Thank you.
Hi, nice to meet you.
My name is Ryo Suzuki.
I'm a PhD student from University
of Colorado, Boulder.
Today, I want to talk about ShapeBots, shape-changing swarm
robots, with a collaboration with Clement Zheng, Yasuaki
Kakehi, Tom Yeh, Ellen Do, Mark Gross, and Daniel Leithinger.
So the ShapeBots is the shape-change swarm robots.
So these have got a motor and a self-transformable robots
that move around on top of the surfaces to show the display
or representing it better, or maybe everyday assistance.
So in this paper, we describe the technical challenges,
as well as the design space of what kind of applications
these shape-changing swarm robots can do.
So the shape-changing swarm robots
lies in the intersection between the swarm
robots and the shape-changing interfaces.
So in contrast to the swarm robots
or shape-changing interfaces, it can leverage both individually,
and collectively transform the shape
to provide more expressive, as well
as the interesting application domain.
So we mainly explore the application domains
in two categories.
One is using a tangible medium to display information or data
visualization.
But also, we explore as an ambient assistant
to be distributed and embedded in the environment.
So let me briefly talk about background.
So our work is a line of the tangible user interfaces,
in which leveraging a physical object
as a representation and a manipulation
of the digital user interfaces.
So in contrast, the graphical user interfaces,
the physical object can provide more haptic affordances
and manipulation.
Traditionally, the tangible user interface
is leveraging a static physical object
and overlaying the graphical information on top of it.
But gradually, in literature of HCI,
we also leveraged dynamic physical object
to fully represent dynamicness of the digital world--
so-called shape-changing user interfaces.
So the shape-changing interfaces have been first explored
through the single purpose materials,
such as [INAUDIBLE],, inflatable mouse, [INAUDIBLE],,
and [INAUDIBLE].
So these are using a single purpose
material that can transform into one or two states.
But gradually, leveraging collective behavior
of many different shape-changing elements
to provide a more expressive and general purpose shape
transformation.
However, this shape transformation
often requires very heavy, large, and complex devices.
For example, this is inFORM from MIT Media
Lab requires a lot of [INAUDIBLE] and then
use a table.
By the way, he's my advisor, Daniel Leithinger.
So the idea is we want to decompose these elements
into a collective of distributed and collective elements
so that this can be more modular, scalable,
and deployable into the environment.
So this idea has been explored in leveraging swarm robots
at the user interfaces.
So the [INAUDIBLE] is, for example,
the pioneer in this work.
But the recent work has explored the UV swarm [INAUDIBLE]
explored how these swarm elements can
be represented as using as a display or information.
But these swarm robots can only move around
onto the 2D surfaces.
And it doesn't have the expressive 3D surface.
So recent work has started going beyond the 2D shape,
such as robotic assembly, a kinetic block,
dynablock tries to make a 3D shape on top
of these collective discrete elements.
But most of them are static.
So we hypothesized, what if these swarm robots
not only move around on top of the surfaces
to make a 2D shape, but also go beyond the 2D
to provide more expressive display?
To, for example, showing the surfaces
or maybe represent data.
Also, we think by leveraging this shape transformation
capability could also enhance affordances or provide a more
ubiquitous system.
To enable that, we have technical challenges,
in which we need a very miniature size linear actuator,
but also require the large transformation capability.
So to solve this problem, we take inspiration
from the [INAUDIBLE] highly extendable linear actuator,
such as pneumatic built Morpheus and [INAUDIBLE],,
to enhance the normal miniature linear actuator.
So the miniature linear actuator is using two DC motors
to feed the reel to extend from the 2 centimeter
to 20 centimeter.
So this is basically the mechanism of the tape measure.
So the seat is lowered in the shaft,
and then the motor rotates to feed and detract and extract.
Again, so the advantage of this is a very miniature
and a very small, but it also has a large extension
capability.
And then we put this linear actuator on top of this robot.
The swarm robot has two DC motors to individually control
the wheel.
And also, they have a Wi-Fi chip to wirelessly communicate.
So these three rectangles serve as a port
for the USB rechargeable chip and the reset switch.
And it's going to be unintentionally [INAUDIBLE]..
So we are putting this linear actuator onto the horizontally
or vertically so that these swarm robots not only move
around the surfaces, but also have a very large deformation
capability.
But this linear actuator can also be module.
So, for example, we could put onto the horizontal surfaces,
but also vertical actuation.
But also can be used on a curved line or maybe
putting the origami on top of it to 2D expansion, or maybe a
[INAUDIBLE] for the bio-metric expansion.
To track the robots, we use the [INAUDIBLE] marker
on the bottom.
We used a camera and then used a table to capture and track.
And then the computer is connected to the camera
and it tracks everything.
And then they send the command to the robots to navigate it.
So we also use collision avoidances
so that these robots can also freely navigate.
So to track and control, again, we
use a camera underneath a table and a transparent table
so that you can see with the computer vision to track.
And then we made the UI controller
to navigate and control with sketching.
But also, the same mechanism can be used for the user input.
For example, if the robot is not controlled by the computer,
but it moves, then the system tracks it as a user input.
So for example, the system can track, locate, move, orient,
and pick up of the user input.
