Iterative Design of a System for Programming Socially Interactive Service Robots

Service robots, such as the Savioke Relay, are becoming available in human environments such as hotels. It is important for these robots to not only be functional, but also to have appropriate socially interactive behaviors. In this paper, we first present results from a formative study with service industry customers. A key demand we discover is that the robot should be aware of people present around the robot. We incorporate these lessons into the design of iCustomPrograms, a system for programming socially interactive behaviors for service robots. Next, we perform two field studies with iCustomPrograms and iterate its design. In the first field study, which took place at an airport, we witness people initiating interaction with the robot in unanticipated ways. The second field study, which took place over 2 weeks at 5 service industry properties, evaluates the socially interactive applications created with iCustomPrograms. Our experiences and findings from each study not only show the usefulness of our system in the field, but also provide insights for the design of future interactive applications for service robots.