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This paper aims to explore theme park visitors’ attitudes toward interacting with robots and investigated the qualities and functions of robotic servers and their influence on customers’ loyalty. A structural equation modeling approach was used to identify the complex relationships among variables in the entire network.

An online survey randomly assigned respondents to four different robotic server scenarios with robots that look like humans, animals, cartoon characters and anime features. The influence of robot types was investigated by manipulating robot type with four different pictures; however, the data were analyzed with a structural equation modeling model to identify the complex relationships rather than one-way analysis of variance to identify influences of robot types on different variables in separate analyzes.

The data collected from the 385 experienced theme park visitors revealed that perception of robots with human orientation and safety qualities had the strongest effect on the perceived robotic functionality, while emotions and co-creation qualities hardly had any effect on the perceived functionality, which included utilitarian rather than experiential functions such as excitement. Human orientation qualities, regardless of the specific robotic design, had a significant impact on perceived robotic functionality. The study also revealed a strong positive influence of perceived robotic functionality on customer loyalty.

The debate of whether or not to introduce and blend the growing robotic technology into the theme park experience is in its infancy. The study contributes to the theory of how robotics qualities and functions can augment customer loyalty.

This study aims to understand the theme park visitors’ perceived robotic qualities featured in four different robots, assess their robotic functions and consumers’ loyalty toward four different robotic server types.

A structured online survey of 399 respondents measured and compared consumer perceptions related to qualities and functions of robots in a theme park context and consumers’ behavioral intentions in four different robotic scenarios – anime, cartoon-like, human-like and animal-like robots in theme parks. Survey data were collected on an online platform and analyzed by SPSS.

The results showed some expected differences in robotic qualities among the different robot-type scenarios, but similar reactions overall. The findings also provided insight into the type of robots that consumers prefer and showed a little more preference toward human-like robotic servers.

The study was restricted to several robotic scenarios in North American theme parks. Future qualitative and quantitative studies should look in more detail at theme park visitors’ participation in the robotic service delivery process, the robots’ mobility and interactions with fellow visitors.

The findings can guide practitioners on robots’ looks, qualities and functionalities to consider for introducing to their patrons to create more interactive environments and experiences.

The study revealed some new knowledge about consumer expectations for robotic servers in theme parks. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study that compares different robot types on their perceived appearance, qualities and functionality, or consumers’ behavioral tendencies in the context of theme parks.

本研究对 399 名受访者进行的结构化在线调查测量并比较了消费者对主题公园环境中机器人质量和功能的看法以及消费者的行为四种不同机器人场景中的意图——动漫、卡通、人类和主题公园中的动物机器人。调查数据由在线平台收集并通过 SPSS 进行分析。

该研究旨在了解主题公园游客感知到的四种不同机器人所具有的机器人品质, 评估它们的机器人功能, 以及消费者对四种不同机器人服务器类型的忠诚度。

结果显示, 不同机器人类型场景中机器人质量存在一些预期差异, 但总体反应相似。调查结果还提供了有关消费者偏好机器人类型的信息, 并显示出对类人机器人服务器的更多偏好。

该研究仅限于北美主题公园的几个机器人场景。未来的定性和定量研究应该更详细地研究主题公园游客参与机器人服务交付过程、机器人的移动性以及与其他游客的互动。

这些发现可以指导从业者机器人的外观、品质和功能, 以考虑将其介绍给他们的顾客, 以创造更多的互动环境和体验。

该研究揭示了一些关于消费者对主题公园机器人服务器期望的新知识。到目前为止, 还没有其他研究比较不同机器人类型的感知外观, 质量、功能或消费者在主题公园背景下的行为倾向。

The purpose of this paper is to introduce the physical structure and the control mechanism of human motor nervous system to the robotic system in a tentative manner to improve the compliance/flexibility/versatility of the robot.

A brief review is focused on the concept of compliance, the compliance-based methods and the application of some compliance-based devices. Combined with the research on the physical structure and the control mechanism of human motor nervous system, a new drive structure and control method is proposed.

Introducing the physical structure and the control mechanism of human motor nervous system can improve the compliance/flexibility/versatility of the robot, without bringing in more complexity or inefficiency to the system, which helps in the assembly automation tasks.

The proposed drive structure and control method are useful to build up a novel, low-cost robotic assembly automation system, which is easy to interact and cooperate with humans.

The purpose of this study is to explore the expectations and experiences regarding a robotic shower, from a dual user perspective.

This was an explorative qualitative study in which elderly and personnel were interviewed before the robotic shower was installed and again after four or five months of usage.

The elderly participants found the robotic shower empowering. The personnel’s experiences encompassed their own work conditions, as well as the user value for the elderly. A shared experience for both user groups was a more independent shower situation for the elderly.

Low user frequency among the elderly may have affected the results; more frequent use may lead to different user experiences. Understanding whether and to what extent long-term use affects user experience is important for future adoption and implementation.

Implementation of digital assistive technology (DAT) should focus on the user value of the DAT for all possible user groups, as the different users may experience different values over time. In addition, approaching adoption and acceptance issues of DAT from a learned helplessness perspective may help users find value in the DAT and the independence these aim to provide, helping users maintain or increase quality of life.

This study presents a dual user experience of a DAT in an intimate care situation and shows the importance of including both elderly and personnel to fully understand the value of DATs.

