Servo - January 2016

64 SERVO 01.2016

envisioned an elder care robot, depicted in the drawing in Figure 6.

You may notice that the two arms on the robot resemble the popular Puma robot arms that Engelberger’s original company, Unimation helped develop.

These ‘articulated’ or ‘jointed’ arms are similar to human arms.

The Home-Based Personal Assistant Robot for Seniors

Certainly, any robot that enters the human body and cuts away on bodily tissues like the da Vinci surgical robot requires intensive scrutiny and certification by the FDA and numerous other government agencies. These types of robots also require many hours of training in their use for the surgeons who will utilize them.

However, a home-based personal assistant robot that is operated by a senior in need of assistance or by an untrained helper in the home has frightening liability possibilities for potential companies. This applies especially to robots that might physically assist a person in their home.

It is this fact that has caused many potential entrepreneurs to step back a bit and wait to see if others will enter the field to produce a personal assistant robot to extend independent living for seniors.

Looking at the latest census figures, there were 44. 7 million people 65 years or older living in the US in 2013 (the last year such data was gathered). If only 10% of this group was able to purchase a robot to assist them in their daily lives, that number would be over four million robots — a huge market. Unlike a robot designed to assist a disabled person, the elderly generally have very similar physical needs. The personal assistant robot for this group needs to be just a single design, with possible accessories and upgrades available to the buyer.

To faithful readers of this magazine, it is no secret that I have long been interested in developing a personal assistant robot to allow the elderly to keep their independence. Back in the ‘90s when I lived in Long Beach, CA, I interviewed a number of seniors in an assisted living facility about the possibility of having a robot assist them there. As you might imagine, some said something to this effect: “I don’t want some machine following me around,” or, “What if the robot goes berserk or Some people were quite wary of a robot assistant near them — at first.

Others had the opposite feelings, such as: “For what I pay for this place each month, I could have a house full of robot servants.” (Not really.) A strong majority of feelings remained among those whom I interviewed: “I would have done anything to be able to stay in my own home and retain my independence. I just need a little bit of help during the day.” The average monthly cost of assistive living centers in the US is $3,600 a month — far above the average Social Security income of most seniors. If a high-end personal assistant robot cost just half the $43,200 yearly cost of a center, the robot could pay for itself in just one year — even with home expenses.

Robotic Social Interaction Will Soon be a Reality

One of the most unique robots that has been in the news lately is the Jibo designed by Cynthia Breazeal (a photo of which is shown in Figure 7 with Dr. Breazeal and her software architect, Jonathan Ross). Breazeal is listed as Associate Professor of Media Arts and Sciences at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and was the director of the Personal Robots Group before starting her own company. The ‘arts and sciences’ background mystifies a few people until they realize her degrees are a BS in Electrical and Computer Engineering from UC Santa Barbara, and a master’s and doctorate in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from MIT.

Kismet (shown in Figure 8) was her earliest claim to fame that solidified her title as the leader in social robot design. The robot head was her doctoral thesis project.

Jibo is known as the ‘world’s first social robot for the home.’ The photo of Jibo in Figure 8 does not give an accurate view of this amazing robot. You must see the robot in action to get a true understanding of how the robot looks and moves and sounds. Yes, moves and speaks. It is not just a half dome sitting on a table like a