KEYNOTE speakers

Heni Ben Amor

Advanced Robotics & AI, Arizona State University, USA

"Intelligent Interaction Modalities for Human-Robot Collaboration"

Abstract. Autonomous and anthropomorphic robots are poised to play a critical role in manufacturing, healthcare and the services industry in the near future. However, for this vision to become a reality, robots need to efficiently communicate and interact with their human partners. Rather than traditional remote controls and programming languages new, adaptive and transparent techniques for human-robot collaboration are needed. In this talk, I will present our work which leverages machine learning (ML), natural language processing and virtual reality to create different modalities for humans and machines to engage in effortless and natural interactions. I will present a number of different applications of these ML-based techniques to real work tasks involving assistive robots.

Short Bio

Heni Ben Amor is an Assistant Professor for robotics at Arizona State University. He is the director of the ASU Interactive Robotics Laboratory. Ben Amor received the NSF CAREER Award in 2018, the Fulton Outstanding Assistant Professor Award in 2018, as well as the Daimler-and-Benz Fellowship in 2012. Prior to joining ASU, he was a research scientist at Georgia Tech, a postdoctoral researcher at the Technical University Darmstadt (Germany), and a visiting research scientist in the Intelligent Robotics Lab at the University of Osaka (Japan). His primary research interests lie in the fields of artificial intelligence, machine learning, robotics, and human-robot interaction. Ben Amor received a Ph.D. in computer science from the Technical University Freiberg, focusing on artificial intelligence and machine learning. His dissertation won the overall best dissertation award at the TU Freiberg. He has won numerous best paper awards at major robotics and AI conferences.

Eric Hilgendorf

Information Law & Legal Informatics, University of Würzburg, Germany

"Contextualizing robot behaviour. How machines influence our social norms“

Abstract. For AI-based technological artefacts to develop their full potential, they must not only be designed to fit into the framework of existing social and legal norms, but moreover be optimised for their respective application context. They must be designed in a way that no adverse effects occur in the interaction with their human partners. This applies especially to the effects on the social behaviour of human actors. Different contexts lead to different effects. We are social beings. Following the theory of Media Equation, a change in interaction with and an attribution of human characteristics to technological artefacts occurs solely based on existing interaction with them. To understand the effects of AI on human social behaviour, not only a knowledge of technology is necessary, but primarily a sociological and psychological analysis of the interaction. We need to increase the quality and quantity of empirical research to better understand the effects of AI and robots on human social behaviour. Only then can the law be adapted accordingly.

Short Bio

Prof. Dr. Dr. Eric Hilgendorf (*3.12.1960), Faculty of Law, Julius Maximilian University of Würzburg. Academic background: In 1990 doctorate (Dr. phil.) with a thesis on "Argumentation in Jurisprudence", in 1992 doctorate (Dr. jur.) with a thesis on criminal producer liability, both at the University of Tübingen. 1997 Habilitation in the subjects of criminal law, criminal procedural law and philosophy of law with a thesis on legal theory and criminal law doctrine ("Tatsachenaussagen und Werturteile im Strafrecht"). Since 1997 Professor of Criminal Law at the University of Konstanz, 1999/2000 Dean of the Faculty, since 2001 Professor of Criminal Law, Criminal Procedure Law, Legal Theory, Information Law and Legal Informatics at the University of Würzburg. Chair of the Würzburg Research Center for Robot Law. 2009-2011 Dean of the Faculty. Research: Numerous projects funded by third parties (EU, DFG, BMBF, BMWI, etc.) on IT criminal law and law and technology (including data protection law); participation in federal legislative procedures on IT (e.g. on the reform of computer criminal law in 2007 and on the reform of the StVG 2017); 2010 foundation of the Würzburg research Center "RobotRecht"; initiator and editor of the series "Robotik und Recht" (since 2013, together with Susanne Beck); legal director of the EU project "AdaptIVe" on new forms of mobility; expert of the Goslaer Verkehrsgerichtstag 2015 on legal questions of automated driving; Member of the "Round Table" on automated driving in the BMVI; member of the Ethics Committee of the BMVI on automated driving ("Dobrindt-Kommission"), there head of the subcommittee on the "dilemma problem"; member of the legal advisory board of the DVR; head of the working group on "Law and Ethics" in the "Platform Self-learning Systems" of the BMWI (2018/2019). 2018 Appointed member of the EU High Level Expert Group on Artificial Intelligence. Since 2019 Director at the Bavarian Research Institute for Digital Transformation (bidt), 2020 Member of the Bavarian AI Council.Many international activities in law and technology, especially with China, Japan, Korea and the USA.

