Will robin ever help “nonna lea” using artificial intelligence?

Abstract

A new generation of Intelligent Robots are entering our working and living environments, taking care of human-level tasks. Such robotic systems are becoming more and more important also in healthcare assistance for elderly. Indeed, recent advancements in Artificial Intelligence and Robotics are fostering the diffusion of robotic agents with the capabilities needed to support both older adults and their caregivers in a variety of situations (e.g., in their homes, in hospitals, etc.). The capability of representing and reasoning about diverse kind of knowledge is crucial for allowing robotic assistants to understand the needs of the older persons as well as the status of the working environment. This paper presents a recent research initiative which aims at endowing autonomous robots with the capabilities needed to represent and reason on sensor data and to autonomously make decisions according to the inferred knowledge. The complete approach ends out being a cognitive control architecture, called Knowledge-based cOntinuous Loop (KOaLa) whose main aspect are described in this paper. The application of KOaLa to our Robin telepresence robot is also exemplified to enhance the services of older people assistance.