Project Overview

Our aging population imposes various challenges in Canada related to caregiving supply/demand imbalances and their
associated costs, and elders’ quality of life and level of independence when moved to eldercare facilities. Even though
technological solutions like AI and robotics appear to be promising, there still exist significant challenges that affect their
adoptability by the user. Understanding the needs of all stakeholders, and involving them from the very early stages, would
inform designers, developers and researchers to build better collaborative service robot (CSR), and educate the users
about the potentials of adopting such a technology.
We have studied the needs of people with developmental disabilities and their caregivers in group homes, and have
defined the scope and challenges of a CSR. We are also aware that the world of people who live with developmental
disabilities from birth is similar to the world of many people who begin to experience mental and physical disabilities much
later in life. Our research and experience suggest that a CSR, like the prototype we have designed, built and tested for
group homes of people with developmental disabilities, will be a significant contributor to the demand for managed care at
home for seniors, with or without mental disabilities.