Physically animated desktop computer for ergonomic & affective movement

Abstract

For better or worse, more people are spending their days in front of computers. With this increase in computer use, more people are complaining of back and neck pain. The simple act of changing your posture, however, can dramatically reduce the risk of back or neck injury from prolonged computer use. RoCo, the robotic computer, can encourage computer users to change posture by moving its screen to different positions. Having introduced motion, RoCo can now also begin to build a social relationship with the user and affect his affective state. This thesis describes the workings of RoCo and the results of an initial user study to produce affective movement.