Approaching Future Robot Technologies via Speculative Role-Playing

Abstract

Playful research approaches have become more popular in Human-Robot Interaction (HRI). In this paper, a tabletop role-playing game is introduced as a means to explore future robot technologies in a playful, immersive and human-centred approach. The trial study included four participants with expertise in HRI or care technologies to elicit novel application opportunities for robots in home environments. Creating a fictional character as part of the gameplay enabled participants to immerse themselves in their characters and opened up a narrative speculative design space. The gameplay resulted in a deep immersion of the participants and provided insights into potential (robot) technologies supporting daily life activities. All technologies mentioned by participants were collected in a mind map, and from the mind map four fictional robots were created. The fictional robots were also created into a design fiction card deck as a tangible prop to utilize in a future game study.