Parliamentary report recognises University assistive technology project
Tuesday, 17 July 2012
A user interacting with Hector the robot developed by the European FP7 CompanionAble Project led by Professor Atta Badii, Intelligent Systems Research Laboratory, University of Reading
'This research project represents one way in which technology can help people stay independent for longer, receive care in their own homes and avoid unplanned hospital admissions.'
The CompanionAble project, a €7.8 million EU funded project led by the University's Intelligent Systems Research Laboratory, designed to improve the lives of older people, has been recognised as a key project in the field of assistive technology by a recent Parliamentary report.
The project, involving 19 EU partner institutions, integrates a mobile assistive robot to work collaboratively with a smart home and remote control centre in order to better support older people living at home.
It cited as one of the leading projects in the field by the Foundation for Assistive Technology (FAST) report, which is produced on behalf of the Department of Health in response to the increasing impact on health and social care services of an ageing population.
At the centre of the CompanionAble project is Hector the robot, which is designed to support older people who wish to live independently at home. It recognises their needs for mental stimulation to ward off depression and to prevent or delay any decline in cognitive function. It also incorporates a safety monitoring system sufficient to alert a remote care centre if required, for example, in the case of a fall.
Hector's functionality includes diary management, aide memoire services such as reminders for taking medicines on time, video conferencing with carers and friends, as well as direct robot assistance control by a remote care centre in case of emergencies.
Led by Professor Atta Badii, the project has just completed its final trials with older people in Holland and Belgium. Professor Badii, said: "The CompanionAble programme was motivated by a vision to provide socially responsible, responsive and affordable care facilitated by on-demand robot services. These services could be added into any ordinary or smart home installation as a means of providing additional information and care support, either on a continuing basis or for specific periods, such as during convalescence or for respite care as required.
"The Department of Health is predicting an increase of 252% in people aged over 65 with one or more long term conditions by 2050. They refer to this as a ‘ticking time bomb' which could make the NHS unsustainable. This research project represents one way in which technology can help people stay independent for longer, receive care in their own homes and avoid unplanned hospital admissions."
The research project combines robotics with sensors placed around specific spaces in the home as needed, to create an assistive environment for care givers so that they could provide cognitive stimulation and therapy for the people that they are supporting.
The project was selected as one of only two initiatives from amongst 50 "star innovation projects" to be demonstrated to the EU President and Commissioner for Research, Innovation and Science at the European Innovation Convention in December 2011.
More information on the project can be found at http://www.companionable.net/
Watch a video of Hector the CompanionAble project in action >>>