Challenges deploying robots during a pandemic: An effort to fight social isolation among children

Abstract

The practice of social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic re-sulted in billions of people quarantined in their homes. In response, we designed and deployed VectorConnect, a robot teleoperation system intended to help combat the efects of social distancing in children during the pandemic. VectorConnect uses the of-the-shelf Vector robot to allowits users to engage in physical play while being geographically separated.We distributed the system to hundreds of users in a matter of weeks. This paper details the development and deployment of the system, our accomplishments, and the obstacles encountered throughout this process. Also, it provides recommen-dations to best facilitate similar deployments in the future.We hope that this case study about Human-Robot Interaction practice serves as inspiration to innovate in times of global crises.