Interaction Situation
During the interaction, situations can occur which require the robot to take some time to process information. In this case, the user has to know that she needs to wait a little while for the robot’s response or next action. Therefore, the robot has to indicate that it’s attention is now not on the user, but on the internal processing.
Solution
Let the robot express that:
The inwards orientation of the robot can be expressed through a body posture that is averted from the user.
For robots featuring a torso and head, the torso should express body tension, the head should be facing slightly to the side of the user and be directed slightly downwards.
For robots without a head, a similar effect can be achieved by slightly rotating the front of the robot to the side.
Related patterns:
Needed by: Inactive, Processing
Opposed patterns: Attentive, Ready
Examples
Rationale
Research in HRI has shown that letting the front or head of the robot face away from the user leads to the impression that the robot is currently not attentive or focusing on something other than the user.
References and further reading:
- Mizoguchi, Hiroshi, Katsuyuki Takagi, Yotaro Hatamura, Masayuki Nakao, and Tomomasa Sato. „Behavioral expression by an expressive mobile robot-expressing vividness, mental distance, and attention.“ In Proceedings of the 1997 IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robot and Systems. Innovative Robotics for Real-World Applications. IROS’97, vol. 1, pp. 306-311. IEEE, 1997.