Robotic Video Research Articles

Let’s Get Physical: The Influence of Embodiment on Industrial Human-Robot Interaction

In recent years, an increasing number of studies in human-robot interaction (HRI) have used images or videos of robots as a simple, inexpensive, and customizable substitute for physically embodied robots. Thus, the question arises whether results from studies using depictions can be validly applied to interactions with embodied robots. This study investigated the effect of embodiment in HRI within an industrial interaction scenario, focusing on perception, trust, and task performance. Eighty-five participants interacted either with an embodied robot or its depiction via a computer screen. Results showed that the embodied robot was perceived as more likable, intelligent, and safer, eliciting higher initial trust. Primary task performance was observed to be higher in interaction with the embodied robot, while secondary task performance was higher in interaction with the robot’s depiction. These findings challenge the generalizability of depiction-based HRI research, highlighting the importance of considering embodiment in future research designs.

When the Recipient is a Social Robot: The Impact of Negative Behavioral Valence on 5-Year-Old Children’s Sharing

By age five, children take into account a potential recipient’s characteristics when they make decisions about sharing. We tested the impact of a social robot’s positive and negative behavior on children’s sharing with the robot. Participants were 159 5-year-old children who were assigned to watch a video of the social robot showing positive behavior, a video showing negative behavior, or no video. Children’s sharing behavior was assessed in the Dictator Game paradigm, in which the children were the proposers and the social robot was the recipient. The results showed that children in the negative group shared significantly fewer stickers than those in the positive group and in the control group. The present research found that children paid attention to the behavioral valence of the social robot and made their own sharing decisions when they faced a social robot, which was a non-human entity.

Smiling in the Face and Voice of Avatars and Robots: Evidence for a ‘Smiling McGurk Effect’

Multisensory integration influences emotional perception, as the McGurk effect demonstrates for the communication between humans. Human physiology implicitly links the production of visual features with other modes like the audio channel: Face muscles responsible for a smiling face also stretch the vocal cords that result in a characteristic smiling voice. For artificial agents capable of multimodal expression, this linkage is modeled explicitly. In our studies, we observe the influence of visual and audio channels on the perception of the agents' emotional expression. We created videos of virtual characters and social robots either with matching or mismatching emotional expressions in the audio and visual channels. In two online studies, we measured the agents' perceived valence and arousal. Our results consistently lend support to the ‘emotional McGurk effect' hypothesis, according to which face transmits valence information, and voice transmits arousal. When dealing with dynamic virtual characters, visual information is enough to convey both valence and arousal, and thus audio expressivity need not be congruent. When dealing with robots with fixed facial expressions, however, both visual and audio information need to be present to convey the intended expression.

Human–robot interaction-oriented video understanding of human actions

This paper focuses on action recognition tasks oriented to the field of human–robot interaction, which is one of the major challenges in the robotic video understanding field. Previous approaches focus on designing temporal models, lack the ability to capture motion information and build contextual correlation models. This may result in robots being unable to effectively understand long-term video actions. To solve these two problems, this paper propose a novel video understanding framework including: an Adaptive Temporal Sensitivity and Motion Capture Network (ATSMC-Net) and a contextual scene reasoning module called Knowledge Function Graph Module (KFG-Module). The proposed ATSMC-Net can adaptively adjust the frame-level and pixel-level sensitive regions of temporal features to effectively capture motion information. To fuse contextual scene information for cross-temporal inference, the KFG-Module is introduced to achieve fine-grained video understanding based on the relationship between objects and actions. We evaluate the method using three public video understanding benchmarks, including Something-Something-V1&V2 and HMDB51. In addition, we present a dataset with real-world application scenarios of human–robot interactions to verify the effectiveness of our approach on mobile robots. The experimental results show that the proposed method can significantly improve the video understanding of the robots.

Effect of having and switching multiple avatars on the operator's right to talk and receive social support.

People with communication difficulties encounter several challenges in their daily online interactions, such as a limited right to talk (RoT), insufficient social support (SS), and a low sense of being attended to (SoBA). Computer-mediated technologies are limited in addressing such problems owing to their limited capacity in transferring verbal and nonverbal cues between users. In this study, to address the limited RoT, low SS, and low SoBA challenges, we proposed a robotic video conference system with two teleoperated robot avatars. The proposed system was compared with another robotic video conference system that adopts only one teleoperated robot avatar. In the field experiment, 37 participants took part in two discussion sessions using each system type, where RoT, SS, and SoBA were adopted as the measured indices. The proposed system significantly increased the users' RoT and SS compared with other robotic video conference systems. This study contributes to the literature by demonstrating the effect exerted by the type of robotic video conference adopted on users' feelings about RoT, SS, and SoBA.

