Proof of Concept
Adapting a General Purpose Robot for Paediatric Rehabilitation: In-situ Design of a Socially Assistive Robot
Carrillo FM, Butchart J, Knight S, Scheinberg A, Wise L, Sterling L & McCarthy C
Link to article:https://arxiv.org/abs/1705.05142
Objective: Socially Assistive Robots are engaging and motivating. For social robots in pediatric rehabilitation, what are the therapist, carer and patient-centric properties needed for robots to be effective stand-alone therapeutic aids? What are the lessons from ongoing use in a clinical setting?
Process: Development began with weekly visits to clinic with the robot to stimulate brief discussions with parents and therapists; and interactions with children, followed by programmers involving therapists in cycles of programming the NAO robot and reviewing the exercise sequences. Later development shifted the sole operation of the robot to therapists, parents and care-givers. Clinical use of the robot had 5 therapists working with 9 patients over 14 sessions and continued the iterative design process.
Outcomes: The authors state: “this (deployment) approach has led to a system that not only meets minimum operational and therapeutic requirements for clinical deployment, but also has clearly established priorities for further development as we prepare for formal clinical trials of the socially assistive robot for pediatric rehabilitation.”