|
Autominder Serves as Computerized Caregiver for Elderly
April 7, 2004 For the forgetful
elderly which is about all-inclusive there is a help being developed
that will serve as an electronic reminder. Autominder will supplement
rather than replace human caregivers, says chief developer Martha
Pollack.
The software is under development at the
University of Michigan and eventually could power computerized
caregivers---nurses' aides of the future---to remind the elderly or
people with brain trauma to perform tasks, and even help them navigate
their surroundings.
Pollack,
electrical engineering and computer science professor, leads the team
developing the software. The growing shortage of health care providers,
ballooning population of aging baby-boomers and increasingly longer life
spans mean computers could be invaluable aides in caring for people with
cognitive disorders, she says.
"We're
always going to need human caregivers," she said. "With the increased
percentage of older adults, there won't be enough adults to provide
full-time care."
The future
of the aging population is such a concern that on April 6, Pollack will
testify before the Senate Committee on Aging about the challenges of
developing such technology, and about how increased government support
for such research is critical to its success.
The
Autominder software has been used in hand-held computers slightly bigger
than a personal digital assistant and in a mobile robot called Pearl, or
Nursebot. It works by giving instructions or other guidance to the
patient, who operates the device by touching or tapping it when the task
is complete.
Eventually,
researchers hope to use motion sensors and contact sensors with the
software and computers to warn an elderly user if, for instance, his
water inadvertently was left running or a back door was left wide open.
"The aging
population is going to need help in all different areas," said James
MacBain, director for research relations at the College of Engineering.
"[Pollack's] elder care technology is critical to allowing people to
remain self supporting in an autonomous lifestyle longer."
So-called
minder technology exists now, but it basically is a "glorified alarm
clock," Pollack said. Autominder uses artificial intelligence technology
tailored to each user to issue personalized reminders from data it
interprets about what the person has done and is supposed to do.
Consider a
hypothetical situation in which an elderly patient is reminded to take
medication that must be ingested on a full stomach. Traditional methods
simply would remind the patient to take the medicine at a specific clock
time.
But by using
sensor data, the computer could tell if a person has eaten and remind
him or her to take the medication at the appropriate time, after the
meal.
The
University researchers are collaborating with a team from the University
of Pittsburgh and Carnegie Mellon to develop the technology.
Pollack is a
fellow of the American Association for Artificial Intelligence and
editor-in-chief of the Journal of
Artificial Intelligence Research.
Go to her
site for more information:
http://www.eecs.umich.edu/~pollackm/Pollack-web_files/nursebot/index.htm
|
