Project objective(s)
The goal of the proposed project is the development and validation of an interactive tele-presence system (WebFAIR) able to provide individual access to large exhibitions and commercial trade-fairs over the World-Wide Web. The proposed system is based on the concept of "robotic avatars", i.e. mobile robotic agents that operate as the user's remote representatives, able to carry out actions in a workspace of interest and transmit information about it back to the user. A remote user is able to perceive the exhibition through the "senses" of the robotic avatar and "act" in the remote environment through its capabilities. More specifically, the user observes through the "eyes" (cameras) of the robot and hears though its "ears" (microphones). Additionally, the user is able to instruct the mobile robotic platform to rove in the exhibition site in a desired way, to visit specific exhibits, guide the user through the exhibits, or simply to wander around. One of the key features of such a system is the possibility of interacting with on-site visitors or exhibition attendants, which is made possible, while the robotic avatar is roving in its workspace, through a speech synthesis device.
WebFAIR addresses the marketing and promotion requirements of large commercial exhibitions by providing broad access to information, services and commodities exhibited at the event. Essentially, WebFAIR aims at providing the means to remote corporate and private users for active and personalised workplace exploration and information visualisation for commercial purposes. Current trends towards electronic commerce (e-commerce) and advertisement (e-advertisement) dictate the use of state-of-the-art technologies in providing commercial and private users full e-access to trade-fairs. Representations of the contents of an exhibition based on virtual reality systems (VR) are not viable alternatives for this purpose, since rapid changes are usually taking place in both the content and the structure of contemporary trade-fairs, making the effort needed for creating a VR copy of it for remote access rather prohibitive. At the same time, remote access through static cameras does not provide realistic tele-presence, being a rather obsolete solution, especially when compared with the capabilities of modern, immersive environments.
The current project capitalizes on state-of-the-art technologies in robotic navigation, remote robot control, Web-interfaces and media communication, to facilitate realistic and personalized tele-presence in large exhibition workspaces. Through a Web-interface, users all over the world will be able to tele-control the robotic avatar and specify exhibits, or interesting places (e.g. "the room where old cars are exhibited") that they may wish to visit. Camera controls are also employed to facilitate detailed inspection on demand (e.g. zoom-in/out). The system will posses a multimedia information base providing a variety of information about the exhibition at various levels of detail (e.g. information on the participating organisations, on their products, links to their Web sites, etc.). Interaction with on-site attendants at exhibition booths is made possible through a visual/audio interface that establishes a natural dialogue between the two parties on request.
The WebFAIR system will be based on advanced technologies and developments in various fields. A mobile platform in a populated environment requires a high degree of autonomy, with safety considerations being of utmost importance. State-of-the-art technologies in safe, reliable and effective navigation in highly populated workspaces will be fully exploited in the current project; refinements and adaptations will be introduced as needed to meet the particular requirements of the application. Additionally, environment-mapping techniques need to be revisited due to the inherent need for space re-mapping each time the workspace changes to accommodate a different exhibition. Efficiency and cost considerations impose the adaptation of existing and/or development of new mapping techniques that expedite the map acquisition process and render it inexpensive. Furthermore, the size of the exhibition sites imposes the use of several robotic platforms for efficient coverage of the whole area, making the use of multi-robot cooperation techniques necessary.
A tele-operated interactive robotic avatar that facilitates tele-presence in
exhibitions and large trade-fairs, requires an effective and intuitive interface,
that allows inexperienced persons to effortlessly use the system. Such interfaces
have not been standardized yet, leaving much room for innovation and technical
creativity to the professional developer. For the sake of compliance with market
standards, all developments in this track will be based on standard browser
technology and state-of-the-art Web programming technologies.
The use of tele-operated robotic avatars for providing tele-presence to exhibitions
and trade-fairs has several advantages for the exhibition visitor, as well as
for the provider of such services. First, WebFAIR allows a more effective use
of exhibitions. A Web-based robotic avatar can serve users for long periods,
regardless of their physical distance to the exhibition place. Compared to static
or even remotely controllable cameras for viewing parts of the exhibition, robotic
avatars can provide significantly higher interaction capabilities. The mobility
of the robots allows Web visitors to choose a wide variety of view-points and
get the feeling of "being present" in the exhibition. Moreover, users
are offered the capability of interacting with an on-site attendant, which can
be particularly advantageous when requesting information for commercial purposes.
People with restricted mobility may also benefit from this service, since it
allows them access to remote sites from the comfort of their residential or
vocational environment. The exhibition organisers, as well as enterprises participating
in the event, may fully exploit this service to provide broad access to the
exhibition contents, publicity and advanced commercialisation scope to their
commodities. E-trade and e-marketing are just a few examples of business practices
that built on the proposed project, capitalizing fully on the novel information
exploration and visualisation it offers.
A comparison of the main features of the proposed approach for accessing exhibition sites and trade fairs with traditional on-site visits and conventional Web presentations is presented in the table below.
Project Planning and Time table (Gantt chart)
