Industrial - Bachelor

Helios: Advancing Humanoid Perception in Home Care

Helios is a wearable torso module for humanoid robots in Home Based Care Settings (HBCS), which bridges the gap between human perception and assistive technology integration. Helios redefines how humanoid robots are implicated, and perceived, in home environments, catalysing interactions which foster trust, familiarity, and comfort whilst providing tangible medical feedback to support the carer workforce.

Aden McGuigan

the context – home based care

Home-based care services (HBCS) are a prominent sector of the Australian health system which serves a variety of purposes to a diverse clientele. However, tactile volatility of this sub-sector continues to impact the standard and accessibility of care, propagated by a year-on-year increase in human labour turnover of casual (22%-24%-26%) and permanent staff (11%-16%-16%), and annual decline in service organisations (437 in 2022, 361 in 2023, and 264 in 2024), provided by the National Disability Services Workforce Census Report 2025. This trend derives the requirement for carer assistance in HBCS, providing opportunity for humanoid robot dissemination.

BACKGROUND – ADVANCING HUMANOID PERCEPTION

Humanoid robotics technologies present as an emerging transformative technology within global markets, culminated by the advancement of artificial intelligence and the robotic adaptation of human function. The application of humanoids is widespread, with proposed integration across many industries in a multitude of roles, including within the healthcare system. However, the way in which human’s perceive these technologies remains the ultimate barrier to adoption, transition, and development.

Besides the innate distrust in humanoid technology ability and intention, procured from generations of media narratives and depictions, the largest confliction in achieving a positive connotation of humanoids lays within the physical representation of the technology itself. Theoretical notions like Mashiro Mori’s “Uncanney Valley” Theory and Anthropomorphism speculate on the spectrum of approachability regarding human-likeness in non-human things, suggesting that a balance of human-likeness is the most appropriate approach to resolving humanoid physicality. Factors of form, colour, and material (CMF) contribute to the way individuals perceive, interact with, and adopt designs, as is relevant to humanoids. These characteristics are pivotal in formulating a positive perception of the technology, and must be applied constructively to achieve the desired response from the HBCS context.

DEFINING THE PROBLEM

Resulting from extensive qualitative research techniques involving potential users in addition to healthcare professionals, the following dissection outlines the essence of the design opportunity.

The current climate of home-based care services showcases a largely disadvantaged workforce and clientel, instigated by labour and operational strains. Whilst human involvement is necessary according to the feedback of survey and interview participants, humanoids could have positive intervention in roles that support both care-givers and recipients without replacing the fundamental requirement for human incorporation.

A majority of current robotic solutions are not explicitly designed for integration within home environments, and whilst there are some which target this avenue, their physical characteristics do not enhance the perception, or adaptability to the users in these contexts. For a HBCS context, the application of contextually-oriented visual characteristics of form, colour, and material is paramount to achieving an improved perception, derivative of enhanced familiarity, approachability, and human-likeness, whilst maintaining functional clinicalness befitting a healthcare implementation.

The way in which stakeholders of the context interact with the technology will strongly influence the shared perception of humanoid robots. The concept must resolve interactions that are not only complimentary to the context, but also elicit emotional responses that portray the technology in a positive way. Communication remains a pain point in human-patient interactions according to health professionals and must be at the fore-front of design impact. Additionally, the interactions made between users and the product should foster a sense of security, closeness, and trust to achieve heightened perception.

HELIOS

key features

Exploded View

The construction of Helios is refined and understandable. The primary structure is comprised of a TPU-lined nylon fabric in a woven configuration, providing structural rigidity whilst communicating softness befitting the context. The physical interface is constructed from overmoulded semi-translucent silicone, bearing a unique texture to create interest and enhance physical pleasure upon touch, whilst the non-polar structure provides improved sterility and hydrophobic properties. An elasticised textile strap secures the front and rear sections in position, enhanced by embedded magnets to create a seamless and responsive attachment flow. Laid within the ridges of silicone texture, electroluminescent wiring combined with electrode receptors provide illuminative feedback using UV, which acts to constantly sterilise the translucent silicone section. A digital rear display, encapsulated by an ABS injection moulded shell, visualises health data from the receptors in an understandable, yet comprehensive manner to monitor real-time vital fluctuations and display them to carers.

Primary Interface and Interaction

Helios receives and processes vital readings including heart rate, blood oxygen content, and temperature through an arrangement of electrode receptors located within the ridges of the front facing silicone piece, which operate through physical contact from the underside of the patient’s hand. This interaction is facilitated by the intuitive and organic texture of the interface, sparking curiosity and engagement from the user. The torso-location of this interaction familiarises the technology with human anatomy, specifically the heart, eliciting an emotional response of closeness, organicness, and intimacy when touched. Alongside this, the electroluminescent wire irradiates UV light to make the surface warm, further emulating notions of comfort, relaxation, and trust. These characteristics contribute to greater human-robot interactions on not only the physical level, but also have emotional implications that could relieve symptoms of loneliness and anxiety in the contextual space.

Secondary Interface and Interaction

Located on the rear of the wearable, an incorporated display unit processes and presents real-time health information extracted from electrodes within the front interface. This display is designed to efficiently convey the status of in-home patients to their respective carers without the requirement for the carer to directly monitor the patient continuously. The screen is positioned at a slightly upright angle to improve the viewing experience from a stance behind the humanoid, improving functionality. Effectively, the device allows freedom for the carer to complete other tasks whilst maintaining observation over clients, assisting to resolve issues of understaffing. The measured vitals are presented in a readable fashion, encompassing a mixture of text and icon to improve information engagement within brief observations.

FORM

The form of Helios is organic, soft, and approachable. Continuous rounding of edges reduces visual offensiveness, contributing to a form that emulates the softness and delicateness of a home environment. Long swooping curvature improves understandability, where edges guide the user to points of interest that encapsulate the design. Inherent asymmetry constitutes notions of organicness which allow sections of the design to flow into one another, whilst nurturing a perception of naturality. The arrangement of ridges on the silicone interface are orchestrated with identical spacing and a subdued curvature, symbolising patterns such as fingerprints to reaffirm a perception of organicness and unobtrusiveness. These characteristics operate to transform the inherent clinicality of both medical and humanoid technologies to a heightened state of approachability, ultimately improving the perception of such technologies within a home environment.

Helios: Improving Humanoid Perception In Home-Oriented Healthcare

Aden McGuigan

Aden McGuigan is an industrial designer motivated by the prospect to innovate and resolve design opportunities with a blend of functionality and intrinsicality. Grounded by an artistic background, Aden strives to embrace aesthetic composition in his work. Curating interactivity, feasibility, and aesthetic value, Aden commands projects that are meaningful and reflective of proposed opportunities and their respective requirements.