Peek into the `White-Box': A Field Study on Bystander Engagement with Urban Robot Uncertainty

Fuente: arXiv
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Hauptverfasser: Yu, Xinyan, Hoggenmueller, Marius, Tran, Tram Thi Minh, Wang, Yiyuan, Zhang, Qiuming, Tomitsch, Martin
Format: Preprint
Veröffentlicht: 2025
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author Yu, Xinyan
Hoggenmueller, Marius
Tran, Tram Thi Minh
Wang, Yiyuan
Zhang, Qiuming
Tomitsch, Martin
author_facet Yu, Xinyan
Hoggenmueller, Marius
Tran, Tram Thi Minh
Wang, Yiyuan
Zhang, Qiuming
Tomitsch, Martin
contents Uncertainty inherently exists in the autonomous decision-making process of robots. Involving humans in resolving this uncertainty not only helps robots mitigate it but is also crucial for improving human-robot interactions. However, in public urban spaces filled with unpredictability, robots often face heightened uncertainty without direct human collaborators. This study investigates how robots can engage bystanders for assistance in public spaces when encountering uncertainty and examines how these interactions impact bystanders' perceptions and attitudes towards robots. We designed and tested a speculative `peephole' concept that engages bystanders in resolving urban robot uncertainty. Our design is guided by considerations of non-intrusiveness and eliciting initiative in an implicit manner, considering bystanders' unique role as non-obligated participants in relation to urban robots. Drawing from field study findings, we highlight the potential of involving bystanders to mitigate urban robots' technological imperfections to both address operational challenges and foster public acceptance of urban robots. Furthermore, we offer design implications to encourage bystanders' involvement in mitigating the imperfections.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2503_00337
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Peek into the `White-Box': A Field Study on Bystander Engagement with Urban Robot Uncertainty
Yu, Xinyan
Hoggenmueller, Marius
Tran, Tram Thi Minh
Wang, Yiyuan
Zhang, Qiuming
Tomitsch, Martin
Robotics
Human-Computer Interaction
Uncertainty inherently exists in the autonomous decision-making process of robots. Involving humans in resolving this uncertainty not only helps robots mitigate it but is also crucial for improving human-robot interactions. However, in public urban spaces filled with unpredictability, robots often face heightened uncertainty without direct human collaborators. This study investigates how robots can engage bystanders for assistance in public spaces when encountering uncertainty and examines how these interactions impact bystanders' perceptions and attitudes towards robots. We designed and tested a speculative `peephole' concept that engages bystanders in resolving urban robot uncertainty. Our design is guided by considerations of non-intrusiveness and eliciting initiative in an implicit manner, considering bystanders' unique role as non-obligated participants in relation to urban robots. Drawing from field study findings, we highlight the potential of involving bystanders to mitigate urban robots' technological imperfections to both address operational challenges and foster public acceptance of urban robots. Furthermore, we offer design implications to encourage bystanders' involvement in mitigating the imperfections.
title Peek into the `White-Box': A Field Study on Bystander Engagement with Urban Robot Uncertainty
topic Robotics
Human-Computer Interaction
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2503.00337