The Current Status and Future Development of Elderly Care Robot Technology

Abstract

The increasing ageing of the world population is reforming the demographics and the classical paradigms on elder care have been caught in the crossfire of lack of professional care providers, high care load, and failure to provide good care. Robot technology of elderly care has therefore become a major point of direction to crack out of this dilemma. The paper provides a systematic review of literature and case analysis of the situation and future of the elderly care robot technology. The structural design, based on safety and adaptability, at the technical foundation level is realized through 3D printing as it provides lightweight and customization, as well as through soft actuators that improve the safety of the interaction. Sensor technology goes beyond the single-perception barrier of sensor technology through multi-modal fusion, and non-intrusive health monitoring is possible through flexible tactile sensors. Artificial intelligence enables robots to plan autonomous motion, and bionic neural networks and fuzzy logic codes control the avoidance of obstacles and positioning in moving environments optimally. The application in practice, robots have proved useful in everyday care, health control, and emotional companionship, which might lead to the better life of older people and relieve the burden on the care. Meanwhile, current technologies face challenges including insufficient flexibility and environmental adaptability, high R&D and maintenance costs, low social acceptance, safety risks, and a disconnect between technology and needs. Three areas, namely, technology, design, and ecology should be developed in the future. As the essence is that technology empowers humanity, it strives to support the development of a sustainable elderly care system and fulfill the vision of dignified home-based aging of the aged.