The aesthetics of robot design: towards a classification of morphologies

Robots are becoming increasingly prevalent in the workplace. As Industry 5.0 pursues human-centric technologies, a greater understanding of what effects aesthetics has on those interacting with robots is needed. This paper sets out robot morphology as a way to characterise key form types, and proposes seven classifications: anthropomorphism, zoomorphism, phytomorphism, artemorphism, functiomorphism, amorphism, and neomorphism. Through an assessment of the current robot aesthetic landscape, design dimensions are identified with examples that can inform future robot design.