AWORM
Designer/Human intentionality always permeates, but it can be mitigated with robot agency.
AWORM is a project where Robot Agency reaches a balance with Human Intentionality by giving the robot agency in its now development process. AWORM helped to develop itself.
What is AWORM
AWORM is the latest creature in the Iterative Creatures series, it is a creature-like robot that is interested in keeping its sensors maintained and calibrated.
AWORM plays with the conventional way of encountering a robot, or machines in general where people expects the machine to be useful and at their servance. AWORM is not useful, it can be helpful but ultimately it is helping itself more than any humans.
AWORM carries an onboard accelerometer that gives it orientation awareness. The sensor is imperfect, however, and suffers from constant drift with cumulative error. So keeping itself calibrated is a strong ongoing motivation for AWORM.
During the DFX exhibition, all AWORMs are situated on a platform raised high enough that a fall would cause real damage. AWORM must therefore steer away from the edges to stay safe. Yet navigating near an edge safely, hopefully, carries its own benifits: because most AWORMs avoid the perimeter most of the time, it becomes a quiet spot designated by the designer, or human intentionality in this case, acting as a guide to the physical world, and therefore a perfect spot for recalibration.
The next step for AWORMs is a smaller form factor, greater range, and more autonomy.
