Gaze movement operability and sense of spatial presence assessment while operating a robot avatar

The utilization of teleoperated robots has great potential for expanding the range of human social activities, and there has been much anticipation for this technology in recent years. To use teleoperated robots as human surrogates, it is essential to develop a teleoperation system that provides the operator with a high level of presence. Conventional robot avatars are generally operated by synchronizing the head with the operator. However, eye movements are essential for human gaze, and conventional operation (i.e., head movement synchronization only) may reduce perceived presence. In this study, we used a robot avatar that could move its head and eyeballs. We examined the effects of the synchronization of eye movements with the operator on the operability of the robot and the presence perceived by the operator. We conducted an experiment in which participants performed a task where they looked at an object under two conditions: head or head-eye synchronization between the participant and robot avatar. We investigated the effects of eye movement synchronization on task performance, spatial presence, and workload. The results showed that synchronization of eye movements improved operability and reduced workload; however, it did not improve presence. This study suggests that synchronization of eye movements may make the teleoperation of an avatar robot more comfortable and provides meaningful insights into research approaches for the improving presence of an avatar robot.