Flobi Avoids Uncanny Valley

In case you didn’t know, the “Uncanny Valley” hypothesis holds that when robots look and act too much like actual human beings, it actually causes revulsion among humans.

The emotional response of human subjects is plotted against the anthropomorphism of a robot, revealing the Uncanny Valley

So instead of trying to mimic the human face exactly, German engineers at Bielefeld University have designed a robotic head called Flobi that can express emotions, while avoiding the creep factor associated with the Uncanny Valley.

Flobi

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