Enabling Untrained Users to Shape Real-World Robot Behavior Using an Intuitive Visual Programming Tool in Human-Robot Interaction Scenarios

For untrained users, programming a robot that interacts with humans in a real-world scenario is challenging to impossible. However, in order to make interactive robots available in a wide range of domains and connect them with other smart devices, it must be possible to change their behavior in a simple and intuitive way. We present a visual programming tool that builds on top of the open-source Node-RED software and enables users to quickly and easily connect robots with Internet of Things (IoT) devices in order to build scenarios that include human interaction. The tool, called Node-(RED)² (Node-RED-based Robotics Empowerment Designer) is available online and currently supports the humanoid robot Pepper, but is extendable to other robots with very little effort. We demonstrate two real-world use cases of our tool that include Pepper and IoT devices and evaluate the utility of Node-(RED)² via a user study.