Human-Robot Interaction for Children with Cerebral Palsy: Reflection and Suggestion for Interactive Scenario Design

AbstractThis paper explains how a humanoid robot NAO can be used as an assistive technology in specific therapy for children with cerebral palsy (CP). The role of the robot is to motivate the children as to keep them engaged in therapy. To achieve this, the robot must have appropriate appearance to be able to establish affective engagement between child and robot. In addition, the robot should exhibit the right therapeutic approach of managing children with CP. How the humanoid robot NAO acts as a tool to assist in improving the outcome of conventional therapy especially by imitation learning will also be explained. Four interactive scenarios in human-robot interaction (HRI) were designed based on the measurement items in Gross Motor Functional Measure (GMFM). The scenarios will then be constructed based on suitability that will be executed by the robot. As a result from the discussions between clinicians, therapists and engineers, four interactive scenarios consists of introductory rapport, sit to stand, body balancing and ball kicking activity have been formulated. The study has been performed in collaboration between the Faculty of Medicine and the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering at the Medical Specialist Centre, Discipline of Rehabilitation Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, UiTM Sungai Buloh, Selangor, Malaysia

Healthcare Robotics

Robots have the potential to be a game changer in healthcare: improving health and well-being, filling care gaps, supporting care givers, and aiding health care workers. However, before robots are able to be widely deployed, it is crucial that both the research and industrial communities work together to establish a strong evidence-base for healthcare robotics, and surmount likely adoption barriers. This article presents a broad contextualization of robots in healthcare by identifying key stakeholders, care settings, and tasks; reviewing recent advances in healthcare robotics; and outlining major challenges and opportunities to their adoption.Comment: 8 pages, Communications of the ACM, 201

Hospital robot at work: something alien or an intelligent colleague?

LIRE

In-home and remote use of robotic body surrogates by people with profound motor deficits

By controlling robots comparable to the human body, people with profound motor deficits could potentially perform a variety of physical tasks for themselves, improving their quality of life. The extent to which this is achievable has been unclear due to the lack of suitable interfaces by which to control robotic body surrogates and a dearth of studies involving substantial numbers of people with profound motor deficits. We developed a novel, web-based augmented reality interface that enables people with profound motor deficits to remotely control a PR2 mobile manipulator from Willow Garage, which is a human-scale, wheeled robot with two arms. We then conducted two studies to investigate the use of robotic body surrogates. In the first study, 15 novice users with profound motor deficits from across the United States controlled a PR2 in Atlanta, GA to perform a modified Action Research Arm Test (ARAT) and a simulated self-care task. Participants achieved clinically meaningful improvements on the ARAT and 12 of 15 participants (80%) successfully completed the simulated self-care task. Participants agreed that the robotic system was easy to use, was useful, and would provide a meaningful improvement in their lives. In the second study, one expert user with profound motor deficits had free use of a PR2 in his home for seven days. He performed a variety of self-care and household tasks, and also used the robot in novel ways. Taking both studies together, our results suggest that people with profound motor deficits can improve their quality of life using robotic body surrogates, and that they can gain benefit with only low-level robot autonomy and without invasive interfaces. However, methods to reduce the rate of errors and increase operational speed merit further investigation.Comment: 43 Pages, 13 Figure

Towards an Implantable Vestibular Prosthesis: The Surgical Challenges

Published versio

Art and Medicine: A Collaborative Project Between Virginia Commonwealth University in Qatar and Weill Cornell Medicine in Qatar

Four faculty researchers, two from Virginia Commonwealth University in Qatar, and two from Weill Cornell Medicine in Qatar developed a one semester workshop-based course in Qatar exploring the connections between art and medicine in a contemporary context. Students (6 art / 6 medicine) were enrolled in the course. The course included presentations by clinicians, medical engineers, artists, computing engineers, an art historian, a graphic designer, a painter, and other experts from the fields of art, design, and medicine. To measure the student experience of interdisciplinarity, the faculty researchers employed a mixed methods approach involving psychometric tests and observational ethnography. Data instruments included pre- and post-course semi-structured audio interviews, pre-test / post-test psychometric instruments (Budner Scale and Torrance Tests of Creativity), observational field notes, self-reflective blogging, and videography. This book describes the course and the experience of the students. It also contains images of the interdisciplinary work they created for a culminating class exhibition. Finally, the book provides insight on how different fields in a Middle Eastern context can share critical /analytical thinking tools to refine their own professional practices

Integrated electronic prescribing and robotic dispensing: a case study

INTRODUCTION: To quantify the benefits of electronic prescribing directly linked to a robotic dispensing machine. CASE DESCRIPTION: Quantitative case study analysis is used on a single case. Hospital A (1,000 beds) has used an integrated electronic prescribing system for 10 years, and in 2009 linked two robotic dispensing machines to the system. The impact on dispensing error rates (quality) and efficiency (costs) were assessed. EVALUATION AND DISCUSSION: The implementation delivered staff efficiencies above expectation. For the out-patient department, this was 16% more than the business case had suggested. For the in-patients dispensary, four staff were released for re-deployment. Additionally, £500,000 in stockholding efficiency above that suggested by the business case was identified. Overall dispensing error rates were not adversely affected and products dispensed by the electronic prescribing - robot system produced zero dispensing errors. The speed of dispensing increased also, as the electronic prescribing - robot combination permitted almost instantaneous dispensing from the point of a doctor entering a prescription. CONCLUSION: It was significant that the combination of electronic prescribing and a robot eliminated dispensing errors. Any errors that did occur were not as a result of the electronic prescribing - robotic system (i.e. the product was not stocked within the robot). The direct linking of electronic prescribing and robots as a dispensing system together produces efficiencies and improves the quality of the dispensing process

Motion Optimization using Modified Kalman Filter for Invers-Kinematics based Multi DOF Arm Robot

The development of technology today is very rapid, one of which is robotics technology. Currently robots have a very important role for human life, one of them is in the fields of health and medicine. This type of robot has evolved much like humans even though only certain parts, such as legs and arms. One of the imperfections of humans is paralysis of the arm. Paralysis in the arm is a disruption of motion in the human arm. Impaired function can be caused by genetic disorders, accidents or diseases. Research was developed to make a tool that is used to overcome these functional disorders. The robotics research developed is the exoskeleton robot for the arm. Exoskeleton is a supporting structure from the outside of the body. The exoskeleton has prospective applications for rehabilitation or assistive devices. This robot can help patients who are weak and paralyzed to regain independent life with the ability to carry out daily activities, especially in the movement of the arms. So in this paper examines the estimates for the angle velocities of shoulder joint and the angle velocities of elbow joint on the am robot, to determine the movement of the robot arm only on the x and y axes. The simulation result showed that the simulation with the lower error has an accuracy more than 96%. The Angle Velocities of Shoulder Joint error of x is 0.0195 rad/s, and Angle Velocities of Shoulder Joint which is 0.02883 rad/s