Alle Publikationen
2019
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(2019): On Proactive, Transparent, and Verifiable Ethical Reasoning for Robots. In: Proceedings of the IEEE 107 (3), S. 541-561. DOI: 10.1109/JPROC.2019.2898267
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1109/JPROC.2019.2898267 Abstract: Previous work on ethical machine reasoning has largely been theoretical, and where such systems have been implemented, it has, in general, been only initial proofs of principle. Here, we address the question of desirable attributes for such systems to improve their real world utility, and how controllers with these attributes might be implemented. We propose that ethically critical machine reasoning should be proactive, transparent, and verifiable. We describe an architecture where the ethical reasoning is handled by a separate layer, augmenting a typical layered control architecture, ethically moderating the robot actions. It makes use of a simulation-based internal model and supports proactive, transparent, and verifiable ethical reasoning. To do so, the reasoning component of the ethical layer uses our Python-based belief-desire-intention (BDI) implementation. The declarative logic structure of BDI facilitates both transparency, through logging of the reasoning cycle, and formal verification methods. To prove the principles of our approach, we use a case study implementation to experimentally demonstrate its operation. Importantly, it is the first such robot controller where the ethical machine reasoning has been formally verified.
Keywords: BDI implementation, belief desire intention implementation, control engineering computing, Design methodology, ethical machine reasoning, ethical reasoning, Ethics, formal verification, ieee xplore, intelligent robots, layered control architecture, learning (artificial intelligence), machine learning, Moral & Ethik, Predictive models, Python, robot controller, robot programming, Robots, safety, simulation-based internal model, Social implications of technology, software architecture, transparency -
(2019): Interactional Moral Systems: A Model of Social Mechanisms for the Moral Regulation of Exchange Processes in Agent Societies. In: IEEE Transactions on Computational Social Systems 6 (4), S. 778-796. DOI: 10.1109/TCSS.2019.2926950
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1109/TCSS.2019.2926950 Abstract: In this paper, we first introduce the concepts of moral agent and moral system of agent society and, in particular, the central concept of moral agent sensible to moral sanction. Next, we introduce the concepts of moral gain and moral loss in social exchanges and of reputation-based persistence of exchange processes. Following, we elaborate the notion of negotiated moral regulation of reputation-based persistent exchange processes. Finally, we combine those concepts in the notion of a reputation-based mechanism for the negotiation-driven moral regulation of exchange processes of agents that are sensible to moral sanctions.
Keywords: Agent societies, agent society, Avatars, Computational modeling, Ethics, ieee xplore, interactional moral systems, Law, Moral & Ethik, moral agent, moral gain, moral loss, moral regulation of social exchanges, moral sanction, Morality, multi-agent systems, negotiation-driven moral regulation, reputation-based mechanism, reputation-based persistence, reputation-based persistent exchange processes, Robots, social exchanges, social mechanisms, Social Processes -
(2019) : Social Robots in Therapy and Care: 2019 14th ACM/IEEE International Conference on Human-Robot Interaction (HRI): Daegu, Korea: IEEE, S. 669-670
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1109/HRI.2019.8673243 Abstract: The Social Robots in Therapy workshop series aims at advancing research topics related to the use of robots in the contexts of Social Care and Robot-Assisted Therapy (RAT). Robots in social care and therapy have been a long time promise in HRI as they have the opportunity to improve patients life significantly. Multiple challenges have to be addressed for this, such as building platforms that work in proximity with patients, therapists and health-care professionals; understanding user needs; developing adaptive and autonomous robot interactions; and addressing ethical questions regarding the use of robots with a vulnerable population. The full-day workshop follows last year’s edition which centered on how social robots can improve health-care interventions, how increasing the degree of autonomy of the robots might affect therapies, and how to overcome the ethical challenges inherent to the use of robot assisted technologies. This 2nd edition of the workshop will be focused on the importance of equipping social robots with socio-emotional intelligence and the ability to perform meaningful and personalized interactions. This workshop aims to bring together researchers and industry experts in the fields of Human-Robot Interaction, Machine Learning and Robots in Health and Social Care. It will be an opportunity for all to share and discuss ideas, strategies and findings to guide the design and development of robot-assisted systems for therapy and social care implementations that can provide personalize, natural, engaging and autonomous interactions with patients (and health-care providers).
