Mobile Human-Robot Interaction for personalized Health Training

Abstract

North-Western Germany and the Northern Netherlands Provinces have experienced increasing rural youth-out migration over the last decades. This has had stark economic, social and health implications for elderly populations that continue to reside in these areas. Many are at risk of spending their final years in isolation and increasing immobility, which has a severe impact on people's quality of life in older age and can lead to illness and loss of independence. In order to combat this problem a mobile training assistant application for movement exercises that utilizes a humanoid robot, NAO by Softbank Robotics, was prototypically implemented. The training assistant is designed to be used at home or in senior groups in isolated communities. Primarily, it is aimed to mobilize elderly people to empower them to live independent lives in their own homes and communities for as long as possible. The training assistant has been developed with elderly care workers and physiotherapists.