As baby boomers around the world start to get elderly, health providers are concerned about the cost of caring for them, in terms of staff and resources. There are 77 million baby boomers set to retire in the next 30 years in the US alone.

The health services and aged care providers needn’t worry – the baby boomers are the fittest generation the world has ever seen, and most will live productive lives well into their 70s before they will need assistance.

What they should really be concerned about is the generation born in the years before World War 2. They are in their 60s, 70s and 80s now and through life circumstances – the Depression, world wars, forced migration - are not as fit or confident as baby boomers.

One approach to providing care for these elders is to use robots to replace care staff visiting people in their own homes.

Robots already have a confirmed place in industry, where they are more reliable and cheaper than manual workers in operating complex and dangerous machinery, for example in manufacturing cars.

They have a place in medicine, with much surgery now performed using robots and distance manipulation of robotic instruments.

Now they are set to play a more human role in helping elderly people remain safe and healthy in their own homes.

uBOT-5 Robotic Assistant

Researchers at the University of Massachusetts Amherst have developed a robotic assistant that can dial 911 in case of emergencies, remind people to take their medication, help with grocery shopping and allow the person to talk to loved ones and health care providers.

The robot, called the uBOT-5, could allow elder people to live independently, and provide relief for caregivers, the medical system and community services.

“For the first time, robots are safe enough and inexpensive enough to do meaningful work in a residential environment,” says computer scientist Rod Grupen, director of UMass Amherst’s Laboratory for Perceptual Robotics, who developed project ASSIST with computer scientists Allen Hanson and Edward Riseman.

Connection and Communication

There is no mistaking the uBot-5 for a person, but its design was inspired by human anatomy. An array of sensors acts as the robot’s eyes and ears, allowing it to recognize human activities, such as walking or sitting.

The uBOT-5 carries a web cam, a microphone, and a touch-sensitive LCD display that acts as an interface for communication with the outside world.

“Grandma can take the robot’s hand, lead it out into the garden and have a virtual visit with a grandchild who is living on the opposite coast,” says Grupen. This function may help dispel some of the depression that comes from isolation in the elderly.

The interface also allows family members to access the unit and visit their elderly parents from any Internet connection. Via the web cam they can navigate around the home and look for their relative, who may not hear the ringing phone or may be in need of assistance.

The robot can also recognize an abnormal visual event, such as a fall, and notify a remote medical caregiver. Through the 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.

Doctors can also perform virtual house calls through the interface, reducing the need for travel.

Help with Groceries, House Cleaning

The uBot-5 system can also track non-human objects. 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.

Grupen studied developmental neurology in his quest to create a robot that could do a variety of tasks in different environments. The uBot-5’s arm motors are analogous to the muscles and joints in our own arms, and it can push itself up to a vertical position if it falls over. It has a ‘spinal cord’ and the equivalent of an inner ear to keep it balanced on its Segway-like wheels.

The researchers wanted to create a personal robot that could provide many services, such as a medical alert system, or the means to talk to loved ones, all in one human-like package, according to Grupen. To evaluate the effectiveness of potential technologies, the research team worked with social workers, members of the medical community and family members of those in elder care in Project ASSIST.

I recently had a discussion with a government policy student about ‘community care’ which here is a label for the institutionalised provision (state provision mostly) of care for the needy and vulnerable which consists mainly of children and the elderly. In the UK, by 2030 it is predicted that over half of the population will be over fifty and right now there are more over 60s here than there are under 16s. I know this sounds like ‘do gooder’ speak but it’s not about that, but having compassion for those around us. I found a good info source of contacts for help with senior care. I care for a few elderly residents in my town and it gives me such satisfaction to make then more comfortable and happy. It makes me happy you could say. In short (and forgive me the rant) robots cannot replace human contact that older people need when they can no longer do for themselves. In some tough I think it could prevent some older people having to go into a care home as they will have a robotic device to do some fetching, carrying etc cool site