Investigation of interaction forces in robotic assistance during the nursing activity of positioning a patient simulator to the bed edge

Abstract

Nursing care is under enormous pressure due to personnel shortage. Physically demanding activities in the context of nursing additionally cause staff to leave the profession prematurely. Assistive technologies such as robotic support systems have the potential to relieve the burden on caregivers. In a study with 21 nurses, we investigated the relief potential of a bed-mounted robotic assistance system when repositioning a 40 kg patient simulator in a nursing bed to the bed edge. The robot’s interaction forces applied to the simulator’s back during the task execution represent on average only 47.33% of the force limit specified by common standards.