WECARE

Extending human care by applying the Warm Technology concept to interactive agents

The WECARE project looks into the design of interactive agents for dementia care by focusing on Aesthetics, Interaction and Behaviour using warm technology.

The WECARE project focuses on extending human care by applying the Warm Technology concept to interactive agents, such as chatbots and companion robots. Warm Technology ensures that this technology is made accessible and appropriate for the environment of people with dementia and their caregivers, thereby also taking this environment into account. In this project, work is being done to develop more advanced behaviors and representations in interactive agents through explorations in agent form and agent modalities like gaze and sound.

Researcher

Rucha Khot

Research details

Involved researchers: Rucha Khot, Rens Brankaert, Minha Lee
Period: October 2022 – ongoing

Partners: Technische Universiteit Eindhoven, Alzheimer Nederland, Fontys, Tinybots, Sara Robotics, Eindhoven Engine, Philips

Publications

Presented at the 32nd Alzheimer Europe Conference (Bucharest, Romania) https://www.alzheimer-europe.org/Conferences/2022-Bucharest

Insights

The built environment facilitates (or restricts) flexible use of spaces, easy infection prevention, and enjoyment for residents, while also determining the atmosphere.
In general, buildings of many care facilities are not designed to accommodate a severely infectious disease outbreak.
Nursing staff have learned the importance of attending to the number of stimuli in the social and built environment and attuning these to individual, instead of group, needs.
A warm building with a spacious layout, flexible use of spaces, and a harmonious interior design contributes to a higher quality of life, better well-being, improved infection control, and greater resilience.