Overview
Talking by cell phone is becoming truly ubiquitous. However, phone conversations are not nearly as rich or engaging as talking to face-to-face. People send numerous non-verbal signals and cues that play an important role in face-to-face conversation but are lost in phone conversation. This is unfortunate as these non-verbal cues play an important role in conveying deeper meanings and attitudes. For instance, group collaboration or interactive demonstrations would be cumbersome if everything has to be described through language alone.
What if cell phone communication was more richly embodied? Imagine if you could wander around the same physical space as the person you called, look at different people you are sharing a conversation with, and point at objects shared in that space, while still conveying your remote presence through video of your face and the sound of your voice.
The MeBot is designed to add new non-verbal, physically co-present dimensionality to the use of cellular phones through robot-mediated communication. Think of the MeBot as a robotic accessory for your cell phone – a sort of robot exoskeleton. Say you call your friend via cell phone, she answers and places her phone in a MeBot body. Now, you are a mini-me robot that you remotely operate through your own cell phone! You can communicate with others through expressive body gestures, move around their space, and perhaps even interact with objects in that shared space.
In its current embodiment, the MeBot body is wheeled base with a pan-tilt “head” for the cell phone (the next generation is adding arms). Most of computation is performed on the cellular phone inserted by a user. The current version is designed for use with the Nokia N810 devices. But ideally the MeBot could be controlled by any cell phone. Currently the phones stream video and audio signals along with motor control commands over a 802.11 wireless network (cellular transmission is ongoing work). The phone communicates motor control commands to the MeBot body using Bluetooth. We are in the process of adding range sensors so that the robot can do basic target way-point navigation.
Talking by cell phone is becoming truly ubiquitous. However, phone conversations are not nearly as rich or engaging as talking to face-to-face. People send numerous non-verbal signals and cues that play an important role in face-to-face conversation but are lost in phone conversation. This is unfortunate as these non-verbal cues play an important role in conveying deeper meanings and attitudes. For instance, group collaboration or interactive demonstrations would be cumbersome if everything has to be described through language alone.
What if cell phone communication was more richly embodied? Imagine if you could wander around the same physical space as the person you called, look at different people you are sharing a conversation with, and point at objects shared in that space, while still conveying your remote presence through video of your face and the sound of your voice.
The MeBot is designed to add new non-verbal, physically co-present dimensionality to the use of cellular phones through robot-mediated communication. Think of the MeBot as a robotic accessory for your cell phone – a sort of robot exoskeleton. Say you call your friend via cell phone, she answers and places her phone in a MeBot body. Now, you are a mini-me robot that you remotely operate through your own cell phone! You can communicate with others through expressive body gestures, move around their space, and perhaps even interact with objects in that shared space.
In its current embodiment, the MeBot body is wheeled base with a pan-tilt “head” for the cell phone (the next generation is adding arms). Most of computation is performed on the cellular phone inserted by a user. The current version is designed for use with the Nokia N810 devices. But ideally the MeBot could be controlled by any cell phone. Currently the phones stream video and audio signals along with motor control commands over a 802.11 wireless network (cellular transmission is ongoing work). The phone communicates motor control commands to the MeBot body using Bluetooth. We are in the process of adding range sensors so that the robot can do basic target way-point navigation.