Keywords: Adaptive Behaviors, adaptive robot interactions, autonomous robot interactions, biomedical education, Conferences, ethical aspects, Health Care, health-care interventions, health-care professionals, health-care providers, human-robot interaction, ieee xplore, medical robotics, Medical treatment, Mobile robots, Moral & Ethik, patient treatment, Personalized Behaviors, Radio access technologies, robot assisted technologies, Robot kinematics, robot-assisted systems, robot-assisted therapy, Robots in Therapy, service robot, social care implementations, Social intelligence, social robots, Supervised Autonomy -
(2019): Robot Rights. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press. Online verfügbar unter https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/book/8555421, zuletzt geprüft am 02.10.2019Keywords: ieee xplore, Moral & Ethik
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(2019) : The Dark Side of Human-Robot Interaction: Ethical Considerations and Community Guidelines for the Field of HRI: 2019 14th ACM/IEEE International Conference on Human-Robot Interaction (HRI): Daegu, Korea: IEEE, S. 689-690
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1109/HRI.2019.8673184 Abstract: The HRI community is working to develop interactive robots for a wide variety of pro-social tasks and ideals. As such we naturally focus on the positive side of HRI including how robots and humans may collaborate and the benefits of doing so. This workshop, in contrast, will focus on the dark side of HRI with the goal of identifying, understanding and guarding against the potential negative consequences of interactive robots. The primary objective of the workshop is to articulate and discuss the most pertinent ethical issues facing the HRI community and to develop a set of common community guidelines.
Keywords: common community guidelines, Conferences, Consumer Protection, Data Protection, ethical aspects, ethical considerations, Ethics, GUIDELINES, HRI community, human-robot interaction, Humans, ideals, ieee xplore, interactive robots, Law, Moral & Ethik, Persuasive Robots, pertinent ethical issues, pro-social tasks, PSYCHOLOGY, Robot Ethics, Robot sensing systems, workshop -
(2019) : Cuteness as a ‘Dark Pattern’ in Home Robots: 2019 14th ACM/IEEE International Conference on Human-Robot Interaction (HRI): Daegu, Korea: IEEE, S. 374-381
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1109/HRI.2019.8673274 Abstract: Dark patterns are a recent phenomenon in the field of interaction design, where design patterns and behavioral psychology are deployed in ways that deceive the user. However, the current corpus of dark patterns literature focuses largely on screen-based digital interactions and should be expanded to include home robots. In this paper, we apply the concept of dark patterns to the ‘cute’ aesthetic of home robots and suggest that their design constitutes a dark pattern in HRI by (1) emphasizing short-term gains over long-term decisions; (2) depriving users of some degree of conscious agency at the site of interaction; and (3) creating an affective response in the user for the purpose of collecting emotional data. This exploratory paper expands the current library of dark patterns and their application to new technological interfaces into the domain of home robotics in order to establish the grounds for an ethical design practice in HRI.
