AVATAR - "Enhanced AI-enabled Avatar Robot for remote telepresence"
AVATAR is a research initiative aimed at developing a physical, semi-autonomous robotic Avatar system. The goal is to enable an operator to see, hear, and interact with a remote environment as if physically present. The system leverages emerging technologies in three main areas: remote thermo-tactile feedback for fine manipulation, robust teleoperation architectures resilient to communication delay, and AI-enhanced teleoperation paradigms for navigation, manipulation, and social interaction. The project will also assess the social acceptability and empathy level of the Avatar robot in human-robot interaction scenarios.
Advanced Robotic Telepresence
AI-Enhanced Shared-Control Telemanipulation and Navigation
Integration and Use Case Evaluation
Dissemination
Tactile and Thermo-Tactile Feedback:
- Development of innovative wearable tactile devices for transmitting thermal and tactile signals, enhancing telepresence realism.
Teleoperation Architecture:
- Implementation of a robust bilateral teleoperation architecture capable of handling communication delays and ensuring system stability.
AI-Enhanced Teleoperation:
- Utilizing AI to improve autonomous navigation, posture control, and provide intelligent assistance during manipulation tasks.
Empathy Evaluation:
- Assessing the Avatar robot’s ability to convey empathy and its effectiveness in social interactions.
Main goals of the AVATAR
To develop a robotic telepresence system capable of providing an immersive and intuitive experience for the operator.
To improve the dexterity and precision of remote robotic manipulation, enabling the performance of complex tasks.
To simplify the control of the Avatar robot through the use of Artificial Intelligence, reducing the operator’s cognitive load.
To study human-robot social interaction and evaluate the social acceptability of the Avatar robot.