Title: Humanoids in Healthcare and Welfare: A Careful Transition

Bio: Professor Gordon Cheng is a prominent expert in humanoid robotics, neuroengineering, and artificial intelligence, with over two decades of groundbreaking contributions to these fields. Since 2010, he has served as the Chair Professor for Cognitive Systems and is the Director of the Institute for Cognitive Systems at the Technical University of Munich, Germany. In addition to his academic roles, Cheng has founded three startups spanning logistics, high-performance actuators, and robotics. His latest venture, intouch-robotics, aims to apply his research on artificial sensitive skin to all robots across all industrial domains. In addition, he directs the prestigious Elite Master of Science in Neuroengineering (MSNE), a highly selective program within the Elite Network of Bavaria (ENB). Additionally, he oversees the Centre of Competence in Neuroengineering, underscoring his dedication to advancing research and education in these critical areas.

Gordon Cheng is an accomplished co-inventor of 20 patents and has co-authored over 450 technical publications, including conference proceedings, editorials, books, and book chapters. His groundbreaking interdisciplinary work earned him numerous prizes and awards, including the prestigious IEEE Fellowship in 2017, recognizing his significant contributions to humanoid robotic systems and neurorobotics. In 2024, he was rightfully honored with the RSJ Fellowship for his outstanding achievements in robotics science and technology. Furthermore, he secured the esteemed European Research Council (ERC) Advanced Grant in 2023 to develop an innovative “soft exoskeleton suit designed to restore autonomous locomotion” (STROLL). His research interests are diverse and impactful, encompassing neuro-robotics, humanoid robotics, imitation learning, cognitive systems, artificial intelligence, and neuroengineering.

Title: Physical human-robot interaction for assistive and rehabilitation purposes: Can these be translated to elderly-support technologies?

Summary: In this talk I will first introduce three physically assistive robotic technologies that we have developed throughout the years: i) Robotic assistance for hand-manipulation in manual welding and airbrush painting, ii) a hand exoskeleton for assessment of hand spasticity, iii) an exoskeleton for nurses to assist lifting of heavy objects. All those three research have developed core technologies that can be translated into robotic systems to provide physical assistance to elderly in daily life activities. Robotic assistance for hand manipulation embeds a tremor suppression technology which can be applied to manual activities of elderly with Parkinson disease, such as for stably driving a wheel chair with a joystick. Hand-exoskeleton for spasticity assessment embeds force sensing and actuation technologies for individual finger joint that can be used for patient-customized home-exercises and therapy for hand and finger movements of elderly people. Exoskeleton for nurses embeds body-posture estimation with wireless sensors and helps maintain a healthy upper-body postures, which can directly be applied to elderly people to assist them adaptively for body movements and postures.   

Title:  From Simulation to Real-World Assistance: Robust Learning for Legged Robots in Aging Environments

Title:  Dynamic Tactile Sensor (DTS) with Edge Intelligence for Safe Human-Robot Interaction

Title:  The Use of Robots and AI in Residential Care Facilities and their Impact on Care and Caring: A Frontline Perspective

Summary: This presentation will show how robots and AI are being integrated into residential care facilities in Japan and explore their impact on both care (the tasks performed) and caring (the relational and emotional dimensions of support). Drawing on over twenty years of frontline experience in facility management, practice, research, and education, the study evaluates three different types of robotics-aided care through a mixed-methods, evidence based approach. First, socially assistive robots were proven to increase verbal engagement, smiles, and activity levels among older adults with mild cognitive impairment and dementia, as they function as “nonjudgmental listeners.” However, limitations remain, particularly in reproducing the subtle nonverbal rhythms—such as timing, pauses, and shared emotional attunement—that constitute human warmth. Second, monitoring technologies we adopted and tested significantly reduced nighttime falls and staff burden. The system also allowed staff to spend more direct, personcentered time with residents. In homebased settings, passive remote monitoring (PRM) systems supported aginginplace by providing timely voice prompts and reducing family caregivers’ sense of guilt when living at a distance. To sum up, as AI becomes capable of generating draft care plans, the role of human professionals must shift toward HumanintheLoop or HumanontheLoop oversight, ensuring contextual judgment, cultural sensitivity, and ethical decisionmaking. While robots and AI cannot replace human warmth, they can extend and deepen its reach when implemented thoughtfully, creatively and collaboratively. Codesign among developers, researchers, and frontline practitioners is essential to ensure that technology becomes a partner rather than a tool of control.

Title:  Proximity-Driven Healthcare: Towards a New Paradigm of Screening

Bio: Prof. Gastone Ciuti received the master’s degree (Hons.) in Biomedical Engineering from the University of Pisa (Pisa, Italy) in 2008, and the Ph.D. degree in Biorobotics (Hons.) from The BioRobotics Institute of Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna (Pisa, Italy) in 2011. He is currently Full Professor of Bioengineering at Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna, leading the Healthcare Mechatronics Laboratory. He is the co-author of more than 150 international peer reviewed papers on medical robotics and the inventor of more than 20 patents. He has been Visiting Professor at the Sorbonne University (Paris, France) and at the Beijing Institute of Technology (Beijing, China) and Visiting Student at the Vanderbilt University (Nashville, Tennessee, U.S.A) and at the Imperial College London (London, U.K.). He is Associate Editor of the IEEE Journal of Bioengineering and Health Informatics, IEEE Transaction on Biomedical Engineering and of the IEEE Transaction on Medical Robotics and Bionics. He is Senior Member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) society and Member of the Technical Committee in BioRobotics of the IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society (EMBS). His research interests include robot/computer-assisted platforms, such as tele-operated and autonomous magnetic-based robotic platforms for navigation, localization and tracking of smart and innovative devices in guided and targeted minimally invasive surgical and diagnostic applications, e.g. advanced capsule endoscopy.

Title:  In search of person-centred robotics-aided care: Challenges and opportunities in the co-design of assistive robots for care settings

Summary: In recent years, co-design methodology has been used to improve assistive robots in various settings ranging from factories and hospitals to nursing homes, while enhancing usability and human-robot interaction. With the increasing anticipation of automation in care settings, there is a need for understanding the processes that work for the design and deployment of assistive robots.

In this talk, two cases will be shown to demonstrate how users' needs were considered in the process of designing and deploying robots in the care sector. One example is the design and deployment of an originally developed functional air-purification robot used in two residential nursing homes in Ireland and Japan, and the other is that of Autonomous Mobile Robots which pick up and deliver medical devices, supplies and medicines to support the work of nurses, pharmacists, clinical engineers and technologists in an acute care hospital in Japan.

In both cases, the robots' primary tasks were highly functional (the former robot was equipped with ultraviolet technology designed to eliminate bacteria and viruses including Covid-19, while the latter was to transfer goods), and therefore, the intended users were care professionals, not care recipients/patients. One of the major differences between the two robots was the degree of automation, and technological sophistication and complexity. Although in neither of the cases, developers (engineers) explicitly utilised the user-centered design process, many elements of co-design were incorporated through the engagement of experienced care professionals.

Using a critical reflection on the in-situ design and deployment process of these two cases, the talk will highlight the potential of an immersive participatory method in balancing the challenge of person-centred care and robotics-aided care.