Gaze Detection and Analysis for Initiating Joint Activity in Industrial Human-Robot Collaboration

TL;DR

This study investigates how gaze behavior can be used to trigger joint activities in industrial human-robot collaboration, demonstrating that gaze towards the robot often precedes joint actions during assembly tasks.

Contribution

It introduces a gaze-based attention recognition model and provides empirical evidence that gaze cues can effectively initiate collaborative actions in industrial settings.

Findings

84.88% of joint activities are preceded by gaze towards the cobot

Participants tend to look at the cobot during the assembly cycle

First analysis of natural gaze behavior in collaborative assembly tasks with robots

Abstract

Collaborative robots (cobots) are widely used in industrial applications, yet extensive research is still needed to enhance human-robot collaborations and operator experience. A potential approach to improve the collaboration experience involves adapting cobot behavior based on natural cues from the operator. Inspired by the literature on human-human interactions, we conducted a wizard-of-oz study to examine whether a gaze towards the cobot can serve as a trigger for initiating joint activities in collaborative sessions. In this study, 37 participants engaged in an assembly task while their gaze behavior was analyzed. We employ a gaze-based attention recognition model to identify when the participants look at the cobot. Our results indicate that in most cases (84.88\%), the joint activity is preceded by a gaze towards the cobot. Furthermore, during the entire assembly cycle, the participants tend to look at the cobot around the time of the joint activity. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to analyze the natural gaze behavior of participants working on a joint activity with a robot during a collaborative assembly task.