Robot fostering techniques for sensory-motor development of humanoid robots

The research efforts addressing the control of robot behavior have been pol arized; most robots re either fully guided through "strong" programming, or given a few learning algorithms and left alone to explore the world. This paper explores the area in-between, looking at robot fostering, referring t o techniques by which skills can be transferred to robots through a close i nteraction with humans. While robot fostering can be the basis of interacti on with a variety of robotic shapes, it is most natural and human-friendly when the robot apprentices are anthropomorphic/humanoid. Fostering techniqu es discussed here include teaching/learning by imitation, teaching by descr iption/explanation, reinforcement, aid and collaboration. The paper illustr ates an experiment in teaching/learning by imitation. The human fosters the robot by first imitating its uncoordinated arm movements, thus helping the robot develop its sensory-motor associative system. The human then shows a rm movements and the robot visually tracks them; consecutively, the robot i s able to learn arm movements by imitation. Fostering techniques, in additi on to robot learning/acquisition techniques and more efficient man-machine interaction are considered key elements contributing to the nascence of a n ew research field, developmental robotics, which would focus on the robotic s counterpart of human cognitive and motor development. (C) 2001 Published by Elsevier Science B.V.