EmoPus: Providing Emotional and Tactile Comfort with a AI Desk Companion Octopus

Abstract

In the desktop scene, people often work and study for a long time, which can lead to mental stress and depression, therefore bringing the need for companion robots. Existing products offer voice dialogue and motion changes but lack direct user interactions. Consequently, we propose EmoPus, an AI companion robot resembling an octopus, designed for multi-dimensional interactions. Users can talk to EmoPus by voice and command it to complete simple tasks like grabbing objects. It also actively interacts based on the user’s mental state, soothing the user’s arm with its tentacles and offering a comforting tactile perception. User interaction would also change the shape of the EmoPus itself and provide real-time responses. In general, EmoPus interacts with users based on their psychological state, bringing fun, mental relief, and Emotional Companion while reducing the psychological burden after long work or study hours.