Keywords: Affect, dark patterns, data ethics, Data privacy, Design, design patterns, emotion, emotion recognition, ethical aspects, ethical design practice, Ethics, Home computing, home robots, HRI, human-robot interaction, ieee xplore, Interaction, Moral & Ethik, privacy, PSYCHOLOGY, Robot sensing systems, Software, surveillance capitalism, user experience design -
(2019): Towards ethical guidelines of using telepresence robots in residential care. In: International Journal of Social Robotics, S. 1-9. DOI: 10.1007/s12369-019-00529-8
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12369-019-00529-8 Abstract: Robotic telepresence is a potential technology to help alleviating the loneliness of elderly people. The impacts of long-term use of telepresence robots in residential care are not well known. We were interested in how using a telepresence robot influences the resident, family members and care workers at a facility, and what challenges and solutions there are for wider adoption of such robots in residential care. With a telepresence robot Double, we arranged a series of three trials in two separate residential care facilities: one 12-week trial in a private facility and two successive 6-week trials in a public facility. In each trial, we installed the telepresence robot in a room of a long-term care home resident for communicating with her/his family members. Based on the results, telepresence robots do increase presence and possibly engagement of family members in residential care, but privacy is a central concern. The mobility of a telepresence robot is hard to utilize in residential care, and to be able to do so, ethical consideration and guidelines are needed. We provide a draft of such ethical guidelines. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved)
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(2019): Ethics, human rights, the intelligent robot, and its subsystem for moral beliefs. In: International Journal of Social Robotics. DOI: 10.1007/s12369-019-00540-z
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12369-019-00540-z Abstract: The Universal Declaration of Human Rights specifies a number of properties that characterize human beings, such as ‘dignity’, ‘conscience’, and several others. In this article we focus on these properties and on how they have been defined in the history of philosophy. We show how they can be interpreted in terms of a prototypical architecture for an intelligent robot, and how the robot can be provided with several aspects of ethical capability in this way. The key idea is to provide the robot with a Moral Belief System that cooperates with, and moderates the robot’s capability of planning and action. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved)
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(2019) : Good Robot Design or Machiavellian? An In-the-Wild Robot Leveraging Minimal Knowledge of Passersby’s Culture: 2019 14th ACM/IEEE International Conference on Human-Robot Interaction (HRI): Daegu, Korea: IEEE, S. 382-391
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1109/HRI.2019.8673326 Abstract: Social robots are being designed to use human-like communication techniques, including body language, social signals, and empathy, to work effectively with people. Just as between people, some robots learn about people and adapt to them. In this paper we present one such robot design: we developed Sam, a robot that learns minimal information about a person’s background, and adapts to this background. Our in-the-wild study found that people helped Sam for significantly longer when it adapted to match their background. While initially we saw this as a success, in re-considering our study we started seeing a different angle. Our robot effectively deceived people (changed its story and text), based on some knowledge of their background, to get more work from them. There was little direct benefit to the person from this adaptation, yet the robot stood to gain free labor. We would like to pose the question to the community: is this simply good robot design, or, is our robot being manipulative? Where does the ethical line lay between a robot leveraging social techniques to improve interaction, and the more negative framing of a robot or algorithm taking advantage of people? How can we decide what is good here, and what is less desirable?
Keywords: Body language, Cultural differences, Culture, Ethics, Global communication, human-like communication techniques, human-robot interaction, ieee xplore, in the wild, in-the-wild robot, learning (artificial intelligence), minimal information, Mobile robots, Mood, Moral & Ethik, passersby culture, Persuasive Robots, robot design, Robots, Sam, Shape, social robots, Social signals, social techniques, Task Analysis -
(2019): Media are social actors: Individuals’ social responses to social robots and mobile phones. ProQuest Information & Learning.
