Professor Midori Sugaya of Shibaura Institute of Technology devised a method for estimating human emotions from simple measured values of biological signals (brain waves, heartbeats).It is expected to develop robots and nursing care support robots that can speak out according to feelings and consider the sense of distance from people.
Currently, with the aging of Japan as a whole, research on robot support is progressing mainly in the fields of long-term care and medical care.In the symbiotic society of humans and robots, robots that give a good impression to humans by controlling according to emotions, such as considering the "comfortable distance" between humans and robots, are expected.
This time, based on a psychological model that classifies emotions on the two axes of arousal / drowsiness and comfort / discomfort, the sensor values of measurable biological signals such as brain waves and heartbeat (autonomic nerve measurement) are made to correspond to each other. We devised a method to estimate emotions, which are the underlying short-term changes of state, in real time.As a result, the robot can estimate a person's feelings in real time, select an appropriate phrase according to the feeling, and speak out.
In addition, by evaluating the personal space of a person and the robot as to how the impression changes when the robot changes its speed or movement method, the robot can sense the feelings of the person.In this way, we are also developing robots that allow humans and robots to maintain a "just right sense of distance."
In the future, the accuracy of the developed method will be improved through application to equipment and products through industry-academia collaboration such as joint research with companies.Furthermore, the results of this research are expected to be research and development of new technologies by applying a wide range of sentimental technologies to stress-off, mental control, etc. through suppression and stabilization of emotions to stimuli.
