In this paper, we describe the concept of remixing playware, which allows sampling and remixing of both physical and functional (e.g. music content) aspects of a system. Such remixing playware has a number of distinguished features which are explained in the paper: user-configurable modularity, which allows the user to interact and manipulate with samples; user-guided behavior-based system, which allows music compositions to emerge from the way performer interacts with the instruments that provide the primitive behaviours; intelligent sampling as the ability of creating samples that allow anybody to remix with the samples ensuring an engaging outcome. The paper exemplifies remixing playware with a variety of implementations in RoboMusic concerts, the virtual MusicTiles app, the physical MagicCubes, the physical dices in Peter Gabriel concerts, and the S'n'S system. These examples focus on music creation and performance, based upon the concept of RoboMusic, and it is argued that the concept of remixing playware extends to many other application areas of playware

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This paper presents Squeeze Me, a squeezable device used to grab attention from the mobile robot Care-Obot, providing ground for expressive values to be shared between person and robot in a smart environment. Squeeze Me consists of a soft rubbery interactive cover, that can be mounted on a tablet, to enable expression-rich communication. The cover embeds two specifically designed resistive analogue pressure sensors. The expressions exerted on the device by the person are mapped to movements of the robot as well as to an expressive mask displayed on the graphical user interface (GUI) of the tablet that is used to control the robot. This mask shows the robot's view on the environment as well as its internal states (feelings). A short pinch exercised by the person on the cover results in a sturdy movement of the robot. A hard squeeze results in a quick movement and a gentle touch in a slow approach. All changes in movement are mapped to the modifications in the expressions of the mask, e.g. from neutral to surprise, or joy, depending on the context of interaction. The paper describes the design and implementation of the Squeeze Me prototype, together with a scenario of use in the context of an older person - robot interaction

This paper describes an explorative study to evaluate a dynamic expressive mask associated to a remote robot-view used to control an assistive robot. The mask is generated by a graphical-user-interface platform displayed on a tablet used to control the robot in a smart home environment. The hypothesis of the study is that when robot's behaviour conforms to human social expectations, interactions are more likely to be found enjoyable and meaningful by people. Furthermore the expressivity of the mask is expected to result in empathic interactions with the robot and therefore to sustain rich and meaningful social exchanges. In this study we compared four scenarios of interaction between a robot and a person at home. The scenarios depicted scenes where the robot was asked to execute tasks. Each scenario was showed in two versions: with a static robot-view and with a dynamic, expressive robot-view. The results of a questionnaire administered to 60 persons showed a preference of people to interact with the dynamic expressive mask. Expressivity was a means to stimulate empathic concern and to facilitate perspective taking during the execution of the scenarios

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