ChildBot: Multi-robot perception and interaction with children

Abstract

In this paper, we present an integrated robotic system capable of participating in and performing a wide range of educational and entertainment tasks collaborating with one or more children. The system, called ChildBot, features multimodal perception modules and multiple robotic agents that monitor the interaction environment and can robustly coordinate complex Child–Robot Interaction use-cases. In order to validate the effectiveness of the system and its integrated modules, we have conducted multiple experiments with a total of 52 children. Our results show improved perception capabilities in comparison to our earlier works that ChildBot was based on. In addition, we have conducted a preliminary user experience study, employing some educational/entertainment tasks, that yields encouraging results regarding the technical validity of our system and initial insights on the user experience with it. © 2021 Elsevier B.V.