Abstract: The Computers are Social Actors (CASA) paradigm was proposed more than two decades ago to understand humans’ interaction with computer technologies. Today, as emerging media technologies including social robots and smartphones become more personal and persuasive, questions of how users respond to them socially, what individual factors leverage the relationship, and what constitutes the social influence of these technologies need to be addressed. As an expansion of the CASA paradigm, the Media are Social Actors (MASA) paradigm was applied in the current dissertation to understand users’ social perception, social attitudes, and social behavior in their interactions with humanoid social robots and smartphones. Two lab experiments with between-subjects factorial design were conducted. A total of 110 participants were asked to interact with a humanoid social robot and a smartphone respectively in a socio-emotional context and a task-oriented context. Four pairs of social cues were compared to understand their influence on users’ anthropomorphism of the technologies. Multivariate analyses and textual analyses were conducted. Results suggested that users developed more trust in the social robot with a human voice than with a synthetic voice. Users also developed more intimacy and more interest in the social robot when the robot was paired with humanlike gestures. However, individual differences such as users’ attitudes toward robots, robot use experiences, and suspension of disbelief affected users’ psychological responses to the social robot. Although users’ responses to the smartphone did not vary based on the language styles and the modalities, factors such as individuals’ intensive smartphone use, mobile use habits, and their source orientation and re-orientation moderated the social influence of the smartphone. The dissertation has theoretical value in expanding the CASA paradigm to social robots and smartphones. It also tests the validity of the propositions of the MASA paradigm. The results can lead to more comprehensive, nuanced, and exciting discoveries of the social implications, ethical implications, and practical guides of using these emerging media technologies in the future. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved)
Keywords: Language, Media, mobile phones, Moral & Ethik, Robotics, social actors, social media, social responses, social robots 2018
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(2018): People are averse to machines making moral decisions. In: Cognition 181, S. 21-34. DOI: 10.1016/j.cognition.2018.08.003
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cognition.2018.08.003 Abstract: Do people want autonomous machines making moral decisions? Nine studies suggest that that the answer is ‘no’—in part because machines lack a complete mind. Studies 1–6 find that people are averse to machines making morally-relevant driving, legal, medical, and military decisions, and that this aversion is mediated by the perception that machines can neither fully think nor feel. Studies 5–6 find that this aversion exists even when moral decisions have positive outcomes. Studies 7–9 briefly investigate three potential routes to increasing the acceptability of machine moral decision-making: limiting the machine to an advisory role (Study 7), increasing machines’ perceived experience (Study 8), and increasing machines’ perceived expertise (Study 9). Although some of these routes show promise, the aversion to machine moral decision-making is difficult to eliminate. This aversion may prove challenging for the integration of autonomous technology in moral domains including medicine, the law, the military, and self-driving vehicles. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved)
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(2018): Anthropomorphism in human–robot co-evolution. In: Frontiers in psychology 9, S. 1-9. DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2018.00468
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2018.00468 Abstract: Social robotics entertains a particular relationship with anthropomorphism, which it neither sees as a cognitive error, nor as a sign of immaturity. Rather it considers that this common human tendency, which is hypothesized to have evolved because it favored cooperation among early humans, can be used today to facilitate social interactions between humans and a new type of cooperative and interactive agents – social robots. This approach leads social robotics to focus research on the engineering of robots that activate anthropomorphic projections in users. The objective is to give robots ’social presence’ and ’social behaviors’ that are sufficiently credible for human users to engage in comfortable and potentially long-lasting relations with these machines. This choice of ‘applied anthropomorphism’ as a research methodology exposes the artifacts produced by social robotics to ethical condemnation: social robots are judged to be a ’cheating’ technology, as they generate in users the illusion of reciprocal social and affective relations. This article takes position in this debate, not only developing a series of arguments relevant to philosophy of mind, cognitive sciences, and robotic AI, but also asking what social robotics can teach us about anthropomorphism. On this basis, we propose a theoretical perspective that characterizes anthropomorphism as a basic mechanism of interaction, and rebuts the ethical reflections that a priori condemns ’anthropomorphism-based’ social robots. To address the relevant ethical issues, we promote a critical experimentally based ethical approach to social robotics, ’synthetic ethics,’ which aims at allowing humans to use social robots for two main goals: self-knowledge and moral growth. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved)
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Johnson, L. Syd M.; Rommelfanger, Karen S. (Hg.) (2018): The Routledge handbook of neuroethics. New York, NY: Routledge/Taylor & Francis Group (Routledge handbooks in applied ethics)
Keywords: Moral & Ethik -
(2018) : ETHICAL FRAMEWORK FOR MACHINE LEARNING: 2018 ITU Kaleidoscope: Machine Learning for a 5G Future (ITU K): Santa Fe, Argentina: IEEE, S. 1-8
DOI: https://doi.org/10.23919/ITU-WT.2018.8597767 Abstract: Artificial Intelligence (AI) with its core subset of Machine Learning (ML) is rapidly transforming life experiences as humans begin to grow more dependent on these ‘smart machines’ for their needs - ranging from routine mundane chores to critical personal decisions. However, these transformative technologies are at the same time proving unpredictable too as has been reported worldwide in certain cases. Therefore, several studies/reports, such as COMEST report on Robotics ethics (UNESCO, 2017) point to an obvious need for inculcating more ethical behavior in machines. The present study aims to look at the role and interplay of ML (the hard sciences) and Ethics (the soft sciences) to resolve such predicaments that are inadvertently manifested by machines not constrained or controlled by human expectations. Based on focused review of literature of both domains-ML and Ethics, the proposed paper attempts to first build on the need for introduction of an ethical algorithm in the domain of machine learning and then endeavors to provide a conceptual framework to resolve the ethical dilemmas.
