Evaluating Human Locomotion Safety in Mobile Robots Populated Environments

The overarching goal of this work is to understand how human locomotion adapts to mobile collaborative robots (cobots) that are designed to complement human well-being. This understanding will provide relevant inherent safe and human-centered design guidance for future mobile cobot systems. In this study, we will focus on the warehousing, wholesale, and retail trade (WRT) industry, where in general human workers are exposed to extensive experience working with mobile cobots, investigating the human locomotion safety in this environment. Eight participants were recruited to simulate a grocery shopping task with and without the mobile robot nearby. The walking trajectory of all participants revealed that the mobile robot complicated participants walking path selection, compared to the baseline “No Robot” condition. Meanwhile, participants lowered their walking speed and showed a proactive reaction to the approaching robot by initiating and ceasing the walking actions more smoothly. In conclusion, findings confirmed the values of mobile cobots in complex occupational settings and suggested more a systematic approach to ensure these intelligent systems' inherent safety.