To fabricate the linear actuator,
it consists of the 3D printed purse and two tiny DC motors
and a very thin, 0.1 millimeter polyester feed.
So first, we are going to attach the polyester
feed onto the shaft and then put the DC motor in them.
And then we're going to put the end cap on top of it
and then attach with the tape.
So this is a very simple fabrication.
So now you can just plug into the battery.
Then you can just actuate in that way.
So linear actuator has a crease in the middle
so that it can be somehow very robust for our purposes.
So we also varied the robustness of the linear actuator.
So it depends on the length.
But the maximum force is 1.6 Newtons
and the minimum force is 0.3 Newtons.
So please see refer to the paper for more detail.
So the important point is what we can do with it.
So we explored a bunch of different applications
in two categories.
One is medium, tangible user interfaces.
And another one is an ambient system, everyday system.
So let me briefly describe the tangible medium.
So the tangible medium is using these robots
as a medium to display information or represent data.
For example, by changing the shape and spatially aligned to,
for example, represent the wavelength.
But you could also touch and manipulate in a physical space.
Or in this case, for example, showing a bar graph
in a physical space.
For example, in this example, the robots
distributed to show the population data of each state
so that you can see it and touch it.
And then you can also manipulate it
to see how the different locations can be.
There are also leveraging horizontal extension.
It can be also more expressive display compared
to the existing swarm robots.
For example, these robots can create a shape--
interactively create a shape--
or with a rectangle, triangle, or hexagon.
But also by leveraging a vertical dimension,
vertical shape-changing capabilty,
it can be used as, for example, for the cat
to preview to physicalize digital information
into the element.
And it also can be used as a kind of text.
So our robots only have now 12.
But we are also interested in what
if these robots can be more, for example, 30 to 40,
to make more expressive shape?
So this one is how these linear actuator
robots can provide the company logo with 30 robots.
So you can see it in contrast to the--
by the way so this one is an online simulator
you can access on GitHub.
So you can just play with it.
So we compare the transformation and capability,
how it affects the expression of the shape.
So this compares the existing shape, just
dot-based swarm robots with linear-based swarm robots.
So you can see the bottom side can be more expressive display.
But also, we think this can be very
useful for ambient assistant.
Ambient assistant means if these robots are distributed
into the environment and then they ambiently
support our everyday life.
So, for example, by leveraging the horizontal extension
capability, these robots can, for example,
sweep the desk to clean up.
Or maybe, for example, providing affordances.
For example, if the coffee cup is too hot,
then they just gather together to provide like a vertical
fence, so that the user cannot touch.
Now it's ready.
It's going to just indicate, OK, it's ready to drink.
So it's going to disappear or so that the user can grab.
So the good thing of that is it can
be deployable to the everyday environment.
But also this robot can, for example,
provide a tool like a pen.
But also, these robots can become a tool itself.
So, for example, to provide mechanical constraint
for the [INAUDIBLE].
So that these robots can also provide
[INAUDIBLE] to physical system.
So these application scenarios, if we think the shape
bots is just only a single instantiation
of the larger design space of the shape-changing swarm
robots.
So for example, the shape-changing swarm robots
can be larger to, for example, the [INAUDIBLE] scale,
and then you just change the shape to transform,
for example, moves existing furniture.
Or maybe leveraging different locomotion capabilities
such as a [INAUDIBLE],, shearing, [INAUDIBLE] to provide media
display, for example.
Or maybe leveraging a different materiality,
such as soft robots to provide more expressive deformation.
But also, the connectable behavior
to make it more graphical object.
All right, let me conclude.
So our contribution is threefold.
The first one is we introduce a concept
of the shape-changing swarm robots, which
leverages both the individual and the collective shape
transformation.
And to demonstrate the idea, we developed the ShapeBots.
The technical contribution of the ShapeBots
is a novel linear actuator to expand from the 2 centimeter
to 20 centimeter.
And then by leveraging this capability,
we explore different applications.
Finally, we explore the design space for the future research
opportunity.
So again, this is just only the single instantiation.
And we are very excited to explore more
and to provide opportunity to HCI community
in general to explore more interesting application demand.
So this is the end of my talk.
So thank you so much for your attention.
[APPLAUSE]
All right.
Let's get some questions here.
Thank you so much for your talk.
It's fascinating.
Is there any possibility you're on the job market soon?
Thank you for asking.
Yeah.
I [INAUDIBLE] fifth year PhD and I
am possibly on the job market this year.
So if you're hiring, please let me know.
And thank you for asking by my advisor.
[LAUGHING]
Thanks for your talk.
I just have a question.
So, if you change the speed of the motor, [INAUDIBLE],,
you can actually change the shape of the robot.
Do you have any extension from this work, something like that?
So for example, the one interesting application
is by collectively using a curved line, for example,
we could also make a more expressive, for example,
[INAUDIBLE],, which provides a mechanical constraint
to draw in some kind of curved line, for example.
Are you talking about an application or more like a--
No.
I was thinking of how you can--
Control?
Yeah control the motor, so that you can make
more variety of the shapes.
I see.
No.
Short answer is no.
We just only explored the one curve.
But I think it's very possible to using
more kind of precise control for each motor to create
a different curvature.
All right.
Let's thank our speaker again.