Healing Effects of Pet Robots at an Elderly-Care Facility

A pet robot, similar to the popular AIBO (Artificial Intelligence robot) is emerging onto the domestic scene. These robots exist primarily for in-home entertainment, and they are known to create healing effects through their interactions with humans. However, there is a lack of practical research into what kinds of relationships exist between these robots and human beings, what kinds of influence the robots have, and other such questions. This paper discusses the kinds of effects that robots can have on human beings, and examines whether humans´ lives can be enriched if these robots play the role of not only a robotic pet but also a life partner of sorts. It also investigates how robots are useful for residents of elderly-care facilities, using a commercially available pet robot that looks like a real cat.