Keywords: Artificial intelligence, Artificial intelligence/machine learning, Big Data, COMEST report, critical personal decisions, Decision Making, design approach, domains-ML, emotional quotient, ethical algorithm, ethical aspects, ethical behavior, ethical dilemmas, ethical framework, Ethics, hard sciences, human expectations, ieee xplore, learning (artificial intelligence), machine learning, Machine learning algorithms, Moral & Ethik, Prediction algorithms, robotic ethics, Robots, routine mundane chores, smart machines, soft sciences, spiritual quotient, transformative technologies -
(2018) : Ethical and Social Considerations for the Introduction of Human-Centered Technologies at Work: 2018 IEEE Workshop on Advanced Robotics and its Social Impacts (ARSO): Genoa, Italy: IEEE Robotics & Automation Society, S. 131-138
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1109/ARSO.2018.8625830 Abstract: Human-centered technologies such as collaborative robots, exoskeletons, and wearable sensors are rapidly spreading in industry and manufacturing because of their intrinsic potential at assisting workers and improving their working conditions. The deployment of these technologies, albeit inevitable, poses several ethical and societal issues. Guidelines for ethically aligned design of autonomous and intelligent systems do exist, however we argue that ethical recommendations must necessarily be complemented by an analysis of the social impact of these technologies. In this paper, we report on our preliminary studies on the opinion of factory workers and of people outside this environment on human-centered technologies at work. In light of these studies, we discuss ethical and social considerations for deploying these technologies in a way that improves acceptance.
Keywords: Collaboration, collaborative robots, control engineering computing, ethical aspects, ethical considerations, ethical issues, ethical recommendations, ethically aligned design, exoskeletons, Human Computer Interaction, Human Factors, human-centered technologies, human-robot interaction, ieee xplore, Interviews, knowledge based systems, Moral & Ethik, Production facilities, Robot sensing systems, social aspects of automation, social considerations, societal issues, user centred design, wearable sensors, working conditions -
(2018) : Care Robot Transparency Isn’t Enough for Trust: 2018 IEEE Region Ten Symposium (Tensymp): Sydney, Australia: IEEE, S. 293-297
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1109/TENCONSpring.2018.8692047 Abstract: A recent study featuring a new kind of care robot indicated that participants expect a robot’s ethical decision-making to be transparent to develop trust, even though the same type of ‘inspection of thoughts’ isn’t expected of a human carer. At first glance, this might suggest that robot transparency mechanisms are required for users to develop trust in robot-made ethical decisions. But the participants were found to desire transparency only when they didn’t know the specifics of a human-robot social interaction. Humans trust others without observing their thoughts, which implies other means of determining trustworthiness. The study reported here suggests that the method is social interaction and observation, signifying that trust is a social construct. Moreover, that ‘social determinants of trust’ are the transparent elements. This socially determined behaviour draws on notions of virtue ethics. If a caregiver (nurse or robot) consistently provides good, ethical care, then patients can trust that caregiver to do so often. The same social determinants may apply to care robots and thus it ought to be possible to trust them without the ability to see their thoughts. This study suggests why transparency mechanisms may not be effective in helping to develop trust in care robot ethical decision-making. It suggests that roboticists need to build sociable elements into care robots to help patients to develop patient trust in the care robot’s ethical decision-making.
