Perception of Animacy by the Linear Motion of a Group of Robots

With the advancement of technology, the number of domestic robots used in day-to-day life is expected to increase. We think that it is important for people to perceive animacy in robots in order to develop relationships with them. In this study, we report the proposal and development by our research of a group of five robots shaped like cubes, and equipped with a simple mechanism that allowed them to move in a straight line in order to test certain hypotheses. We showed our group of robots at several exhibitions, where visitors interacted with them. We analyzed how participants' impressions of the robots changed as they began to move. To this end, we used the semantic differential (SD) method in questionnaires. The results revealed that our robot system could convey the impression of being animate to users because of its movement, in spite of its abstract shape and simple mechanism. We also determined that such movement can help improve the relationship between a human user and a robot.