From AIBO to robosphere. Organizational interdependencies in sustainable robotics

Area of Science:

• Robotics and Human-Robot Interaction
• Systems Theory and Self-Organization
• Sustainability Science

Background:

• Traditional sustainability in robotics focuses on materials, energy, and efficiency.
• Long-term robotic viability also depends on organizational interdependencies and integration into human environments.
• Existing frameworks often overlook the systemic and social dimensions of robotic sustainability.

Purpose of the Study:

• To propose a systemic perspective on robotic sustainability, viewing interdependencies as self-organizing dynamics.
• To introduce the concept of the 'robosphere' as a framework for understanding hybrid human-robot ecosystems.
• To develop systemic design principles for future sustainable human-robot interactions.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of Sony's AIBO robotic dog case study to examine long-term viability.
• Application of self-organization theory to understand socio-technical interdependencies.
• Development of the 'robosphere' concept as a theoretical model.

Main Results:

• AIBO units fostered a hybrid ecosystem where owners and repair specialists sustained robots post-discontinuation.
• The 'robosphere' framework illustrates how human-robot networks co-create resilient, sustainability-oriented systems.
• Repair, reuse, and ritual practices emerged as key interdependencies prolonging the AIBO lifecycle.

Conclusions:

• Robotic sustainability is a complex, multifactorial process rooted in organizational interdependencies, integrating technical, social, and affective dimensions.
• Hybrid socio-technical collectives can generate sustainability intrinsically through emergent properties.
• Future social robotics should be designed as integral nodes within co-evolving, sustainable human-robot ecologies, not as disposable products.