Keywords: care robot ethical decision-making, care robot transparency, Decision Making, ethical aspects, healthcare robotics, Human robot interaction, human-robot interaction, human-robot social interaction, ieee xplore, machine transparency, medical robotics, Moral & Ethik, Patient Care, patient trust, Robot Ethics, robot-made ethical decisions, socially determined behaviour -
(2018): Ethical adoption: A new imperative in the development of technology for dementia. In: Alzheimer’s & Dementia 14 (9), S. 1104-1113. DOI: 10.1016/j.jalz.2018.04.012
DOI: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1552526018301390 Abstract: Introduction Technology interventions are showing promise to assist persons with dementia and their carers. However, low adoption rates for these technologies and ethical considerations have impeded the realization of their full potential. Methods Building on recent evidence and an iterative framework development process, we propose the concept of “ethical adoption”: the deep integration of ethical principles into the design, development, deployment, and usage of technology. Results Ethical adoption is founded on five pillars, supported by empirical evidence: (1) inclusive participatory design; (2) emotional alignment; (3) adoption modelling; (4) ethical standards assessment; and (5) education and training. To close the gap between adoption research, ethics and practice, we propose a set of 18 practical recommendations based on these ethical adoption pillars. Discussion Through the implementation of these recommendations, researchers and technology developers alike will benefit from evidence-informed guidance to ensure their solution is adopted in a way that maximizes the benefits to people with dementia and their carers while minimizing possible harm.
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(2018) : Moral robots In: Johnson, L. Syd M.; Rommelfanger, Karen S. (Hg.): The Routledge handbook of neuroethics: New York, NY: Routledge/Taylor & Francis Group (Routledge handbooks in applied ethics), S. 363-377
Abstract: The main reason for raising the question about the ethical behavior of robots is the rapid progress in the development of autonomous social robots that are specifically created to be deployed in sensitive human environments, from elder and health care settings to law enforcement and military contexts. Clearly, such tasks and environments are very different from traditional factory environments (for example, for welding robots). Hence, these new social robots will require higher degrees of autonomy (i.e., a capacity for independent, self-directed action) and decision-making than any previously developed machine, given that they will face a much more complex, open world. They might be required to acquire new knowledge on the fly to accomplish a never-before-encountered task. Moreover, they will likely face humans who are not specifically trained to interact with them, and robots thus need to be responsive to instructions by novices and feel ’natural’ to humans even in unstructured interactions. At these levels of autonomy and flexibility in near-future robots, there will be countless ways in which robots might make mistakes, violate a user’s expectations and moral norms, or threaten the user’s physical or psychological safety. These social robots must therefore also be moral robots. Thus, for autonomous social robots deployed in human societies, three key questions arise: (1) What moral expectations do humans have for social robots? (2) What moral competence can and should such robots realize? (3) What should be the moral standing of these machines (if any)? The first question, about moral expectations, follows from the well-established fact that autonomous social robots, especially those with natural-language abilities, are treated in many ways like humans, regardless of whether such treatment was intended or anticipated by the robot designers. In fact, there is mounting evidence that humans have very clear expectations of robot capacities based on the robot’s appearance and people’s perceptions of the robot behaviors. We will review some of this work in the third section. The second question, about moral competence, arises from the need to endow robots with sufficient capacities to operate safely in human societies. Answers to this question would ideally build on answers to the first question and provide mechanisms for robots to process social and moral norms in ways that humans expect. In addition, the design of the robots’ control systems should ensure that robots behave ethically according to the norms of the society in which they are deployed. In this chapter, we will focus on the first two questions, discussing both human expectations and computational architectural mechanisms that will allow robots to live up to those expectations while leaving a detailed discussion of the third question to legal experts and philosophers We will not focus on the philosophical debate about agency and personhood. Rather, we will assume an operational behavioral definition of a ’moral robot’. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved)
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(2018): An architecture for ethical robots inspired by the simulation theory of cognition. In: COGNITIVE SYSTEMS RESEARCH 48, S. 56-66. DOI: 10.1016/j.cogsys.2017.04.002
