Publication

A taxonomy of preferences for physically assistive robots

Conference Article

Conference

IEEE International Symposium on Robot and Human Interactive Communication (RO-MAN)

Edition

26th

Pages

292-297

Doc link

http://dx.doi.org/10.1109/ROMAN.2017.8172316

File

Download the digital copy of the doc pdf document

Abstract

Assistive devices and technologies are getting common and some commercial products are starting to be available. However, the deployment of robots able to physically interact with a person in an assistive manner is still a challenging problem. Apart from the design and control, the robot must be able to adapt to the user it is attending in order to become a useful tool for caregivers. This robot behavior adaptation comes through the definition of user preferences for the task such that the robot can act in the user’s desired way. This article presents a taxonomy of user preferences for assistive scenarios, including physical interactions, that may be used to improve robot decision-making algorithms. The taxonomy categorizes the preferences based on their semantics and possible uses. We propose the categorization in two levels of application (global and specific) as well as two types (primary and modifier). Examples of real preference classifications are presented in three assistive tasks: feeding, shoe fitting and coat dressing.

Categories

service robots.

Author keywords

assistive robotics, preferences

Scientific reference

G. Canal, G. Alenyà and C. Torras. A taxonomy of preferences for physically assistive robots, 26th IEEE International Symposium on Robot and Human Interactive Communication, 2017, Lisbon, Portugal, pp. 292-297.