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Robotic Elder Care?

by Elizabeth on May 8th, 2008

Researchers at the University of Massachusetts Amherst have developed a robot that can be used to assist an elderly person by dialing 911, issuing medication reminders, grocery shopping, interact with family and caregivers and more:

It can also recognize an abnormal visual event, such as a fall, and notify a remote medical caregiver. Through an interface, the remote service provider may ask the client to speak, smile or raise both arms, movements that the robot can demonstrate. If the person is unresponsive, the robot can call 911, alert family and apply a digital stethoscope to a patient, conveying information to an emergency medical technician who is en route.

The system also tracks what isn’t human. If a delivery person leaves a package in a hallway, the sensor array is trained to notice when a path is blocked, and the robot can move the obstruction out of the way. It can also raise its outstretched arms, carry a load of about 2.2 pounds and has the potential to perform household tasks that require a fair amount of dexterity, including cleaning and grocery shopping.

I think this is fascinating and there’s certainly an application for this type of assistance, but in my own experience, the type of elder care that causes stress for families is the need for physical support with ambulation, activities of daily living, bathing, toileting, cooking and feeding.

If someone lives alone and can operate this type of device, then they might not be at the stage that depletes financial and emotional resources and this is where we need the changes in elder care.

But, it’s still nifty.

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POSTED IN: Aging, Assisted Living, Technology