I Am the Robot: A VR Based Wizard of Oz System for the Humanoid Robot Pepper

ACM/IEEE International Conference on Human-Robot Interaction (HRI) 2026 Open access

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Authors: Sofia Thunberg, Aris Alissandrakis, Timmy Bolinder, Melker Forslund, Elias Lycke, Tobias Pettersson, Marcus Saméus, Robin Åsberg
DOI: 10.1145/3776734.3794345
Cited by: 0
References: 26

Abstract

This late-breaking report presents a Wizard of Oz control system that uses virtual reality equipment to operate the humanoid robot Pepper. The system enables control by mirroring the operator’s movement within the physical space, including body and head rotation, and arm movements directly onto the robot. The system was evaluated in a study setup with two participant groups: users and operators. Results showed that the system was effective in simulating natural robot behaviour, while being intuitive and engaging.

Fields of Study & Subjects

Social Robot Interaction and HRI Interactive and Immersive Displays Teleoperation and Haptic Systems

Publication details

Journal / source
ACM/IEEE International Conference on Human-Robot Interaction (HRI)
Pages
10–14
Publication date
12 March 2026
Language
EN