Bounding gait control of a parallel quadruped robot

PurposeThe computing power of the legged robot is not enough to perform high-frequency updates for the full-body model predictive control (MPC) of the robot, which is a common problem encountered in the gait research of the legged robot. The purpose of this paper is to propose a high-frequency MPC control method for the bounding gait of a parallel quadruped robot.Design/methodology/approachAccording to the bounding gait characteristics of the robot, the quadruped robot model is simplified to an equivalent plane bipedal model. Under the biped robot model, the forces between the robot’s feet and the ground are calculated by MPC. Then, the authors apply a proportional differential controller to distribute these forces to the four feet of the quadruped robot. The robot video can be seen at www.bilibili.com/video/BV1je4y1S7Rn.FindingsTo verify the feasibility of the controller, a prototype was made, and the controller was deployed on the actual prototype and then fully analyzed through experiments. Experiments show that the update frequency of MPC could be stabilized at 500 Hz while the robot was running in the bounding gait stably and efficiently.Originality/valueThis paper proposes a high-frequency MPC controller under the simplified model, which has a higher working efficiency and more stable control performance.

How to Make a Good Robot Video [Media

My name is Evan Ackerman, and I write about robots for <italic xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">IEEE Spectrum</i> . I’ve been writing about robots for a long, long time, which means that I’ve watched a truly astonishing number of robot videos—tens of thousands of them, at least. And as part of my job, I’ve shot and edited my fair share of robot videos, too.

V07-06 SINGLE-PORT ROBOTIC TRANSVESICAL SIMPLE PROSTATECTOMY STEP BY STEP

You have accessJournal of UrologyCME1 Apr 2023V07-06 SINGLE-PORT ROBOTIC TRANSVESICAL SIMPLE PROSTATECTOMY STEP BY STEP Joshua Jue, Alexa Meyer, and Lee Richstone Joshua JueJoshua Jue More articles by this author , Alexa MeyerAlexa Meyer More articles by this author , and Lee RichstoneLee Richstone More articles by this author View All Author Informationhttps://doi.org/10.1097/JU.0000000000003288.06AboutPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissionsReprints ShareFacebookLinked InTwitterEmail Abstract INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVE: The single-port robotic transvesical simple prostatectomy was first described in 2020, but the operation has not been widely adopted. With promising early results, the single-port robotic transvesical simple prostatectomy is an alternative approach to this operation with distinct advantages. METHODS: We detail the instruments required for this procedure, as well as the surgical technique to perform a simple prostatectomy using the single-port robot. Intraoperative and robotic video demonstrates all aspects of the technique, and postoperative photos illustrate the healed wound. RESULTS: A 3 cm transverse incision is made 3 fingerbreadths above the pubic symphysis and a longitudinal cystotomy is made. The Roll Wound Retractor rolling ring is inserted into the bladder lumen, with the Access Port, SP Short Entry Guide and AirSeal trocar within it. The robot is then docked to the SP cannula, and the bladder is insufflated to 8 mmHg. A semilunar incision is made through the bladder mucosa using the monopolar scissors along the posterior aspect of the bladder neck or median lobe. The forceps can be used to retract the prostatic adenoma, while using the monopolar scissors to further bluntly dissect the adenoma from the capsule. The prostatic adenoma can be removed en bloc, but is usually removed en lobe. A vesicourethral mucosal advancement flap is performed with 3-0 V-lock suture from apex to base at 3 o-clock and 9 o-clock; a double-arm 3-0 v-clock suture is then used to approximate the bladder and urethral mucosa, by running from 6-o-clock to 12-o-clock. The cystotomy is closed in 2 layers with 3-0 vicryl suture. The patient is observed for 2 hours on continues bladder irrigation to determine ambulatory discharge eligibility. Follow up is in 3-7 days for trial of void. CONCLUSIONS: Single-port robotic transvesical simple prostatectomy is a safe and effective way to surgically remove benign glands larger than 80 cc. Source of Funding: None © 2023 by American Urological Association Education and Research, Inc.FiguresReferencesRelatedDetails Volume 209Issue Supplement 4April 2023Page: e597 Advertisement Copyright & Permissions© 2023 by American Urological Association Education and Research, Inc.MetricsAuthor Information Joshua Jue More articles by this author Alexa Meyer More articles by this author Lee Richstone More articles by this author Expand All Advertisement PDF downloadLoading ...

