Social robot accessories for tailoring and appropriation of social robots

Abstract The design of robots for everyday use should take into account the specific nature of the individual end-user and the possibility of interactions with multiple users in diverse scenarios, promoting versatility and increasing the chances of their successful adoption in everyday environments. Most robots are designed, however, to perform tasks and interact in typical social scenarios with an abstract human user. We observed a recent surge in the use of accessories with social robots, which aligns with a broader trend of consumers’ preference for personalizing the technologies they interact with. Drawing from the concepts of adaptability and customizability in collaborative systems, we explore the potential use of accessory-like items for social robots to enable low-tech customization and user appropriation, thus enhancing their value and suitability in various social situations. We draw from Human-Computer Interaction and Computer-Supported Co-operative Work literature to show how end-user customizability and appropriation are essential, but less frequently considered, in the study and design of social robots. We conceptualize Social Robot Accessories (SRAs) as a way for end-users to customize robots, and present three studies - (1) a literature survey on accessory-like item use with social robots, (2) a survey of commercially available robot accessories, and (3) a Twitter-based analysis of accessory use for AIBO and LOVOT robots by their users. We use findings from these studies to envision a design space of SRAs for use by Human-Robot Interaction (HRI) researchers.