State must be visible at a distance
Aliases: glanceable robot status · remote state awareness · peripheral status display
What it is
At-a-distance state visibility lets someone identify operational and hazard-relevant state before entering a robot's workspace. It concerns viewing angle, recognition distance, and glance duration rather than detail visible on a nearby screen. Coverage must match the space affected by the robot.
Why it happens
Text and small icons vanish with visual angle, while people, payloads, and the robot itself cause occlusion. A passer-by often offers only a glance and classifies colour, rhythm, source location, and posture. Cues need visible placement, contrast, and consistent meaning across approach directions to support pre-entry action.
Studying it
Distance, angle, illumination, occlusion, and walking speed can be varied to map recognition accuracy, confidence, latency, and spatial coverage. Testing should occur during a primary task and include sensory variation. Distances should follow real workspace and braking geometry, not laboratory convenience.
Where it stops holding
Visibility does not license unlimited brightness or sound in hospitals, homes, or night settings. Corners, shelving, and a robot's rear create blind regions requiring environmental signalling or access control. Salience without understood semantics only captures attention.
Applying it
- Derive recognition distance from the workspace boundary and worst approach, repeating core state on several sides.
- Measure contrast, localisation, and coverage under target light and occlusion rather than approving drawings.
- Ask moving first-time observers to classify state before entry, tracking misses, confusions, and late decisions.