Development and Usability Validation of a Social Robot Platform for Physical and Cognitive Stimulation in Elder Care Facilities

Abstract

This article shows our work for developing an elder care platform for social interaction and physical and cognitive stimulation using the Pepper robot and Android OS as clients, based on the knowledge acquired on our long-term social robotics research experience. The first results of the user’s acceptance of the solution are presented in this article. The platform is able to provide different services to the user, such as information, news, games, exercises or music. The games, which have a bi-modal way of interacting (speech and a touch screen interface), have been designed for cognitive stimulation based on the items of the mini-mental state examination. The results of the user’s performance are stored in a cloud database and can be reviewed by therapists through a web interface that also allows them to establish customized therapy plans for each user. The platform has been tested and validated, first using adult people and then deployed to an elder care facility where the robot has been interacting with users for a long period of time. The results and feedback received have shown that the robot can help to keep the users physically and mentally active as well as establish an emotional link between the user and the robot.