Designing a Robot Assistant for Professional Painters through User-Centered Design
F. Jansen (TU Delft - Industrial Design Engineering)
M.C. Rozendaal – Mentor (TU Delft - Human Technology Relations)
J.H. Boyle – Graduation committee member (TU Delft - Materializing Futures)
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Abstract
This report presents the design of a robotic assistant aimed at supporting professional painters by reducing physical strain and improving efficiency on the job. The three main design goals were to define the robot’s desired functionalities, design an intuitive user interaction, and create a physical embodiment that aligns with the aesthetic preferences of painters.
The painting profession poses significant physical and ergonomic challenges. Painters often carry heavy materials, work in awkward positions, and perform repetitive motions, leading to long-term health problems and dropouts. As a result, the field struggles to attract younger workers, making it necessary to introduce an innovation to reduce the physical workload.
A user-centered design approach was applied to develop an ideal robotic assistant tailored to the needs of painters. By involving painters throughout each phase of the project, the design process ensured the solution closely aligned with their expectations and increased the likelihood of user acceptance. This research explored how a robotic cart could help reduce physical workload, encourage better ergonomic practices, and improve overall efficiency on the job. It also addressed broader challenges in the painting profession, such as weather-dependent task planning and communication within multilingual teams.
Painters from both industrial and residential contexts were involved in the entire design process through interviews, site visits, co-creation sessions, and user evaluations. The project explored various functionalities and forms of the robot, and iteratively developed a concept based on user feedback. Prototypes, sketches, models and other visual tools were used to generate and evaluate ideas.
Early on in the process, interviews revealed that while painters are resistant to robots performing painting tasks, they are open to a supportive robotic assistant. One that stays close by, carries and organises their tools and materials, measures temperature and humidity level and gives weather advice to improve planning their tasks, charges batteries for their electronic devices, lights up the workspace, and helps with communication. The robot should be robust, sleek, easy to use, and visibly present to avoid accidents. Painters wanted to control the behaviour of the robot through simple operating modes like “follow,” “work,” and “park.”. To accommodate different user preferences, the robot can be operated using voice commands or an interactive screen.
The project serves as a solid foundation for a feasible, accepted robotic solution for professional painers. Future work should focus on technical development, interface testing, manufacturability, and business feasibility to move the product toward real-world implementation.