Introducing M: A Modular, Modifiable Social Robot

Abstract:We present M, an open-source, low-cost tabletop social robot platform aimed at lowering barriers to social robotics research by making robots easier to reproduce, modify, and deploy in real-world settings. M combines a modular mechanical design, multimodal sensing, and expressive yet mechanically simple actuation architecture with a ROS2-native software package that cleanly separates perception, expression control, and data management. The platform includes a simulation environment with interface equivalence to hardware to support easy sim-to-real transfer of interaction behaviors. We demonstrate extensibility through additional sensing/actuation modules and provide example interaction templates for storytelling and two-way conversational coaching. Lastly, we report real-world use of M in interaction design and week-long in-home deployments, showing how M can serve as a practical platform for longitudinal, reproducible social robotics research.

Robotics (cs.RO); Human-Computer Interaction (cs.HC)

arXiv:2603.19134 [cs.RO]

(or arXiv:2603.19134v2 [cs.RO] for this version)

https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2603.19134 Focus to learn more arXiv-issued DOI via DataCite

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