The mixed-initiative experimental testbed for collaborative human robot interactions

Current military forces increasingly rely upon unmanned systems. Training mixed teams of soldiers and robotic agents can be accomplished using specialized virtual environments or fabricated real-life structures. However, there are still gaps in the technology and methodologies needed to support human-robot teams. In addition, the environments presently used aren´t reconfigurable or extendable. The mixed-initiative experimental (MIX) testbed was developed to support training of mixed- initiative teams, experimentation with new training methods, and exploration of team composition and robot capabilities. The testbed combines the use of the joint architecture for unmanned systems (JAUS) and high level architecture (HLA) to create a system that can be used with a combination of virtual robotic entities within an HLA-based simulation environment. In this paper we will present the design and implementation of the MIX Testbed and describe sample scenarios for experimentation and training.