Design for Service with Robots in Elderly Care Facilities in Japan Focusing on Human-to-Human Interaction

Abstract

Abstract In 2010, seven per cent of the population in Asia was elderly, and this proportion is expected to reach 14 per cent by 2035. Japan was one of the first countries in the world to experience a declining birth rate and ageing population; with its extensive experience in this field, Japan needs to strengthen its cooperation with other countries in the region to deal with the problems of an ageing society and social security systems. In particular, the demand for medical care, elder care and health-related industries is expected to be high in Asian countries with ageing societies. This chapter focuses on elder care services in Japan and discusses service design and business transformation. The use of service robots to address the shortage of workers to assist the increasing number of elderly people is attracting attention. However, there is resistance to technology and robots among the elderly. Through fieldwork at an elder care facility and the implementation of prototypes for service with robots focusing on human-to-human interaction (HHI), we discuss what needs to be considered when designing service robots in the context of elderly care in Japan and and what’s the role of service design for that.