An Open-Source Reproducible Chess Robot for Human-Robot Interaction Research

TL;DR

This paper introduces an open-source chess robot designed for human-robot interaction research, capable of recognizing chess pieces, executing moves, and engaging with humans through voice and gestures, with evaluations and survey data included.

Contribution

It provides a reproducible software platform for studying verbal and non-verbal HRI in chess, with detailed design, evaluation, and user perception data.

Findings

Highest robot ratings in education and coaching scenarios

Lower scores in home entertainment scenario

Code available on GitHub for reproducibility

Abstract

Recent advancements in AI have accelerated the evolution of versatile robot designs. Chess provides a standardized environment for evaluating the impact of robot behavior on human behavior. This article presents an open-source chess robot for human-robot interaction (HRI) research, specifically focusing on verbal and non-verbal interactions. The OpenChessRobot recognizes chess pieces using computer vision, executes moves, and interacts with the human player through voice and robotic gestures. We detail the software design, provide quantitative evaluations of the efficacy of the robot, and offer a guide for its reproducibility. An online survey examining people's views of the robot in three possible scenarios was conducted with 597 participants. The robot received the highest ratings in the robotics education and the chess coach scenarios, while the home entertainment scenario received the lowest scores. The code is accessible on GitHub: https://github.com/renchizhhhh/OpenChessRobot