Intelligent Robot for Ikigai Support in Dementia-Friendly Communities
Description
We invite undergraduates to contribute to the development of IRIS (Interactive Robot for Ikigai Support), an AI-driven conversational robot designed to support older adults living with dementia and their care partners. Grounded in the concept of ikigai—meaning and purpose in life—IRIS uses reminiscence and reflection to promote well-being and supportive care relationships.
Working with local community partners, students will help expand IRIS’s conversational and AI capabilities, as well as develop complementary web and mobile tools for information sharing and system customization. The project emphasizes supporting care partnerships, reducing caregiver burden, fostering healthy interactions between older adults and caregivers, and supporting older adult wellbeing.
Students from diverse disciplines will engage in user-centered design, robot programming, app development, AI/machine learning, and real-world evaluation through community-based testing. This interdisciplinary experience offers hands-on research, technical skill development, and meaningful community impact in the growing field of technology for aging and dementia care.
Goal and Learning Outcomes
- Apply user-centered and participatory design methods to collaboratively design technologies with older adults living with dementia and their care partners.
- Explain the social, ethical, and cultural considerations involved in designing AI-driven and robotic technologies for aging and dementia care contexts.
- Design, prototype, and iterate interactive systems, including conversational robots and web/mobile applications, to support care partnerships and well-being.
- Implement technical solutions such as robot behaviors, interaction flows, and AI/machine learning tools that adapt system behavior based on user data.
- Analyze and evaluate real-world deployments of interactive technologies using qualitative and quantitative methods in community-based settings.
- Collaborate effectively on interdisciplinary teams, integrating perspectives from computing, design, health, and social sciences.
- Communicate design and research outcomes to academic, technical, and community audiences through presentations, documentation, and demonstrations.
- Reflect on community-engaged research practices and assess how sustained partnerships shape responsible, impactful technology development.
Majors and Schools sought
- Informatics
- Computer Science
- Engineering
- Data Science
- HCI/D
- Public Health
- Social Work
- Nursing
Desired Skills/Interests
- Programming (Python, ROS)
- UX/UI design and prototyping
- Participatory design and community engagement
- Human-centered AI and conversational interfaces
- Interest in aging, healthcare, and social impact technology