Touch‑Interaction Tests with Xiao‑Hong Robot Yield Critical Data on Microgravity Mobility

Beijing, 18 Oct – During the recent operational window of the Shancho‑23 flight, astronauts partnered with the autonomous robot Xiao‑Hong to perform a series of touch‑interaction trials. The crew applied varied contact forces to the robot’s manipulators while the system recorded positional shifts, speed variations and stability metrics.

Because the robot’s behavior changes markedly in the absence of gravity, the collected dataset will be essential for calibrating motion‑planning software and ensuring safe human‑robot collaboration on future orbital platforms.

The experiment coincided with the completion of the rice seed‑collection cycle, demonstrating the crew’s ability to multitask across biological, robotic and human‑performance domains.