| dc.description.abstract | Different kind of Care Robots have been in use for some time and display positive effects
when used with Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) patients, in order to improve their daily activities.
Although the effects are positive, there is always room for improvement. In this thesis I will
find out how the communication between Socially Assistive Robots (SAR’s) and AD patients
can be optimized. First, I will look at what dementia patients and AD patients need when it
comes to communication and then I will compare this to what current SAR’s can offer. Apart
from this I will also discuss the question whether optimized communication should be
pleasant or effective. I conclude that if the communication is pleasant, it would lead to the
most effective communication. For these topics, I used medical books, current research on
the topics and interviews with a nursing student and a technology for innovations in care
professor. I also used manuals from two SAR’s (Tessa from Tinybots and Zora from
Zorarobotics). With this research, I conclude that current SAR’s are lacking when it comes to
communication with AD patients and could improve. Using these findings, an advice is
formed towards future SAR developers. | |
