DAVIS, Calif. — When you first meet Abi, a humanoid companion robot, it might take a little getting used to. But at Eskaton, a nonprofit senior living community in Northern California, the humanoid companion robot is becoming a reason to smile, sing and connect. For researchers at UC Davis, Abi is also part of a yearlong study looking at whether a humanoid companion robot can have a positive impact in a memory support setting.
“Every single person’s experience with her is quite unique and different,” said Therese Ten Brinke, director of innovation and impact at Eskaton. “It’s definitely not a one size fits all.”
Researchers are studying what happens when a robot like Abi interacts with people living with dementia.
Roschelle Fritz, a professor of nursing at UC Davis, said residents who had more outgoing personalities and were possibly more curious before dementia appear to be more engaged with Abi.
But even residents with more advanced dementia may be taking in more than it seems.
“Some of the ones who are more advanced in their dementia, who may be sitting next to Abi with their eyes closed, not seeming to be engaged, we do often find that they’re listening,” Fritz said. “And when a trivia question is asked, and they know the answer to it, they say it out loud.”
Not everyone chooses to engage with Abi, Fritz said, and that is OK.
Researchers are also watching what happens after Abi leaves the room.
Ten Brinke said people living with cognitive change may live in the present, but the way an experience makes them feel can stay with them. “If that feeling is positive, we see the impacts of them feeling those good feelings for hours after the experience ends,” Ten Brinke said.
That may be what makes Abi especially meaningful to Chuck Cole. Chuck has been married to Kathy for more than 50 years. He said that when he first saw her blue eyes and her smile, he felt an immediate connection.
“It’s like instant love. I’ve never felt that way,” Cole said. Now, the woman he fell in love with is changing.
Cole said it was difficult when his daughter and her family visited recently and Kathy did not recognize her.
“She’s still in there… but it’s a different Kathy,” he said.
Cole said Kathy raised three children and now has seven grandchildren.