RTD2015 01 Understanding The Human Object: ‘If you prick us, do we not bleed?’

This paper outlines the inspiration, process and ideas behind a design project regarding human relationships with humanoid robots. Taking a research through design approach, an interactive animatronic head is created to further knowledge and ideas exchange concerning the potential future of robotic relationship design. The responding robot that reacts to negative stimuli manipulates and measures the viewer’s emotional arousal. The robot is programmed to respond in different stages of intensity based on the person’s action towards it, predicting that a stronger response from the robot will produce a more intense emotional reaction from the person interacting with it. The robot then becomes not only an art piece in itself but also a tool to capture scientific data, furthering research and discussions. This data can then be used to form a greater understanding of sympathy and guilt towards non-human objects, and help demonstrate what sort of role design might play in this interaction.