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cogsys.2017.04.002 Abstract: The expanding ability of robots to take unsupervised decisions renders it imperative that mechanisms are in place to guarantee the safety of their behaviour. Moreover, intelligent autonomous robots should be more than safe; arguably they should also be explicitly ethical. In this paper, we put forward a method for implementing ethical behaviour in robots inspired by the simulation theory of cognition. In contrast to existing frameworks for robot ethics, our approach does not rely on the verification of logic statements. Rather, it utilises internal simulations which allow the robot to simulate actions and predict their consequences. Therefore, our method is a form of robotic imagery. To demonstrate the proposed architecture, we implement a version of this architecture on a humanoid NAO robot so that it behaves according to Asimov’s laws of robotics. In a series of four experiments, using a second NAO robot as a proxy for the human, we demonstrate that the Ethical Layer enables the robot to prevent the human from coming to harm in simple test scenarios. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved)
2017
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(2017) : Beyond Moral Dilemmas: Exploring the Ethical Landscape in HRI: 2017 12th ACM/IEEE International Conference on Human-Robot Interaction (HRI: Vienna, Austria: Association for Computing Machinery, S. 445-452
Abstract: HRI research has yielded intriguing empirical results connected to ethics and how we act in social contexts with robots, even though much of this work has focused on task-based, one-on-one interaction. In this paper, we point to the need to investigate a wider range of ethically relevant dynamics that interaction with robots carries with it - individually and in groups, with a single robot or more. We specifically examine three areas: 1) the primacy and implicit dynamics of bodily perception, 2) the competing interests at work in a single robot-human interaction, and 3) the social intricacy of multiple agents - robots and humans - communicating and making decisions. While these areas are not exhaustive by any means, we find they yield concrete directions for how HRI can contribute to a widening, intensifying set of ethical debates with critical empirical insight, starting to explore more of the ethical landscape in HRI.
Keywords: critical empirical insight, Decision Making, ethical aspects, ethical debates, ethical landscape, ethically relevant dynamics, Ethics, Ethics in HRI, HRI research, human-robot interaction, ieee xplore, implicit dynamics, Law, Moral & Ethik, moral dilemmas, multiple agents, robot dynamics, Robot sensing systems, robot-human interaction, social contexts, social intricacy, Task Analysis -
(2017): Ethics in Robotics Research: CERNA Mission and Context. In: IEEE Robotics Automation Magazine 24 (3), S. 139-145. DOI: 10.1109/MRA.2016.2611586
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1109/MRA.2016.2611586 Abstract: This article summarizes the recommendations concerning robotics as issued by the Commission for the Ethics of Research in Information Sciences and Technologies (CERNA), the French advisory commission for the ethics of information and communication technology (ICT) research. Robotics has numerous applications in which its role can be overwhelming and may lead to unexpected consequences. In this rapidly evolving technological environment, CERNA does not set novel ethical standards but seeks to make ethical deliberation inseparable from scientific activity. Additionally, it provides tools and guidance for researchers and research institutions.
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(2017) : Fourth Industrial Revolution and the future of Engineering: Could Robots Replace Human Jobs? How Ethical Recommendations can Help Engineers Rule on Artificial Intelligence: 2017 7th World Engineering Education Forum (WEEF): Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia: IEEE, S. 21-26
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1109/WEEF.2017.8466973 Abstract: The current economic crisis, combined with the sudden increased use of Information Technology (IT) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) in human life presents new challenges and opportunities for engineering education and jobs. Engineering education needs to undergo a revolution; ethical issues that involve AI and the use of technologies need to be inserted in the learning process urgently to guarantee the employment of our future engineers. In this work we identified and evaluated issues and candidate recommendations from initiatives like “The IEEE Global Initiative for Ethical Considerations in Artificial Intelligence and Autonomous Systems” and “USA NSTC’s Subcommittee on Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence” in order to provide a set of ethical principles and recommendations that are conversant with Engineering ethics defined by “Engineering Criteria 2000”. Some of these ethical principles and recommendations are highlighted with the objective of introducing AI in engineering education and improve the connections between technology and society.