Robotic video endoscopic inguinal lymph node dissection in post chemotherapy penile cancer

Robotic video endoscopic inguinal lymph node dissection in post chemotherapy penile cancer

New technologies in airway management: A review

The evolution of medical knowledge and technological growth have contributed to the development of different techniques and devices for airway management. These appear to play a role in optimizing the number of attempts and overall success, ultimately reducing the negative consequences of airway manipulation. In this literature review, we highlight the recent evidence regarding new technologies applied to airway management. Before intubation, every patient should have an individualized structured airway management plan. Technology can help with both airway evaluation and tracheal intubation. Point-of-care cervical ultrasound and artificial intelligence models with automated facial analysis have been used to predict difficult airways. Various devices can be used in airway management. This includes a robotic video endoscope that guides intubation based on real image recognition, a laryngeal mask with a non-inflatable cuff that tries to reduce local complications, video laryngeal masks that are able to confirm the correct position and facilitate intubation, Viescope™, a videolaryngoscope developed for combat medicine with a unique circular blade, a system that uses cervical transillumination for glottis identification in difficult airways and Vivasight SL™ tracheal tube, which has a high-resolution camera at its tip guaranteeing visual assurance of tube position as well as guiding bronchial blocker position. To conclude, we detailed the challenges in airway management outside the operating room as well as described suction-assisted laryngoscopy and airway decontamination technique for contaminated airways. Further research in the clinical setting is recommended to better support the use of these technologies.

Probabilistic Analysis of the Auto Tracking Failure by the Mobile Robot Video System

The article is devoted to the development of a methodology for estimating the probability of an object auto tracking failure by the mobile robot video system under the influence of external factors caused by random vibrations of the mobile platform. The mathematical formulation of the probabilistic analysis problem is based on the processes representation occurring in the system by a vector stochastic differential equation. The condition for the auto tracking failure is the exit of the tracked object from the of the video system field of view and non-return to it within a specified time. The probability of auto-tracking failure depends on the dynamic tracking system properties and is described by a recurrent formula that accounts the probability of an object being out of the field of view and the probability of its non-return. The method of calculating the failure probability includes the solution of two ordinary differential equations systems for probabilistic moments. One system of equations characterizes the probability density of tracked object location coordinates distribution in an open area of space. Another system of equations characterizes the change in time of the probability density of the tracked object coordinates, which is outside the video system field of view. A simplified example is given that clearly illustrates the evolution of the system probabilistic characteristics under the study in space and time.

Animation, Theory of Mind and Humanoid Robots: Creating a Social Robot Video Task

Abstract Theory of Mind (ToM)—a social cognitive ability commonly underdeveloped in individuals with autism—is necessary to attribute mental states to oneself and others. Research into robot-assisted interventions to improve ToM ability in children with autism has become increasingly popular. However, no appropriate task currently exists to measure the degree of efficacy of robot-assisted interventions targeting ToM ability. The authors demonstrate how animation techniques and principles can be leveraged to develop and produce videos of humanoid robots interacting, which could selectively measure ToM.

Development of a mobile robot for safe mechanical evacuation of hazardous bulk materials in industrial confined spaces

AbstractSafe mechanical evacuation of hazardous bulk materials in industrial confined spaces with improper conditions (poor light for vision, dust or vapor, high temperature, and toxic fume) and potential of combustion and explosion is high‐risk mission for human. This study deals with development and performance assessments of a robot for this purpose. The robot comprised four major units including control, electro‐hydraulic actuator, communication, and monitoring unit. Detailed descriptions of the units and their main components are beyond the scope of current report. Meanwhile, the robot has movable and stationary parts. The movable part is a wheeled mobile robot which guides suction tube in the confined space. Robotic evacuation operations are accomplished by supervisory remote control at base station with feedback from camera video of the mobile robot. Simulation results showed accurate performance of defined objectives for the units and their main components through designed hydraulic and electronic circuits. Stationary assessments for forward speed (0–30 m/min) and drawbar pull (‐0‐755.6 N) of the mobile robot yielded acceptable results in case of robot mobility. Operational assessments of the robot in two chemical reactors comprised depreciated catalyst and ceramic balls practically approved efficient, safe, feasible, and easily implementable of robotic evacuation operations. Overall, the robot proposed in this study eliminates employment of a human in highly risky conditions of industrial confined spaces.

