Does a wearing change perception toward a robot?

Abstract

Wearable robots are traditionally used as tools for assisting muscular strength and decrease the physical loads of users. In this study, we are interested in the social aspect of wearable robots and investigate the effects of wearing them toward perceived impressions of them. For this purpose, we newly developed a wearable robot, Fylgear, with minimum capabilities to interact with a user. We experimentally investigated whether wearing a robot changes people’s perception of the robot by using different questionnaire items: a set of positive impressions and kawaii (a Japanese word that means "cute" that has positive connotations) feeling. The experiment results showed that participants who wear the robot positively evaluated the robot in the context of likeability and total impression, but there are no significant differences in perceived kawaii feelings.