Robots have enormous potential to play important roles for several of our needs, such as companionship, care, education, energy, tourism, entertainment, co-working, etc. However, there are still various constraints, which prevent the full potentials of such societal applications. There is a great need to create common ground and shared understanding about the science and technology of this new generation of socially-focused & human-centered robots, and their potentials, applications and barriers.  

Activities: 

• Session organization in ERF and other relevant venues 
• Inter-TGs Collaboration to foster bigger impact and ecosystem, e.g. Sustainability 
• Input to euRobotics strategy and roadmapping 
• Dissemination of euRobotics activities  

• TG Members’ recognitions, exposure and collaboration opportunities  
• Collectively generating scientific and technical papers, fostering joint publications 

Objectives: 

• Uncovering novel and future shaping real-world applications of socially-focused & human-centered robots. 
• Bringing diverse stakeholders together, including End Users and Public. 
• Share the insights from projects of robots’ deployments in social context, funded by the EU/industry-driven ventures/regional projects. 
• Identifying unmet needs and unlocking untapped potentials. 
• Leveraging Digital Innovation Hubs to sustain the ecosystem’s growth. 
• Engaging with policymakers to shape the expectations and future directions. 

Impact: 

• Identifying existing technological, R&D, and market barriers, and working towards their removal. 
• Elevating Europe’s global standing by collectively advancing scientific excellence, boosting business potentials, and creating and making useful impact. 
• Strengthening a committed network culture. 
• Empowering local entities and end-users to actively participate. 
• Open up new robotic business potentials through establishing a shared ground among stakeholders. 
• Facilitate collaboration by bringing potential partners together and identifying potential proposals.