Patrick Hung

Business and Information Technology, University of Ontario Institute of Technology, Canada

"Socio-Technical Privacy Research of Social Robots"

Abstract. The concept of robots, or other autonomous constructions, can be found in many different cultures dating back to ancient times. A social (companion) robot is defined as a device consisting of a physical robot component that connects to Cloud services to improve the ease and productivity of activities through networking, multi-media, and sensory technologies. Many studies found out that anthropomorphic designs of what robots are, what they can do, and how they should be understood resulted in greater user engagement within the history of Western countries. Humanoid robots usually behave like natural social interaction partners for human users, with features such as speech, gestures, and eye-gaze, in referring to the personal data and social background of the users. Cultural differences may influence human-robot interaction with different social norms and cultural traits. This talk discusses the related privacy research issues in social robots and presents two case studies in Canada and Brazil from the socio-technical perspectives.

Short Bio

Patrick C. K. Hung is a Professor and Director of International Programs at the Faculty of Business and Information Technology at the University of Ontario Institute of Technology, Canada. He is an Honorary International Chair Professor at National Taipei University of Technology, Taiwan. Patrick worked with Boeing Research and Technology at Seattle on aviation services-related research with two U.S. patents on mobile network dynamic workflow system. Before that, he was a Research Scientist with the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization in Australia. He also worked in the software industry in Toronto. He is a founding member of the IEEE Technical Committee on Services Computing, and the IEEE Transactions on Services Computing. He is an editorial board member for the IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management, an associate editor for Electronic Commerce Research and Applications as well as he is coordinating editor of the Information Systems Frontiers. He has a Ph.D. and Master in Computer Science from Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, a Master in Management Sciences from the University of Waterloo, Canada, and a Bachelor in Computer Science from the University of New South Wales, Australia. He also chairs the Machine Learning, Robotic and Toy Computing Minitrack and Computing in Companion Robots and Smart Toys Symposium in the Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences (HICSS).

Melinda Florina Lohmann

Robot Law & Information Law, University of St. Gallen, Switzerland

"How to Design a Service Robot – Compliance by Design? "

Abstract. In her talk, Prof. Dr. iur. Melinda Lohmann, will present findings from the joint interdisciplinary project “Implementation of Service Robotics in the Field of Elderly Care” funded by the Swiss Innovation Agency (Innosuisse) that has been running since last Fall. Together with her team, she has been investigating legal risks arising from the implementation of “Lio”, a multi-functional service robot produced by the Swiss robotics manufacturer f&p robotics, in a Swiss elderly home. She will address the main legal concerns that the legal task force identified so far as well as pragmatic solutions to avoid liability.

Short Bio

Melinda Florina Lohmann is an assistant professor of business law with special empahsis on information law at University of St. Gallen in Switzerland. Her fields of research include law of robotics, selfdriving cars, AI, and legal tech. For further information please click here.

Midori Sugaya

Functional Control Systems, Shibaura Institute of Technology, Japan

“Emotion Aware Sensing and Applications”

Abstract. Emotion aware technologies have been very attractive these days, to understand the internal state of the human through some methods and sensors. We consider If we apply the human’s emotional state for variety of applications, and robots, devices. it would be possible to increases QoL through emotion satisfactory communications through the emotion aware artificial entities. There are various technologies required for achieving the purpose. We will introduce our approach that collect data from biometric sensors such as EEG, pulse sensors, and estimate emotions based on psychology models and biometric indications. Currently we have been developed emotion visualizer, voice-casting robot, personal space aware robot etc. We will introduce the approach and applications, and introduce related topics and issues about real-time feedback, embedded and networked system.

Short Bio

Midori Sugaya is currently Professor of the Department of Computer Science and Engineering, and IGP (Innovative Global Program Course) at Shibaura Institute of Technology (SIT). She received her Ph.D. and Master of Computer Science from Waseda University in 2010, 2004. Prior to joining Shibaura Institute of Technology in April 2013, she was a lecture professor in Yokohama National University. As a researcher, she was involved in research of the national foundation and also belonged to the Research and Development Center of the project from 2008-2010. She currently concentrates on the emotional aware robot and application systems, sensor integrated environment systems, and middleware for future IoT devices.

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