The Influence of Robot Autonomy on Perception Distance, Acceptance and Subjective Norm

The emergence of automatic machines is a topic of social concern. In this study, we examine the effects of robot autonomy on perceived distance, acceptance, and subjective norm. Participants watched a video of a robot performing a variety of tasks - the robot was either autonomous and able to ignore human commands, or non-autonomous and could only obey human commands. The results showed that participants who watched videos of autonomous robots generally perceived that the robot was more distant than the non-autonomous robot. On the other hand, people who watched videos of autonomous robots were less acceptive and had lower subjective norms than watched videos of non-autonomous robots. These findings can help us better study artificial intelligence and raise new questions about what giving robots autonomy would do to human perception.

An approximate mathematical model for estimating the influence of vibrations on attached elements of a mobile robot video system

The problem of constructing and applying of mathematical model for assessing the influence of vibrations on the attached elements of the video system of a mobile robot is solved. This robot is considered as a mobile platform for placing of the special equipment for various purposes. The analysis of mathematical models and the results of experimental studies of vibrations of multi-support wheeled machine and its structural elements has been conducted. On the basis of this analysis, the form of a stochastic mathematical model of vibrations of the structure of a mobile robot has been substantiated. The vibration model is specified as a correlation function or spectral density of a random process for various conditions of the robot’s movement. Differential equations of the shaping filter for modeling а random vibration process with given characteristics are presented. Differential equations for the probabilistic moments of the vibration process are presented. Based on the equations for the probabilistic moments and the proposed formula, an assessment of events, which consist in exceeding the vibration amplitude of a given level was carried out. These events are named as outliers of a random process and characterize the range within the basic properties of the equipment installed on the mobile platform are preserved. An analytical study of a mathematical model to determine the intensity of emissions of a random vibration process has been carried out. The probabilistic characteristics of the vibration process and the intensity of emissions are determined. The obtained theoretical results make it possible to assess the performance of the elements of a video system installed on a mobile platform and to formulate the basic requirements for tolerances for their parameters. The results of computer modeling clearly showed the efficiency of the proposed mathematical model for assessing the influence of vibrations.

Needs and Preferences of Middle-Aged and Older Adults in Taiwan for Companion Robots and Pets: Survey Study

BackgroundIn recent years, robots have been considered a new tech industry that can be used to solve the shortage in human resources in the field of health care. Also, animal-assisted therapy has been used to provide assistance, companionship, and interaction among the elderly and has been shown to have a positive impact on their emotional and psychological well-being. Both pets and robots can provide dynamic communication and positive interaction patterns. However, preferences for middle-aged and older adults in this regard are not clear.ObjectiveThis study explored the degree of acceptance of robots and pets as partners in later life and to determine the needs and preferences of elderly individuals related to companion robots.MethodsA total of 273 middle-aged and older adults aged ≥45 years and living in the community were invited to answer a structured questionnaire after watching a companion robot video. Sociodemographic data, physical health status and activities, experience with technology, eHealth literacy, and acceptance and attitude toward robots and pets were recorded and analyzed using multinomial logistic regression analysis.ResultsAge, level of education, type of dwelling, occupation, retirement status, number of comorbidities, experience with pets, experience using apps, and eHealth literacy were significantly associated with acceptance of robots and pets. Middle-aged and older women preferred robots with an animal-like appearance, while men preferred robots that resembled a human adult. In terms of robot functions, participants preferred a companion robot with dancing, singing, storytelling, or news-reporting functions. Participants’ marital status and whether or not they lived alone affected their preference of functions in the companion robot.ConclusionsFindings from this study inform the development of social robots with regard to their appearance and functions to address loneliness in later life in fast-aging societies.

