Alice in DIY wonderland or: Instructing novice users on how to use tools in DIY projects

We present the interactive assistant Robert that provides situation-adaptive support in the realisation of do-it-yourself (DIY) home improvement projects. Robert assists its users by providing comprehensive step-by-step instructions for completing the DIY project. Each instruction is illustrated with detailed graphics, written and spoken text, as well as with videos. They explain how the steps of the project have to be prepared and assembled and give precise instructions on how to operate the required electric devices. The step-by-step instructions are generated by a hierarchical planner, which enables Robert to adapt to a multitude of environments easily. Parts of the underlying model are derived from an ontology storing information about the available devices and resources. A dialogue manager capable of natural language interaction is responsible for hands-free interaction. We explain the required background technology and present preliminary results of an empirical evaluation.