A Pragmatic Production of Cost-Efficient Controllable Humanoid Robot Head with Realistic Reproduction of Human Facial Expressions

Abstract

This study explores all viable methods and techniques for the production of a responsive humanoid robot which would be both practically feasible and economically efficient. In the past few decades, scientists have been highly interested in the development of life-like humanoid robots. Some of these robots were used mostly in transporting heavy objects of accessing regions that were unreachable by humans. Between 1980’s and the 1990’s, engineers and scientists shifted their interest to the development of humanoid robots. These types of robots were able to stand, walk, and even pick up objects with mechanical hands. The introduction of humanoid robots greatly increased the interests of ordinary people in humanoid robots in particular. However, with the interest in these robots came the issue of communication. Majority of these robot have little or no recognizable facial features and would have to communicate with an external user by the use of audible sounds or visual symbols. This issue brought up the idea of creating robots that have recognizable facial features and are capable of carrying a conversation with humans. This project will develop a responsive and controllable humanoid robot head which would be capable of recreating basic movements of the human neck (such as rotate and pitch) as well as some basic and widely recognizable human facial expressions. This project focuses on developing a cost efficient, and practical process of creating animatronic robotic protype which will serve as a springboard for researcher, students, academia, and robot developers. The study further conducts a biomechanical analysis of the human head with specific emphasis on facial features including skeletal and muscular tissue structure to assist readers to learn and replicate the process. Above all, the project will enable researchers, scholars, students, and robot making companies to produce an animatronic humanoid robot head which can recreate basic human facial expressions that are easily recognizable to the average human such as happiness, anger, fear, sadness etc. to assist smooth communication, and business transaction. Also, the robot would be capable of recreating basic human neck and head movements like tilting of the head upwards and downwards and rotating of the head from side to side to follow human instructions.

Keywords: Robots, Humans, Interactions, Humanoids, Robotic, Production, Automated, Facial-Expression, Skin, Animatronic, Skeletal, Artificial- Intelligence (AI)

DOI: 10.7176/CEIS/14-2-02

Publication date:March 31^st 2023