevant
and useful in the commercial
development space. Robots are
quickly becoming a staple in
many homes around the world,
and they open up a whole new
world of possibilities for interaction design.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Aaron Powers is the lead
human-robot interaction
researcher at iRobot, Corp.
iRobot is known for its
commercial successes
both with the Roomba line of robotic vacuum cleaners and the PackBot line of military robots.
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March + April 2008