VictoryaHome

Description

What if at Irene's home there was a robot that "knows" what is happening with her in the house and share this knowledge with her carers? It does not tell all it knows, but will let them know when there might be a problem. The robot knows its user, if she took medication and when, whether she is taking enough water and what her activity level is. It also knows if she has fallen down and can automatically call someone to help.

At this stage the carer can come in the house "virtually" using the tele-presence function. The robot will put in the older adult's hands the responsibility of drinking water more frequently, taking the medicines on time and being more active. She knows this will let her carers stay informed regarding key status indicators and activities, showing she is OK so that the carers will feel greater confidence as a result. Four trials will take place in Norway, Sweden, the Netherlands and Portugal where older adults at home and remote informal carers will interact with the developed product.

Goals

The key advantage of the Victorya - a robot for integrated care@home and peace of mind of carers, is that it does not depend wholly on automated functions, but augments them with immediate human presence when needed or desired by older adult user. The project is not only about responding to specific problems, but mainly promotes self-care and allows the carers to know that everything is fine.