Max Robotics — Global Service Robot Directory + US Certification

About

Kristina Tornbjerg Eriksen is a leading researcher in human-robot interaction, specializing in the real-world deployment of collaborative robots in complex, high-stakes environments like hospitals. Her work bridges techno-anthropology and computer-supported cooperative work, revealing the hidden labor and social dynamics that emerge when robots are integrated into existing workflows. Eriksen’s most-cited study (21 citations) investigates human-robot cooperation in a hospital basement, where logistics robots were deployed to automate courier tasks and improve working conditions for kitchen staff. She has also explored user perceptions of automated dose-dispensing robots in home care (8 citations), highlighting how these systems impact patients’ daily lives. Her 2023 field study on human-robot teamwork in hospitals (8 citations) identifies critical factors that determine success or failure in naturalistic settings. Eriksen’s 2025 work on “invisible work” (7 citations) exposes the often-unacknowledged labor that human workers must perform to make robotic systems function smoothly. By combining ethnographic methods with systems analysis, Eriksen provides essential insights for designing robots that genuinely support—rather than disrupt—human work. Her research is vital for students and practitioners aiming to create truly collaborative human-robot teams in healthcare and beyond.