For many years, the Robotics Lab at the University of Massachusetts Lowell has conducted studies of HRI in two different robot domains: urban search and rescue (USAR) robots and assistive technology (AT).  In these studies, we have observed several problems arising from current interface and robot designs, including the following:

• Users do not switch modes effectively.
• Users are unable to intervene after a long period of autonomy.
• Users have a lack of situation awareness.
• Information is presented ineffectively.
• Bystanders are confused when a robot acts in an unexpected fashion.
• There can be a wide range of abilities in the target population for a robot system, particularly for assistive robots.

This talk will address how we are investigating these issues in our lab's research, including the design guidelines that we have developed for HRI, the development of multi-touch interfaces for disaster response, and creating HRI for people with disabilities. The talk will also address the evaluation methodologies that we have developed for HRI systems.

Bio: Holly Yanco is an Associate Professor in the Computer Science Department at the University of Massachusetts Lowell, where she heads the Robotics Lab.  Her research interests include human-robot interaction, multi-touch computing, and assistive technology.  Dr. Yanco’s research is currently funded by ARL, NSF, NIST, and Microsoft; she received a Career Award from NSF in 2006.  She was the PI of the NSF funded Pyro Project, which was awarded the NEEDS Premiere Award for Courseware in 2005.  She has a PhD and MS from MIT and a BA from Wellesley College, all in Computer Science.