A multi-agent system for programming robots by human demonstration

This paper explores Gesture-Based Programming as a paradigm for programming robotic agents. Gesture-Based Programming is a form of programming by human demonstration that focuses the development of robotic systems on task experts rather than programming experts. The technique relies on the existence of previously acquired robotic skills (called “sensorimotor primitives”) which are intended to be the robotic equivalent of that which humans acquire through everyday physical interactions. The interpretation of the human’s demonstration and subsequent matching to robotic primitives is a qualitative problem that we approach with a community of skilled agents. A simple manipulative task is programmed to demonstrate the system.