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About

Sowmya Somanath is a human-computer interaction researcher whose work bridges the boundaries between tangible interfaces, robotics, and human-robot interaction (HRI). Her research explores how robots can function as interactive partners on tabletop displays, particularly in specialized domains like reservoir engineering. She introduced the concept of integrating robots as actuated tangibles on interactive surfaces, proposing a continuum from static tangible user interfaces to fully autonomous robotic assistants. Her prototype, Spidey, demonstrated how a simple tabletop robot could assist engineers in data exploration tasks, laying groundwork for collaborative physical-digital workspaces. Somanath also ventures into safety-critical HRI, employing Research through Design (RtD) to explore protective mechanisms in human-robot encounters, as seen in her "Fight-or-Flight" study. Her work extends to unintended robot users, including companion animals, questioning how domestic pets react to social robots designed solely for humans. While her citation counts remain modest, her contributions are foundational in reimagining tabletops as sites for robotic collaboration and in broadening HRI to include non-human stakeholders. Somanath’s research is characterized by its interdisciplinary creativity and its commitment to designing for real-world, often overlooked, interaction contexts.