Applying motor resonance to humanoid robots

As humanoid robots are likely to become present in our societies, it is important to understand humans’ reactions to these agents and to develop neuromimetic models of robots’ motor learning. Motor resonance is an emerging framework based the overlap between neural processes involved in the execution and the perception of human actions. In this review of previous works, I will present a paradigm that has demonstrated that humanoid robots cause motor resonance in humans. Motor resonance has also been applied to motor learning by imitation, demonstrating that basic forms of imitation can emerge in a simple robotic system controlled by visuomotor association network. These practical applications of motor resonance to the study and implementation of human-robot interactions provide a promising neuromimetic framework for further developments in humanoid robotics.