Guides and animations on care robot orientation

The research-based guides and animations on care robot orientation in four languages (English, Finnish, Swedish, German) aim is to identify essentials, offer tips, and support people in care robot orientation activities—as providers or receivers—but also in finding out about care robots and participating in discussions about their use.

Summary

Dialogue concerning care robotics is essential at the different levels of the society, from individuals through to the societal level. Everyone benefits from good care robot orientation. The research-based guides and animations on care robot orientation in four languages (English, Finnish, Swedish, German) serve different kinds of people—anyone who is interested in care robots. In particular, they are helpful for care organisations, professional caregivers, and decision-makers at different societal levels, in vocational and continuing education, and for individuals’ use. They visualise, raise questions, and provoke thought, rather than give precise answers. They identify essentials, offer tips, and support people in care robot orientation activities—as providers or receivers—but also in finding out about care robots and participating in discussions about their use. They also aim to increase familiarity with care robots among people who are still unacquainted with them. The guides and animations were prepared in the international research project called ORIENT (2018–2020), which focused on orientation for the use of care robots in welfare services for older adults. The guides and animations are based on scientific publications produced by the project, and more than 130 user and societal-level interviews conducted in Finland, Sweden, and Germany.

About the team

The coordinating LUT University brought expertise in socio-technical transition, user-driven and service innovation, welfare technology and human-computer interaction. Mälardalen University brought expertise in elderly care, eHomecare, dementia care and caring sciences. Paderborn University brought expertise in teamwork, human-machine interaction and its influence on employees at work, and expertise in economic experiments.