Enhancing Expressivity of a Greeting Robot
Honors Capstone Project
1
Advisor(s)
Dr. Khalid Al-Olimat
Confirmation
1
Document Type
Paper
Location
ONU McIntosh Center; Activities Room
Start Date
8-4-2025 4:45 PM
End Date
8-4-2025 5:00 PM
Abstract
Interaction between robots and humans is an active area of development in both industry and academia. The rise of conversational artificial intelligence (AI) systems has vastly improved the experience of interacting with these types of robots. However, there is more to emulating human conversation than coherent speech. The robot's appearance also significantly affects the conversational experience. Designing a face for a humanoid robot that appears friendly and inviting, while avoiding the "uncanny valley" effect of being just far enough from a human to induce uneasiness, is a delicate balance. Additionally, humans tend to gesture naturally during conversations, especially when talking to multiple other people. These factors must be considered when creating robots like the student capstone "Project NORTH" which seeks to create a greeting robot for the College of Engineering to interact with visitors and prospective students. This honors capstone enhancement is intended to enhance the "expressivity" of the robot by adding dynamic expressions for the robot's eyes as well as arm gestures fluidly as the robot converses with guests. Through these additions, the final product of this capstone project will become more personable and better achieve its goal of engaging with university guests.
Recommended Citation
Phillips, Maxwell, "Enhancing Expressivity of a Greeting Robot" (2025). ONU Student Research Colloquium. 13.
https://digitalcommons.onu.edu/student_research_colloquium/2025/Papers/13
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Enhancing Expressivity of a Greeting Robot
ONU McIntosh Center; Activities Room
Interaction between robots and humans is an active area of development in both industry and academia. The rise of conversational artificial intelligence (AI) systems has vastly improved the experience of interacting with these types of robots. However, there is more to emulating human conversation than coherent speech. The robot's appearance also significantly affects the conversational experience. Designing a face for a humanoid robot that appears friendly and inviting, while avoiding the "uncanny valley" effect of being just far enough from a human to induce uneasiness, is a delicate balance. Additionally, humans tend to gesture naturally during conversations, especially when talking to multiple other people. These factors must be considered when creating robots like the student capstone "Project NORTH" which seeks to create a greeting robot for the College of Engineering to interact with visitors and prospective students. This honors capstone enhancement is intended to enhance the "expressivity" of the robot by adding dynamic expressions for the robot's eyes as well as arm gestures fluidly as the robot converses with guests. Through these additions, the final product of this capstone project will become more personable and better achieve its goal of engaging with university guests.