A Testbed for Research on Distributed Human, Artificial Intelligence and Robot Teaming
Abstract
The proposal leverages Principal Investigator Nancy Cookes existing Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) ground control testbed, funded originally by an AFOSR DURIP in 1997 and modified through an ONR DURIP in 2010. The UAS testbed is a three-agent (pilot, sensor operator, mission planner) task environment for control of a single UAS. The human pilot can also be replaced by a synthetic artificial intelligence agent developed by colleagues at AFRL in Atomic Components of ThoughtRational (ACTR) (Ball, Myers, Heiberg, Cooke, Matessa, Freiman, & Rodgers, 2010). For nearly two decades, research has been conducted in this UAS environment leading to discoveries in teamwork, team cognition, team training, and humanautonomy teaming (Cooke, Gorman, Myers, & Duran, 2013). This existing testbed will serve as a surveillance node in a larger distributed area of operations simulation and will connect to another room (>500 sq. ft.) via cameras and radio communications. We propose to acquire four robotic platformseach with different capabilitiesin addition to a camera system, a communication system, and an area of operations infrastructure that allows for visual occlusion and realism. The new testbed will represent an area of operations in which human participants can team with heterogeneous robots and communicate with the UAS testbed conducting oversight on that area of operations. This new testbed will also leverage existing capabilities in swarm robotics (Co-I Berman) and a humanrobot interaction platform (Co-I Y. Zhang). The proposed equipment will expand research capabilities for several existing DoD-funded research projects at Arizona State University (ASU), and will enable new opportunities for DoD research in a variety of disciplines. To robustly answer questions about humanrobot teaming, multidisciplinary collaboration is required between those who can develop and operate robots, those who understand human capabilities and limitations, and those who can create a functional and realistic infrastructure (i.e., designers and artists). At ASU, these collaborations are ongoing and facilitated by the Center for Human, Artificial Intelligence, and Robot Teaming (CHART), directed by PI Cooke. This center has 45 ASU affiliate faculty from a wide range of disciplines, including computer science, human systems engineering, robotics, biology, and law. The testbed proposed would facilitate research within and between these disciplines to holistically explore optimal humanautonomy teaming.
Document Details
- Document Type
- DoD Grant Award
- Publication Date
- May 08, 2020
- Source ID
- N000142012547
Entities
People
- Nancy J Cooke
Organizations
- Arizona State University
- Office of Naval Research
- United States Navy