Interprofessional and Agile Development of Mobirobot: A Socially Assistive Robot for Pediatric Therapy Across Clinical and Therapeutic Settings

TL;DR

This paper describes the development and deployment of Mobirobot, a socially assistive robot designed for pediatric therapy, emphasizing an agile, stakeholder-driven approach to ensure contextual relevance and usability in clinical settings.

Contribution

It introduces a novel, co-designed, adaptable robot platform for pediatric therapy, developed through multidisciplinary collaboration and real-world clinical integration.

Findings

Stakeholder feedback improved interaction design and technical features.

Deployment identified key usability constraints and design requirements.

Feasibility study underway to evaluate acceptance and therapeutic benefits.

Abstract

Introduction: Socially assistive robots hold promise for enhancing therapeutic engagement in paediatric clinical settings. However, their successful implementation requires not only technical robustness but also context-sensitive, co-designed solutions. This paper presents Mobirobot, a socially assistive robot developed to support mobilisation in children recovering from trauma, fractures, or depressive disorders through personalised exercise programmes. Methods: An agile, human-centred development approach guided the iterative design of Mobirobot. Multidisciplinary clinical teams and end users were involved throughout the co-development process, which focused on early integration into real-world paediatric surgical and psychiatric settings. The robot, based on the NAO platform, features a simple setup, adaptable exercise routines with interactive guidance, motivational dialogue, and a graphical user interface (GUI) for monitoring and no-code system feedback. Results: Deployment in hospital environments enabled the identification of key design requirements and usability constraints. Stakeholder feedback led to refinements in interaction design, movement capabilities, and technical configuration. A feasibility study is currently underway to assess acceptance, usability, and perceived therapeutic benefit, with data collection including questionnaires, behavioural observations, and staff-patient interviews. Discussion: Mobirobot demonstrates how multiprofessional, stakeholder-led development can yield a socially assistive system suited for dynamic inpatient settings. Early-stage findings underscore the importance of contextual integration, robustness, and minimal-intrusion design. While challenges such as sensor limitations and patient recruitment remain, the platform offers a promising foundation for further research and clinical application.