A review of safety‐technology, applicable safety‐related standards and the impact on the use of robots in industrial environments.

Technological developments are presented in safety‐related control technology, including programmable safety controllers, configurable safety controllers, safety networking and robotic safety in human environments. The technological developments are related to new and emerging safety standards.

The development of safety‐related technology and new international and European standards have fundamentally changed the way in which safety is now being engineered in industry. The introduction of new standards and revision of others have allowed safety‐related systems to utilise “state of the art” electronic, programmable, and network based technologies. New international standards are likely to include collaborative working with humans in the robotic workspace. This is set to change how robots are utilised in manufacturing environments.

The review of applicable standards and technical developments: with examples from current research and new technologies, demonstrating engineering solutions that embody the principles of the new standards.

Examines the tenth published year of the ITCRR. Runs the whole gamut of textile innovation, research and testing, some of which investigates hitherto untouched aspects. Subjects discussed include cotton fabric processing, asbestos substitutes, textile adjuncts to cardiovascular surgery, wet textile processes, hand evaluation, nanotechnology, thermoplastic composites, robotic ironing, protective clothing (agricultural and industrial), ecological aspects of fibre properties – to name but a few! There would appear to be no limit to the future potential for textile applications.

Examines the ninth published year of the ITCRR. Runs the whole gamut of textile innovation, research and testing, some of which investigates hitherto untouched aspects. Subjects discussed include cotton fabric processing, asbestos substitutes, textile adjuncts to cardiovascular surgery, wet textile processes, hand evaluation, nanotechnology, thermoplastic composites, robotic ironing, protective clothing (agricultural and industrial), ecological aspects of fibre properties – to name but a few! There would appear to be no limit to the future potential for textile applications.

Most industrial robots are still programmed using the typical teaching process, through the use of the robot teach pendant. This is a tedious and time‐consuming task that requires some technical expertise, and hence new approaches to robot programming are required. The purpose of this paper is to present a robotic system that allows users to instruct and program a robot with a high‐level of abstraction from the robot language.

The paper presents in detail a robotic system that allows users, especially non‐expert programmers, to instruct and program a robot just showing it what it should do, in an intuitive way. This is done using the two most natural human interfaces (gestures and speech), a force control system and several code generation techniques. Special attention will be given to the recognition of gestures, where the data extracted from a motion sensor (three‐axis accelerometer) embedded in the Wii remote controller was used to capture human hand behaviours. Gestures (dynamic hand positions) as well as manual postures (static hand positions) are recognized using a statistical approach and artificial neural networks.

It is shown that the robotic system presented is suitable to enable users without programming expertise to rapidly create robot programs. The experimental tests showed that the developed system can be customized for different users and robotic platforms.

The proposed system is tested on two different robotic platforms. Since the options adopted are mainly based on standards, it can be implemented with other robot controllers without significant changes. Future work will focus on improving the recognition rate of gestures and continuous gesture recognition.

The key contribution of this paper is that it offers a practical method to program robots by means of gestures and speech, improving work efficiency and saving time.

This paper presents an alternative to the typical robot teaching process, extending the concept of human‐robot interaction and co‐worker scenario. Since most companies do not have engineering resources to make changes or add new functionalities to their robotic manufacturing systems, this system constitutes a major advantage for small‐ to medium‐sized enterprises.

The purpose of this paper is to report a collection of developments that enable users to program industrial robots using speech, several device interfaces, force control and code generation techniques.

The reported system is explained in detail and a few practical examples are given that demonstrate its usefulness for small to medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs), where robots and humans need to cooperate to achieve a common goal (coworker scenario). The paper also explores the user interface software adapted for use by non‐experts.

The programming‐by‐demonstration (PbD) system presented proved to be very efficient with the task of programming entirely new features to an industrial robotic system. The system uses a speech interface for user command, and a force‐controlled guiding system for teaching the robot the details about the task being programmed. With only a small set of implemented robot instructions it was fairly easy to teach the robot system a new task, generate the robot code and execute it immediately.

Although a particular robot controller was used, the system is in many aspects general, since the options adopted are mainly based on standards. It can obviously be implemented with other robot controllers without significant changes. In fact, most of the features were ported to run with Motoman robots with success.

It is important to stress that the robot program built in this section was obtained without writing a single line of code, but instead just by moving the robot to the desired positions and adding the required robot instructions using speech. Even the upload task of the obtained module to the robot controller is commanded by speech, along with its execution/termination. Consequently, teaching the robotic system a new feature is accessible for any type of user with only minor training.

This type of PbD systems will constitute a major advantage for SMEs, since most of those companies do not have the necessary engineering resources to make changes or add new functionalities to their robotic manufacturing systems. Even at the system integrator level these systems are very useful for avoiding the need for specific knowledge about all the controllers with which they work: complexity is hidden beyond the speech interfaces and portable interface devices, with specific and user‐friendly APIs making the connection between the programmer and the system.

Availability, reliability, flexibility and comprehensive diagnostics are the most significant demands placed upon safety systems today. Increasing payloads, work ranges and cycle times of robotic processes necessitate a different approach to safety, particularly other than that offered by conventional safety relays and fencing. The development of fieldbus for safety‐related applications and new International and European Standards have fundamentally changed the manner in which safety is now being engineered in the plant. BMW are the first to directly integrate robotic safety functions using a safety‐related fieldbus.