Personal assistant robot using reinforcement learning: DARWIN-OP2 as a case study

The use of robots as personal assistants has gained significant interest in recent years. In this research, our motivation is to employ a robot as a personal assistant to optimize the office ergonomics for students. Our personal assistant system consists of DARWIN-OP2 robot, reinforcement algorithm,...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Intelligent service robotics 2024-07, Vol.17 (4), p.815-831
Main Authors: Ahmad Yousef, Khalil M., Mohd, Bassam J., Barham, Omar, Al-Najjar, Ahmad, Abu-Diab, Mohammad, AlMajali, Anas
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adaptation
Algorithms
Artificial Intelligence
Control
Dynamical Systems
Engineering
Ergonomics
Feedback
Hypotheses
Learning
Machine learning
Mechatronics
Original Research Paper
Pain
Performance evaluation
Physical therapy
Pilot projects
Posture
Robotics
Robotics and Automation
Robots
Sensors
Speech recognition
Students
User behavior
User Interfaces and Human Computer Interaction
User satisfaction
Vibration
Citations: Items that this one cites
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:The use of robots as personal assistants has gained significant interest in recent years. In this research, our motivation is to employ a robot as a personal assistant to optimize the office ergonomics for students. Our personal assistant system consists of DARWIN-OP2 robot, reinforcement algorithm, ROS, communication with robot (using text to speech and speech to text capabilities), and bad posture detection. We conducted a case study on the personal assistant system. The robot receives feedback from student subjects through verbal chatting. Then, the robot executes some tasks such as performing actions or suggesting verbal advice’s to improve the student’s ergonomics. The study included a user evaluation of the robot’s performance, which involved a group of 31 student participants using the robot for a certain period of time. The results show that the DARWIN-OP2 robot is able to effectively and correctly provide valuable health exercises that relieved users’ pains. Additionally, student subjects reported high levels of satisfaction with the robot’s performance and perceived the robot as a helpful personal assistant as it helped in improving their ergonomics. In particular, evaluations of the system, using the group of 31 students, show the system scores 7.7 (out of 10) in speech recognition; 9.7 in health advice’s pain relief; and 9 in users’ opinion on using DARWIN-OP2 as a personal assistant.
ISSN:1861-2776
1861-2784
DOI:10.1007/s11370-024-00540-7