Evaluating Music Listening with a Robotic Companion
IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems Int'l Workshop on Human-Agent Interaction
Abstract
Music listening is a central activity in human culture, and throughout history the introduction of new audio reproduction technologies have influenced the way music is consumed and perceived.
In this work, we discuss a robotic speaker, designed to behave as both a reproduction device and as a music listening companion. The robot is intended to enhance a human’s listening experience by providing social presence and embodied musical performance. In a sample application, it generates segment-specific, beat-synchronized gestures based on the song’s genre, and maintains eye-contact with the user.
We describe an experimental human-subject study (n=67), evaluating the effect of the robot’s behavior on people’s enjoyment of the songs played, as well as on their sense of the robot’s social presence and their impression of the robot as an autonomous agent.