Robot dogs for the elderly with dementia

Tombot is trying to develop a Golden Retriever dog robot that responds to human behavior to improve the quality of life. The biggest feature of this robot is that it has a realistic appearance.

Tom Stevens, CEO of Tombot, suffered from an Alzheimer’s mother sentenced to Alzheimer’s in 2011. The most difficult thing was that my mother had to bring a puppy because it was difficult for her to raise it. After seeing her mother’s grief, she decides to study scientifically how the relationship between humans and dogs will affect the mind.

He also launched the robotic dog, Tombot, with a realistic appearance at an affordable price to relieve people’s minds by learning the behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD).

Unlike other robotic dogs, Tombot is designed to look, feel and act like a real dog. It is covered with a touch sensor, through which it reacts according to the contact area. Of course, does it respond to the voice? Skeletal movements and facial expressions are also similar to the real one. Just as dogs express their emotions with their tail movements, so is Tombot. The built-in speaker also makes real dog sounds.

Tombot can track interaction data, so it can determine when and how it was touched. The body is made of a hypoallergenic antibacterial material and, of course, never bites. It is a robot developed to improve the quality of life of the elderly suffering from dementia.

Tombot also raised funds through Kickstarter, a crowdfunding site. More information on the product can be found here .