How robots could help bridge the elder-care gap
Despite innovations that make it easier for seniors to keep living on their own rather than moving into special facilities, most elderly people eventually need a hand with chores and other everyday activities.

Everett Rosenfeld | CNBC

Personal robots

Round-the-clock care

While some tasks remain out of reach of today's robots, such as inserting IVs or trimming toenails, mechanical caregivers can offer clear advantages over their human counterparts. The most obvious one is their capacity to work around the clock. Machines, unlike people, are available 24/7. When used in the home, they can support aging in place. Another plus: Relying on technology to meet day-to-day needs like mopping the floor can improve the quality of time elders spend with family and friends. Delegating mundane chores to robots also leaves more time for seniors to socialize with the people who care about them, and not just for them. And since using devices isn't the same as asking someone for help, relying on caregiving robots may lead seniors to perceive less lost autonomy than when they depend on human helpers.

Interacting with robots

This brave new world of robot caregivers won't take shape unless we make them user-friendly and intuitive, and that means interaction styles matter. In my lab, we work on how robots can interact with people by talking with them. Fortunately, recent research by the Pew Research Center shows that older adults are embracing technology more and more, just like everyone else. Now that we are beginning to see robots that can competently perform some tasks, researchers like Jenay Beer, an assistant professor of computer science and engineering at the University of South Carolina, are trying to figure out which activities seniors need the most help with and what kinds of robots they might be most willing to use in the near term. To that end, researchers are asking questions like: Do robots need to understand and convey emotion to be accepted?

How can robots provide social support?

Is it best when machines simulate eye contact with us?

Does it help if they can converse? But the fact is we don't need all the answers before robots begin to help elders age in place.

Looking ahead