Promotion of Rehabilitation Practice for Elderly People Using Robotic Pets

Abstract

Trial studies of the application of robotic pets in therapeutic rehabilitation at several hospitals and geriatric nursing homes are ongoing. In these settings, a variety of robotic devices have been introduced and implemented, mainly for physical rehabilitation. In contrast with rehabilitation using living animals, robotic animals have advantages in that they avoid the problem of infection, can be controlled, and can sense and record healthy human states in conjunction with information communication technology. The key issue in the promotion and successful completion of rehabilitation by older people is how to cultivate feelings of self-efficacy. With this in mind, this chapter describes the results of a study with two aims: first, to introduce a feeling of play and games and, second, to reverse the participant’s role from passive to active by giving them control over the robot rather than it being controlled by a therapist or operator. The robotic pet used in this study was the Sony AIBO, and all other components used were commercially available, allowing the easy implementation of these activities by any interested medical or welfare institutions.