Translating Care Needs into Robotic Assistance: How Caregivers Are Onboarded in the Deployment of Commercial Robots in Home Settings

Abstract

The growing population of individuals with mild cognitive impairment and dementia places increasing demands on home-care systems, while staff shortages and high caregiver workloads underscore the need for assistive technologies. However, research on implementing these technologies in home care practice remains limited. This study examines professional caregivers’ digital onboarding of Tessa, a social robot that supports through verbal reminders. A conceptual digital onboarding probe was evaluated with novice, experienced, and expert users. Findings indicate that the onboarding process improves usability and efficiency by providing intuitive guidance and structured workflows. Additionally, LLMs can translate caregiver-provided goals into actionable robot scripts, though oversight remains essential for quality assurance. The probe and LLM support more effective onboarding and enhance caregiver’s user experience.