Keywords: AI, Artificial intelligence, candidate recommendations, Companies, control engineering education, economic crisis, Engineering Criteria 2000, engineering education, Engineering ethics, ethical aspects, ethical considerations, ethical issues, ethical principles, ethical recommendations, fourth industrial revolution, human life, ieee xplore, Industries, Industry 4.0, Information technology, intelligent robots, Labor Market, Law, learning (artificial intelligence), Moral & Ethik, service robot -
(2017) : Learning behavioral norms in uncertain and changing contexts: 2017 8th IEEE International Conference on Cognitive Infocommunications (CogInfoCom): Debrecen, Hungary: IEEE, S. 000301-000306
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1109/CogInfoCom.2017.8268261 Abstract: Human behavior is often guided by social and moral norms. Robots that enter human societies must therefore behave in norm-conforming ways as well to increase coordination, predictability, and safety in human-robot interactions. However, human norms are context-specific and laced with uncertainty, making the representation, learning, and communication of norms challenging. We provide a formal representation of norms using deontic logic, Dempster-Shafer Theory, and a machine learning algorithm that allows an artificial agent to learn norms under uncertainty from human data. We demonstrate a novel cognitive capability with which an agent can dynamically learn norms while being exposed to distinct contexts, recognizing the unique identity of each context and the norms that apply in it.
Keywords: Artificial agent, behavioral norms, behavioural sciences computing, Cognition, Conferences, Dempster-Shafer Theory, deontic logic, Ethics, formal logic, Human behavior, human societies, human-robot interaction, human-robot interactions, ieee xplore, inference mechanisms, learning (artificial intelligence), Libraries, machine learning algorithm, Moral & Ethik, moral norms, norm-conforming ways, Robot kinematics, Social Norms, uncertainty, uncertainty handling -
(2017) : An intervening ethical governor for a robot mediator in patient-caregiver relationship: Implementation and evaluation: 2017 IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA): Marina Bay Sands, Singapore: IEEE Robotics & Automation Society, S. 2936-2942
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1109/ICRA.2017.7989340 Abstract: A robot mediator can enhance the quality of patient care in a health care context. Patients with Parkinson’s disease can experience difficulties in precisely expressing their emotions due to the loss of control of their facial musculature, leading to their stigmatization by caregivers. To remedy this challenge, a robot mediator can be inserted into a patient-caregiver relationship. In this context, it is essential to handle the ethical issues of neglect to ensure human dignity. In an earlier paper [19], we proposed an intervening ethical governor (IEG) model, which enables a robot to ethically intervene in a situation where patients or caregivers go across accepted ethical boundaries. In this paper, we show how the IEG model can be implemented and applied in a real robotics system. In addition, by conducting interviews with the target population (adults 60 years of age or older), we evaluate the current intervention rules in the model, discuss potential improvements to the model, and consider uses of the model in real clinical contexts.
Keywords: Diseases, ethical aspects, ethical boundaries, ethical governor, facial musculature, Health Care, health care context, human dignity, ieee xplore, IEG model, intervening ethical governor model, Interviews, medical robotics, Medical services, Monitoring, Moral & Ethik, Parkinson disease, Patient Care, patient-caregiver relationship, real clinical contexts, real robotics system, robot mediator, Sensors, service robot, Stigmatization, Videos 2016
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(2016): Roboethics: Sharing Our World with Humanlike Robots. In: IEEE Potentials 35 (1), S. 24-28. DOI: 10.1109/MPOT.2014.2364491
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1109/MPOT.2014.2364491 Abstract: Major debates surround the field of robotics, making the potential development of humanlike robots one of the most controversial facets of modern technology. This is the result of the technology’s young age. A new technology must meet a number of requirements before people will reach an agreement on it; legal, social, and global considerations must be explored before robotics applications will be accepted by society.
Keywords: Artificial intelligence, ethical aspects, Ethics, global considerations, humanlike robots, Humanoid Robots, Humanoids, human-robot interaction, ieee xplore, legal considerations, Moral & Ethik, roboethics, robotics applications, Robots, social considerations, Social factors, Social implications of technology