Modelling and control for Human–Robot Interaction: physical and cognitive aspects

In this short paper, some contributions for research in Human–Robot Interaction (HRI) are outlined. Possible answers are reported to the questions suggested for the NEWHRI workshop, summarized in the reported keywords. A more comprehensive discussion on contributions which fit in the proposed research framework for the workshop can be found in the listed bibliographical references. The next generation of robots, both for service or cooperative work, is expected to interact with people more directly than today. Human–Robot Interaction will certainly happen at the cognitive level (cHRI), fundamentally due to mental models of HRI, and concerning communication between human and robot. However, robots are distinct from computers or other machines: they physically embody the link between perception and action, whose “intelligent connection” is a definition for robotics, and often have an anthropomorphic appearance. At the same time, they generate force and have a “body”: hence, the most revolutionary and challenging feature of the next generation of robots will be physical Human-Robot Interaction (pHRI) [1]. In pHRI, humans and robots share the same workspace, come in touch with each other, exchange forces, and cooperate in doing actions on the environment. This approach is affordable if robots can be considered service tools (according to a “Western” approach), which guarantee human safety and autonomy. An effort is keeping the “physical” viewpoint while considering the importance of inferences and evaluation on unstructured environments. This viewpoint influences the new paradigms for the design and control of robot manipulators. Notice also that, right now, a sort of Descartes “dualism” leads to accepting a dichotomy: the “brain” of robotic systems is usually studied by computer scientists and neuroscientists, whereas