Clothing for robots can help expand a robot's functionality and also clarify the robot's purpose to bystanders. In studying how to design clothing for robots, we can shed light on the functional role of aesthetics in interactive system design. We present a case study of designing a utility belt for an agricultural robot. We use reflection-in-action to consider the ways that observation, in situ making, and documentation serve to illuminate how pragmatic, aesthetic, and intellectual inquiry are layered in this applied design research project. Themes explored in this pictorial include 1) contextual discovery of materials, tools, and practices, 2) design space exploration of materials in context, 3) improvising spaces for making, and 4) social processes in design. These themes emerged from the qualitative coding of 25 reflection-in-action videos from the researcher. We conclude with feedback on the utility belt prototypes for an agriculture robot and our learnings about context, materials, and people needed to design successful novel clothing forms for robots.

翻译：机器人的服装能够拓展其功能，并帮助旁观者理解机器人的用途。通过研究如何设计机器人服装，我们可以揭示美学在交互系统设计中的功能性作用。本文以农业机器人多功能腰带设计案例研究为切入点，运用行动反思方法探讨观察、现场制作与文档记录如何揭示实用、审美与学术探究在应用设计研究项目中的叠加关系。本图示研究探索的四个主题包括：1）材料、工具与实践的情境发现；2）情境化材料的设计空间探索；3）即兴创作空间的构建；4）设计中的社会过程。这些主题源自研究者对25段行动反思视频的定性编码分析。最后，我们总结农业机器人多功能腰带的原型反馈，并阐述设计成功的新型机器人服装形式所需的情境、材料与人员要素。