Evaluating in real life robotic environment: Bringing together research and practice

In this paper we report about a methodological approach to cooperatively evaluate the usability of two different teach pendants for teaching a robotic arm. Two case studies were conducted to compare an already established teach pendant with a novel prototype which applies a different interaction paradigm. Involved in these studies were the company which produces the teach pendant (our industrial partner) and two clients of this company (one in the automotive sector, the other one in the injection modeling sector). We describe the cooperation in this project in detail, how the industrial partners were involved, and our approach to enhance the integration of usability studies in the life cycle of their industrial robotic products. Upon conducting these case studies in the industrial context we come to understand bit by bit the interplay of industrial robots in a better way and how we could affect user centered design (UCD) of real life robotic products with our work.