The NarRobot Plugin - Connecting the Social Robot Reeti to the Unity Game Engine

Abstract

The integration of robots as storytellers, game masters or embodied characters into games is a novel technique for game design yet restricted to human-robot interaction (HRI) research. To facilitate the usage of robots, a plugin for a common game engine is needed. NarRobot was developed to provide an easy to use interface and seamless integration of the social robot Reeti into the Unity engine without using third-party materials. Further, it includes an intuitive pose editor. Targeting both HRI research and game development, the plugin allows researchers to focus on their actual research instead of fiddling with back-end functionality. It also simplifies the entry into programming robots for games. In this contribution, our plugin is presented alongside with a proof of concept and three use cases focusing on interactivity, combination with other services, and multi-platform usage: interactive storytelling, integration into a smart room, and a mobile app for a robotic hotel employee.