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Paper short abstract:

This project proposes a care robot for an independent elderly. This robot, Sambo, is shape-shifting and provides support to the elderly living alone in their homes. This project also focuses on defining the ethics of different stakeholders involved in creating this robot.

Paper long abstract:

The growing proportion of elderly in society, together with recent advances in robotics, makes robots in eldercare increasingly likely. The author looks critically at how a robot and the elderly could develop a reciprocal relationship of care-giving and care-receiving. This is done by understanding the existing robotics space and gaining insight into their social, cultural, political and ethical implications.

The project's seeds lie in realizing that even the elderly want to be self-reliant and retain their agency. The project doesn't negate that they need care but highlights that mechanisms to make care a reciprocal process are required. Often, care towards elderlies infantilizes them, leading to a loss of dignity in the elderly. They suffer from psychological and physiological pain as soon as they shift towards becoming dependants.

Sambo is a care robot that follows the elderly when they walk, shape-shifts to provide support, and inflates an airbag if the elderly is about to fall to minimize their injuries. Most importantly, Sambo converses with the elderly, plays games, and provides psychological support. Sambo is not just a caregiver but enjoys care in return and demands the same from the elderly. Sambo helps build a reciprocal relationship between the elderly and the robot, uplifting the elderly's self-reliance. The author also throws light on the human-robot ethics through the lens of Sambo.