GEAR: Gaze-Enabled Human-Robot Collaborative Assembly

TL;DR

GEAR is a gaze-enabled system that improves human-robot collaboration in assembly tasks by allowing robots to respond to gaze, reducing effort and enhancing user experience compared to traditional touch interfaces.

Contribution

This work introduces GEAR, a novel gaze-based interface for human-robot collaboration, demonstrating its effectiveness over touch-based controls in assembly tasks.

Findings

GEAR reduces physical effort in assembly tasks.

Participants reported higher satisfaction with GEAR.

GEAR performs well across tasks of varying complexity.

Abstract

Recent progress in robot autonomy and safety has significantly improved human-robot interactions, enabling robots to work alongside humans on various tasks. However, complex assembly tasks still present significant challenges due to inherent task variability and the need for precise operations. This work explores deploying robots in an assistive role for such tasks, where the robot assists by fetching parts while the skilled worker provides high-level guidance and performs the assembly. We introduce GEAR, a gaze-enabled system designed to enhance human-robot collaboration by allowing robots to respond to the user's gaze. We evaluate GEAR against a touch-based interface where users interact with the robot through a touchscreen. The experimental study involved 30 participants working on two distinct assembly scenarios of varying complexity. Results demonstrated that GEAR enabled participants to accomplish the assembly with reduced physical demand and effort compared to the touchscreen interface, especially for complex tasks, maintaining great performance, and receiving objects effectively. Participants also reported enhanced user experience while performing assembly tasks. Project page: sites.google.com/view/gear-hri