Research Topics
Developing knowledge and methods to design robots and human-robot relationships fitted for a specific use-case.
We adopt a relational approach to human-robot interaction, viewing robots as actors within a network of other actors. This perspective allows us to explore how robots can transform and mediate relationships between humans and their activities.
Tools and Methods
We explore how methods from theatre, design and engineering can be combined to make robots and other intelligent devices expressive while staying aligned with the capabilities of their sensors, software, connectivity and means of actuation. Furthermore, speculative design is investigated to help craft new intelligent systems as propositions that allow them to be discussed and critiqued in the early phases of their development. Below we describe some of our methods and approaches.
Research through design
Generating knowledge through the process of designing and reflecting on the creation of artifacts.
Performative and experiential practices
Exploring design by staging or enacting experiences to investigate embodied and situated knowledge.
Speculative design
Imagining and presenting possible futures to provoke reflection and debate about emerging technologies and societal change.
Interaction and User Experience design
Designing digital and physical products with a focus on how users interact with them and the quality of those interactions.
Robotics engineering
A technical approach focused on the design, construction, and programming of robots to perform tasks autonomously or semi-autonomously.