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About

Heike Brock is a leading researcher in human-robot interaction, specializing in affective telepresence, non-verbal communication, and social robotics. Her work centers on developing intuitive, emotionally resonant interactions between humans and robotic agents, particularly through the tabletop robot Haru. Brock’s major contributions include creating lightweight, real-time hand gesture recognition systems for non-verbal communication (19 citations) and pioneering novel telepresence gaming frameworks that enhance social connection between physically separated individuals, as demonstrated in her highly cited work on Rock-Paper-Scissors interactions with robotic agents (21 citations). She has also advanced affective storytelling by exploiting embodied communication affordances (11 citations) and developed automated behavior selection systems for telepresence robots (10 citations). Her research on translating emojis into robotic expressions (“robomojis”) and shaping empathic reactive responses has garnered significant attention (8 citations each). Notably, Brock has explored inclusive communication through data-driven sign language agents (7 citations), showcasing her commitment to accessible technology. With over 120 total citations across her publications, Brock’s innovative, human-centered approach continues to shape the future of social robotics and telepresence interaction.