The National Science Foundation awarded a $199,991 Project Grant to The University of Texas at San Antonio under the Engineering (47.041) federal grant program.
The grant will fund research to advance understanding of bi-directional human-robot interaction and collaboration in complex construction workspaces. The university will develop new methods using deep learning models to predict worker intentions from behavior and adaptively plan robot motion based on job contexts and human dynamics. Researchers will conduct experiments collecting multimodal human behavior data when collaborating with robots to test performance of technologies enabling proactive, adaptive, safe and productive robotic construction solutions. Findings aim to provide new paradigms for human-robot collaboration in dynamic, uncertain industrial environments like construction, with potential applications in search and rescue, agriculture and manufacturing. The two-year project also involves student outreach to promote broader participation in science and technology fields.