Mobile manipulator platforms, like the Stretch RE1 robot, make the promise of in-home robotic assistance feasible. For people with severe physical limitations, like those with quadriplegia, the ability to tele-operate these robots themselves means that they can perform physical tasks they cannot otherwise do themselves, thereby increasing their level of independence. In order for users with physical limitations to operate these robots, their interfaces must be accessible and cater to the specific needs of all users. As physical limitations vary amongst users, it is difficult to make a single interface that will accommodate all users. Instead, such interfaces should be customizable to each individual user. In this paper we explore the value of customization of a browser-based interface for tele-operating the Stretch RE1 robot. More specifically, we evaluate the usability and effectiveness of a customized interface in comparison to the default interface configurations from prior work. We present a user study involving participants with motor impairments (N=10) and without motor impairments, who could serve as a caregiver, (N=13) that use the robot to perform mobile manipulation tasks in a real kitchen environment. Our study demonstrates that no single interface configuration satisfies all users' needs and preferences. Users perform better when using the customized interface for navigation, but not for manipulation due to higher complexity of learning to manipulate through the robot. All participants are able to use the robot to complete all tasks and participants with motor impairments believe that having the robot in their home would make them more independent.

翻译：移动操作平台（如Stretch RE1机器人）使得家庭机器人辅助成为可能。对于患有严重肢体障碍（如四肢瘫痪）的用户而言，能够自主远程操控这些机器人意味着他们可以完成原本无法独立完成的物理任务，从而提升自理能力。为使存在肢体障碍的用户能够操作这些机器人，其界面必须具备可访问性，并满足所有用户的特定需求。由于不同用户的肢体限制存在差异，很难设计出适配所有用户的单一界面。因此，此类界面应支持针对每位用户的个性化定制。本文探讨了用于操控Stretch RE1机器人的浏览器界面的定制价值。具体而言，我们评估了定制化界面相较于先前工作中默认界面配置的可用性与有效性。我们开展了一项用户研究，参与者包括运动障碍患者（N=10）及可作为照护者的非运动障碍人士（N=13），要求其在真实厨房环境中使用机器人完成移动操作任务。研究表明，没有任何一种界面配置能同时满足所有用户的需求与偏好。用户在导航任务中使用定制化界面表现更优，但在操作任务中因需通过机器人学习更复杂的操控技能而未呈现显著优势。所有参与者均能使用机器人完成全部任务，且运动障碍参与者认为在家中配备机器人将提升其生活独立性。