A vision-based helper robotic system for the elderly in household environments

In this paper, a vision-based helper robotic system is proposed that can help the elderly in household environments. Specifically, a mobile robot equipped with an onboard camera is capable of following the elderly. The system can visually identify the elderly by using Camshift algorithm and thus determines appropriate commands to drive the mobile robot to follow the elderly. A practical function of the proposed system is to help the elderly search household items. The elderly can command the system to record the image of the item by giving voice commands. When the elderly is unable to locate a specific item, the system can project the recorded image of the item upon recognizing the voice command. Meanwhile, the images from onboard camera also can be sent to tablet PCs wirelessly to let remote family members check the status of the elderly. This system has been successfully experimented with a mobile robot equipped a camera and a projector to validate the required practical functions in household environments.