REINS

REINS项目是设计和研究人类代理和移动的机器人向导之间的触觉通信接口（reins）。缰绳将有助于在低能见度条件下（在消防中经常发生）对空间进行联合导航和检查。重点是触觉和触觉人类机器人合作，因为人们发现有限的视野和模糊的摄像头会增加人类在压力下工作的痛苦。人类在与导盲犬和骑马等场景中自然地使用触觉反馈与动物进行交互; REINS项目旨在将这种实践扩展到人类机器人交互。来自许多不同学科的专业知识-设计，工程，机器人，和通信-将被带到承担的问题，设计一个通信接口，这将是既足够强大的相关物理环境和足够灵活，以允许在-现场锻炼人类的判断力和创造力。灵感来自于导盲犬的挽具和骑马或骑马的缰绳，REINS项目将研究和试验用于人机合作的触觉接口。低/无可见性约束确保焦点仅在触觉和触觉方面。目前，机器人还不足以增强人类的信心。在人机合作中，人类（天生）会试图“阅读”情况，并预测机器人伴侣的动作。机器人配备有阻抗滤波器，并且缰绳使人类能够感觉到机器人的运动和行为。远程控制机器人的经验表明，“操作员花在收集有关机器人状态和环境状态的信息上的时间比他们导航机器人的时间要多得多”。（消防员，但也有视觉障碍者）可能会与机器人一起工作，重点是触觉和触觉互动。我们适应半自主的移动的机器人在人类面前导航。机器人提供丰富的传感数据，并能够尝试它遇到的物体的机械阻抗。我们还设计和实现了软绳（绳子），无线绳和硬绳（灵感来自导盲犬的铅），使人类能够使用机器人主动探测物体。因此，该项目创造了探索触觉人机交互景观的手段。我们将从一个整合的角度来看，沟通者不仅仅是一个预先存在的符号的用户，但一个符号制造者;符号出现在不断的协调和适应特定环境的活动的整合。我们审查的沟通景观发生在一队（人类）消防队员，此外，工作导盲犬和骑马的文献回顾。一个研究问题是信息是否应该被显式编码为消息或可以保持隐式。在项目的初始阶段，机器人进行了调整，并实现了第一个原型的缰绳;在这个阶段的重点是提供丰富的数据给人类。第二阶段致力于调查通信景观。人类-机器人团队将在能见度低的已知环境中导航，其中可能会出现未知障碍物。至少应用了两种不同类型的控制：一种要求显式地编码消息，而另一种则隐式地传播信息。根据第一次试验的经验，可能会对缰绳进行调整，以提高其可用性。专业消防员将是第一批尝试缰绳的受试者，随后，有导盲犬经验的志愿者也可能加入实验。

The REINS project is to design and investigate haptic communicational interfaces (reins) between a human agent and a mobile robot guide. The reins will facilitate joint navigation and inspection of a space under conditions of low visibility (occurring frequently in fire fighting). The focus is on haptic and tactile human robot cooperation as it has been found that a limited visual field and obscured cameras adds to the distress of humans working under pressure. Humans naturally interact with animals using tactile feedback in scenarios such as working with guide dogs and horse riding; the REINS project aims to extend this practice to human robot interaction. Expertise from a number of different disciplines - design, engineering, robotics, and communication - will be brought to bear on the problem of designing a communicational interface which will be both sufficiently robust for the relevant physical environment and sufficiently flexible to allow for the on-the-spot exercise of human judgement and creativity.Inspired by the use of a harness for a guide dog and also the rein to ride or drive a horse, the REINS project will investigate and experiment with haptic interfaces for human-robot cooperation. The low/no visibility constraint ensures the focus is on the tactile and haptic aspects only. Currently, robots do not sufficiently enhance human confidence. In human-robot cooperation, the human (by nature) will try to 'read' the situation, and anticipate the movements of the robot companion. The robot is provided with an impedance filter and the rein enables the human to feel the robot's movements and behaviour. Experiences with remotely controlling a robot which is not directly visible show that 'operators spent significantly more time gathering information about the state of the robot and the state of the environment than they did navigating the robot'.The REINS project aims to map the communicational landscape in which humans (fire fighters, but also the visually impaired) might be working with robots, with the emphasis on tactile and haptic interaction. We adapt a semi-autonomous mobile robot for navigation in front of a human. The robot provides rich sensory data and is enabled to try the mechanical impedances of the objects it encounters. We also design and implement a soft rein (rope), a wireless rein and a stiff rein (inspired by the lead for guide dog) enabling the human to use the robot to actively probe objects. The project thus creates the means to explore the haptic Human-Robot Interaction landscape. We will work from an integrationist perspective in which the communicator is not a mere user of pre-existing signs but a sign-maker; the signs emerge in the ongoing coordination and integration of activities adapted to the particular circumstances. We review the communicational landscape occurring within a team of (human) fire fighters and in addition review literature on working guide dogs and horse riding. A research question is whether the information should be explicitly encoded as messages or can remain implicit.In the initial phase of the project the robot is adapted and the first prototypes of the reins are implemented; the emphasis in this phase is on providing rich data to the human. The second phase is dedicated to surveying the communicational landscape. The human-robot team will navigate a known environment with low visibility where unknown obstacles may occur. At least two different types of reins are applied: one requires that messages are explicitly coded, while the other propagates the information implicitly. Based on experiences in the first trials the reins might be adapted to improve their usability. Professional fire fighters will be the first group of subjects to try the reins, later on also volunteers experienced with guide dogs may join the experimentations.