Steinfeld received the Test of Time Award on behalf of his team at the 2026 ACM/IEEE International Conference on Human-Robot Interaction in Edinburgh.
A team led by Carnegie Mellon University’s Aaron Steinfeld has earned the inaugural Test of Time Award at the 2026 ACM/IEEE International Conference on Human-Robot Interaction (HRI). The award honors research with lasting impact on the field of human-robot interaction.
Steinfeld, a research professor in the School of Computer Science’s Robotics Institute, and his collaborators were recognized for their paper, “Common Metrics for Human Robot Interaction.”
The work, originally published in 2006, examines how to measure collaboration between humans and robots. In it, the researchers outline a framework for evaluating how robots perform everyday tasks, such as understanding their surroundings, coordinating with humans, handling objects and engaging socially, across varying levels of autonomy. They also organize a toolkit that allows scientists to compare systems more reliably, and argue that studies must include a broad range of users — not just experts — to better reflect real-world use as robots become more common.
In addition to Steinfeld, the paper’s authors included Michael Lewis, a professor in the Department of Informatics and Networked Systems at the University of Pittsburgh; Jean Scholtz, formerly at the National Institute of Standards and Technology; Terrence Fong, senior scientist for Autonomous Systems at NASA Ames Research Center; David Kaber, the College of Engineering Dean’s Professor at Oregon State University; Alan Schultz, formerly at the Navy Research Lab; and Michael Goodrich, a computer science professor at Brigham Young University.
“I was the instigator, but this was very much a team effort. It started because Mike Lewis, Jean Scholtz and I saw a keynote talk at a non-robotics conference and I expressed concern to them about diverging terminology and concepts slowing down the emerging field of human-robot interaction,” Steinfeld said. “They agreed with my concern and offered to help promote a common language for HRI evaluation. We then recruited the others as the work ramped up. It’s rewarding to see that the ideas we outlined are still shaping how researchers evaluate and compare systems today.”
The HRI Test of Time (ToT) Award is a new annual award established to recognize papers that have made formative contributions to shaping the field; introduced new ways of thinking or working; and continue to influence research, practice and industry over time. The other ToT winner, also published at CMU, is 2013’s “Legibility and Predictability of Robot Motion,” written by alumna Anca Dragan; Siddhartha Srinivasa, formerly of the RI and now at the University of Washington; and Kenton Lee of the University of Pennsylvania.
The awards were presented earlier this month in Edinburgh, Scotland. For more information, visit the HRI website.
For More Information: Aaron Aupperlee | 412-268-9068 | aaupperlee@cmu.edu