Robot House

The University of Hertfordshire and Robot House researchers have been awarded a grant from the European Union’s Horizon Europe programme as part of the SWAG (Soft Wearable Assistive Garments) project to create exoskeletal devices designed to assist strain-prone areas of the human body, focusing on the core and lower body. The project is a multidisciplinary initiative in the field of soft robotics, focusing on the development of soft lower extremity exosuits, or "soft wearable robots", for the lower body and core.

The EMERGENCE network are delighted to announce a Co-creation Methodology Workshop in Hertfordshire to learn more about the second Robotics for Frailty Challenge funding call. This workshop will be aimed at individuals who are interested in submitting proposals for the call and also at those who are interested in learning more about co-creation for designing healthcare robotics solutions.

As part of the EPSRC Network+ project EMERGENCE, we are looking to fund research-driven proposals that engage with Robot House and other living labs within the network to advance the state of the art of robotics towards being capable of transforming community health and care, with an emphasis on real-world adoption and deployment.

An academic launch day introduced the upgraded Robot House as a state of the art facility that can support research in ambient-assisted and companion technology, in an authentic environment. Besides showcasing the infrastructure and data, graduate students have been involved in presenting their research during the event highlighting how the robot house enabled them in their doctoral project.
During the launch, visitors explored the robot house through different exhibits in an open atmosphere that promoted discussion and knowledge exchange. A second launch event is planned for engaging with local companies, regarding how they may benefit from the infrastructure available at the Robot House, to support their product testing.

Researchers in the Robot House are beginning a new project which explores the link between effective safety performance of a robot and its social credibility.

Dr Catherine Menon and Dr Patrick Holthaus are using the facility for the SocCred project, which is funded by the Assuring Autonomy International Programme.

The Robot House has welcomed a visiting researcher from University of Oslo’s Research Group for Robotics and Intelligent Systems (ROBIN).

Doctoral research fellow Trenton Schulz is using the facility to design new, user-centred adaptive technologies for use in care settings, as part of the Group’s Multimodal Elderly Care Systems (MECS) project, funded by the Research Council of Norway.
The overall aim of the project is to create and evaluate mobile robotic systems that can sense, learn and predict future events in a home environment, such as falls among older people.