Design, Construction, and Testing of a Novel Robotic Workstation

This paper describes the development of a novel robotic workstation which users configure to a variety of spatial forms. These configurations allow users to define their physical workspace as well as to situate computer and analogue tools precisely to support a broad range of work-and-leisure computing activities. The workstation is part of our Animated Work Environment (AWE) project aimed at programmable smart environments which fundamentally alter user experience. This paper describes, in detail, the design, realization, and initial testing of the multi-panel robot workstation which itself represents a novel type of robot surface.