Older people and robotic technologies in the home

Abstract

This paper presents a review of research on robotic interventions for older people living at home. More specifically, it reviews results from the recent literature, from the point of view of the tasks that robots are being designed to carry out; the needs and values of older people with regard to robotic interventions; methods of working with older people; barriers to robot acceptance and ways of overcoming these barriers. This review will be useful to the robot research community for deepening understanding of the many interrelated issues involved in assistive robots for older people. In addition, it can be helpful for multidisciplinary design teams to encourage knowledge sharing across disciplines and building upon research results.