Evaluating Emotion Expressing Robots in Affective Space

Abstract

In this chapter the use of dimensional approaches for evaluation of an emotion expressing robots is discussed. The advantages of dimensional evaluation studies are pointed out and exemplarily illustrated in evaluation studies on face robot EDDIE using a categorical test and the PAD test based on a semantic differential approach. Main arguments supporting the use dimensional models are provided guidelines for design improvement obtained from the evaluation results and a possible integration of expressive elements of arbitrary design. The impact of additional expressive features of EDDIE (ears and comb), which are not covered by a common design framework as, e.g. the Facial Action Coding System, is exemplarily evaluated in a pilot study showing a significant influence of these features on most emotion states. Based on these results the derivation of control commands for integrating these expressive features in a general framework is discussed. Future work will cover the improvement of the performance of EDDIE by conducting comprehensive studies accounting also for demographical issues and integrating the additional expressive elements based on the framework established in this chapter.