THE ATTITUDE OF THE ELDERLY TOWARDS ROBOT ASSISTED DAILY LIFE ACTIVITIES

This article attempted to understand the attitude of the elderly to the use of robots to assist in activities of daily living (ADLs). The study first learned about major items of ADLs of elderly people living independently through one-on-one interviews, and then let the seniors fill in the attitude questionnaire and the acceptance questionnaire after watching the robot video. The results showed that the mean scores of seniors in the attitude questionnaire were greater than 3 (3 stands for neutral), and they highly accept the use of robots to assist ADLs such as reminding people to carry items, reminding to take medicine, reminding important things, reminding the location of items, cleaning and looking for things. The results suggested that seniors hold an open attitude towards the use of robot assistance. The research results can provide an understanding on the user's assistance needs and attitudes, as well as reference for the design of the robot, especially the functional design, ultimately improving the ability of the elderly to live independently and improve their quality of life.

Vision-Based Fault Action Detection for Industrial Robots

With the large-scale application of industrial robots, the safety problems caused by the sudden failures of industrial robots occur from time to time. Traditional fault diagnosis methods based on data analysis have several problems, such as the sensor data are disturbed by the external environment, the communication protocols for different types of robots are complex and not unified, the monitoring systems embedded in the execution systems affect each other, and so on. In this paper, we propose a vision-based fault detection method for industrial robots. According to this method, we perform real-time analysis of operation video from industrial robots. An image segmentation module extracts the body part of an industrial robot, and an image hashing module then generates the posture code describing the movement of the industrial robot. Thus, we can obtain early warnings based on abnormal movements of the robot, which can be detected by the sequence pattern analysis technology. The proposed method does not rely on communication protocols of industrial robots and can monitor industrial robots in a real-time non-contact manner. Besides, the method is easy for deployment at a low cost. We conduct experiments on a collected dataset containing videos of industrial robots. Experiment results show that the proposed method can accurately identify the abnormal actions of industrial robots at an average detection accuracy of 99.15%, which meets the needs of industrial applications in practice.

Attitudes of the elderly living independently towards the use of robots to assist with activities of daily living.

Robots are gaining attention as a potential solution to aging. The purpose of this study is to explore the attitude of robot assistance in Activities of Daily Living (ADLs) among elderly people living independently. The one-on-one interview, buddy robot video and questionnaire survey were used to analyze mean, median, range, and the test results of non-parametric statistical methods such as Wilcoxon sign-rank test statistic and one-sample Wilcoxon sign-rank test statistic, so as to explore the attitude of the elderly living independently towards robot-assisted ADLs and the acceptance of the use of robots in 32 ADLs. The results showed that there were significant differences in the attitudes, usability and ease of use of elderly people towards robot assistance before and after watching the Buddy Robot video and they had a more positive attitude after watching the video. According to the results, the elderly was more receptive to the use of robots in activities such as "reminding to carry objects" and "reminding to take medicine", while they were less receptive to the use of robots in the group or private activities such as "playing mahjong" and "taking a bath". The results showed that the elderly had a positive attitude towards the use of robot-assisted ADLs, and there were differences in the acceptance of robot-assisted ADLs. The results are helpful to understand the assistance needs and attitudes of the elderly, and provide a reference for the design of assistive robots that meet user needs, and ultimately improve the ability of the elderly to live independently at home.

Laparoscopic and robotic video endoscopic inguinal lymphadenectomy by the lateral approach.

Video endoscopic inguinal lymphadenectomy (VEIL) improves on open inguinal node dissection because it offers decreased morbidity. In conventional VEIL, port placement is along the long axis of the femur, above the knee joint. In the laparoscopic approach, this placement is fraught with problems because the camera hits the knee, the surgeon must reach over the camera, and sword fighting occurs between the instruments. In the robotic approach, external collisions are likewise not uncommon because of a lack of optimal spacing between the robot's arms. Here, we describe our lateral approach technique that can be used for both laparoscopic and robotic platforms and can help solve the problems presented by conventional VEIL. A retrospective review was performed to examine the records of all patients who had undergone VEIL at our institution for management of squamous cell carcinoma of the penis. Patients who had undergone lateral VEIL were identified. The clinical factors, surgery details, time to discharge and drain removal, postoperative complications, and nodal pathology were recorded. A total of 30 VEILs-26 laparoscopic and 4 robotic-were performed by the lateral approach. On clinical examination, none of the patients had clinically palpable nodes. The mean operative time on one side was 100 minutes (range, 80-140 minutes). The blood loss was minimal in all cases, and there were no conversions to open procedures. The mean time to drain removal was 7 days (range, 5-12 days). Two patients developed bilateral lymphoceles. Lateral VEIL is feasible and can be used as an alternative to conventional VEIL.