Robots have been seen and not heard: Effects of consequential sounds on human-perception of robots

Abstract

Many people expect robots to move fairly quietly, or make pleasant “beep boop” sounds or jingles similar to what they have observed in videos of robots. Unfortunately, this expectation of quietness does not match reality, as robots make machine sounds, known as ‘consequential sounds’, as they move and operate. As robots become more prevalent within society, including in the workplace, homes and public spaces, understanding the sounds produced by robots and how these sounds are perceived by people is becoming increasingly important for positive human robot interactions (HRI). This paper investigates how people respond to the consequential sounds of robots, specifically how robots make a participant feel, how much they like the robot, would be distracted by the robot, and a person’s desire to colocate with robots. Participants were shown 5 videos of different robots and asked their opinions on the robots and the sounds they made. This was compared with a control condition of completely silent videos. The presence of consequential sounds correlated with significant negative effects on participants’ perception of robots. Firstly there were increased negative ‘associated affects’ of the participants, such as making them feel more uncomfortable or agitated around the robot. Secondly, the presence of consequential sounds correlated with participants feeling more distracted and less able to focus. Thirdly participants reported being less likely to want to colocate in a shared environment with robots. How much participants liked a robot was not significantly different under the presence of consequential sounds. The results in this paper demonstrate with data from 182 participants (858 trials) that consequential sounds produced by robots have a significant negative effect on human perceptions of robots, leading to a decreased willingness to be in a shared space with a robot. Implications of the results are discussed, including areas for future HRI research, and suggestions for how researchers and engineers can use this research to inform management of consequential sounds during robot deployments in human-occupied spaces