NRI: Robot-Assisted Longitudinal Physical and Cognitive Exercise Interventions for Older Veterans

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The proposed research will study the effects of robot-mediated physical and cognitive exercise activities on older adult wellness, in particular when the intervention has been designed with stakeholders (e.g., skilled nursing facility staff and residents) in the loop and with the ability to adapt to changes in user ability over longitudinal use (as measured using assessments built into the exercise activities). As the worldwide population of older adults grows, the need for new resources to support wellness in older adult communities also rises. In particular, limitations are already present in resources available to encourage physical activity, cognitive exercise, social connectedness, and entertainment for members of these communities. Thus, to ensure healthy aging opportunities for older adults, there is a critical need to (1) design autonomous robotic systems to support these types of needs, (2) enable these systems with the ability to learn and adapt over time to maintain relevance and interest, and (3) to deploy these robotic systems for extended periods of time in the environments of interest. The proposed work is unique in its research team, proposed exercise activities, methods of tracking user ability levels, and consideration of long-term deployments in real environments of interest. The PIs' partnership with a gerontologist (as Senior Personnel) and local skilled nursing facility (as a key collaborator) from the start of the project supports this project's ability to successfully investigate a new robot deployment application. The proposed exercise activities, as initially prototyped in the PI's past work, combine physical and cognitive elements to different degrees depending on the activity, thereby encouraging more mental engagement with physical tasks than pure physical exercise would typically yield (and vice versa). Similarly, the updating of exercises over time supports continued engagement with the robotic system and skill improvement in ways that most current tools do not allow for. Lastly, the planned longitudinal deployment facilitates understanding how this type of robotic system can lead to meaningful change in wellness (e.g., physical, cognitive, and psychological well-being) for older adults. RELEVANCE (See instructions): The core research goal of this proposal centers on the human-centered design and long-term deployment of robots that can promote wellness in older adult communities (e.g., assisted living communities, skilled nursing facilities). In alignment with NIA interests, the project will conduct participatory robotic intervention design with older adult and skilled nursing facility stakeholders, perform design-build-test cycles of the resultant robotic intervention systems, and evaluate robotic system impact on health-related metrics.