Creativity Matters

An event cosily named “LLM retreat for doctoral students and their supervisors” or more of a winter school (because what kind of retreat can you expect with supervisors next to you) was dedicated to large language models and their use in research and gather students from three major universities of Estonia: Tallinn University of Technology, Tartu University and Tallinn University.
The event offered both opportunities and challenges. The students were not only given a half-hour “Flash Presentation training”, but also required to make a flash presentation next morning.

Thanks to Assistant Professor Slavko Rakic

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🚀 Just Published! 📖

📄 Read the full article here: Nonverbal Behavior of Service Robots in Social Interactions
👩💻 Authors: Janika Leoste, Kristel Marmor, Mati Heidmets

Our study dives deep into the fascinating world of nonverbal communication in human-robot interactions (HRI), specifically focusing on socially capable service robots. Here’s what we uncovered:
✅ Types of service robots studied in HRI research
✅ Key nonverbal cues in interactions between humans and robots
✅ Research objectives, participant profiles, and data collection methods
✅ Insights shaping trust, self-efficacy, and overcoming cultural differences in HRI\

🔍 Key Takeaways: From our review of 39 academic papers (2006–2023), it’s evident that nonverbal communication plays a crucial role in fostering trust and improving the quality of interaction. However, there is significant room to further explore and enhance how service robots adapt to human expectations and cultural dynamics.
Let’s strengthen the bond between humans and robots through more meaningful and intuitive interactions!

Tiia Rüütmann, Head of the Centre for Teaching Excellence of School of Engineering at TalTech wrote a post in Linkedin about introducing telepresence robots into her course. During her classes Prof. Rüütmann uses active learning methods therefore teleconferencing falls short of expectations and teaching happens only in person, however telepresence robots seem to have bridged the gap and in her post Tiia expressed satisfaction with the results.

TalTech AI is the Centre of Excellence sees its mission in harnessing and empowering AI research, development, education and application at TalTech. In collaboration with AI & Robotics Estonia project arranged a seminar in Rakvere to exchange ideas and share expertise. Janika Leoste participated in the seminar using an assistant robot Temi. Unlike other telepresence robots Temi’s use cases are slightly different and communication with it has its specifics.

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Scientist’s Night has always offered exciting activities for science and technology enthusiasts, but this year the spotlight was on the robot rally workshop, where participants had the chance to experience innovative solutions and challenges presented by controlling physical devices over the internet. In the workshop, participants remotely controlled a telepresence robot located on another floor and guided it through a specially designed race track, competing against the clock. This task provided hands-on experience in operating a physical device where there could be latency in the control response. Even small delays in transmitting control signals gave participants a realistic view of the challenges involved in remote control. Precision and timing were crucial, making this technological experience highly engaging.

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We would like to sincerely thank you for participating in the PYNT event “The Future of Care with Socially Assistive Robots,” which took place on September 24, 2024, at TalTech’s Mektory Innovation Lab. Your presence and active engagement contributed to the success of the event and the valuable discussions and exchange of ideas. The event covered important topics related to the use of socially assistive robots in healthcare and elderly care. We would especially like to highlight our panel discussion, where leading experts in the field shared their knowledge: Kadi Lubi, Kitty Kubo, Liina Harjus-Soostar, Kristina Pärnaste and Merelle Tammann. Their expertise and practical examples provided a deep insight into the potential impact of this technology on the future of care and social interaction.

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