Marc van Almkerk

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About

Dr. Marc van Almkerk is a leading researcher in Human-Robot Interaction (HRI), with a focused expertise in leveraging Virtual Reality (VR) as a methodological tool to study and design robotic systems. His most influential work, "Comparing Human-Robot Proxemics Between Virtual Reality and the Real World" (2019, 74 citations), makes a foundational contribution by rigorously validating the use of VR for HRI experiments. This study critically examines whether VR can accurately replicate real-world human spatial behavior around robots, addressing key concerns about the ecological validity of simulated environments. By demonstrating both the potential and the limitations of VR—such as discrepancies in proxemic distances—Almkerk’s research provides essential guidance for researchers seeking to use VR for rapid, cost-effective robot design iteration. His work has become a cornerstone for studies aiming to bridge the gap between virtual prototyping and real-world deployment, directly impacting how roboticists test social navigation and interaction algorithms. Through this pivotal contribution, Almkerk has established himself as a key figure in advancing the methodological rigor of HRI, ensuring that VR-based studies produce results that are both insightful and transferable to physical human-robot encounters.