Call for Papers
We can expect the field of robot human collaborations to grow in the service sectors will see more advanced and skilled humanoid robots working alongside humans. As applications for end users continue to expand, the deployment of advanced, interactive, humanoid robots is expected to become more prevalent and more understanding of the use in real-world service contexts is needed. To ensure that this happens in a purposeful, human-friendly, and sustainable way, we need to study robots and the way they can interact with humans and also develop use cases together with the professionals in the field, in the organizations, in the companies to together learn about what a purposeful deployment in respective context can be. Utilizing the design thinking methodology is one way to make sure that a holistic and also cross-disciplinary understanding of the end user is secured. The methodology used in the workhop emphasizes human-centric design, multi-perspective and early involvement of all stakeholders. When working according to service design principles the planning and initial research phase together with end users is crucial.

This workshop builds on design thinking traditions, design sprint methodologies and service design approaches while critically extending these with co-creation perspectives. The participants will gain a great understanding of how co-creation can be done together with the professionals. They will also get a first hand understanding of tools that can be used in co-creation work.

The focus areas include, but not limited to:
  • Human-robot interaction (HRI)
  • Humanoid
  • Service robots
  • Service context
  • Co-creation
  • Design thinking
  • Human-centric design
Location
Åbo Akademi University
Vaasa, Finland
Important dates
Pre-task deadline:
TBA
Notification of acceptance:
TBA
Workshop date:
October 3, 2026
Facilitators

  • Christa Tigerstedt (Lead) (Arcada University of Applied Sciences, Finland)
  • Dennis Biström (Arcada University of Applied Sciences/Åbo Akademi, Finland)
  • Eva Edgren (Arcada University of Applied Sciences, Finland)
  • Truong-An Pham (Arcada University of Applied Sciences/Aalto University, Finland)
Website/Publicity Chair

Dennis Biström (Arcada University of Applied Sciences/Åbo Akademi, Finland)
Truong-An Pham (Arcada University of Applied Sciences/Aalto University, Finland)
Pre-task Instructions

To attend the workshop, submit a short description of your experiences from and interest in HRI with the shape of a short position paper or a statement of interest(up to 2 pages). We recommend to follow formatting guidelines of NordiCHI 2026.

Submission channel:


To Christa Tigerstedt (Lead) via christa.tigerstedt@arcada.fi

For any question or concern, please contact Truong-An Pham via truongan.pham@arcada.fi