Sproutel developed 'My Special Aflac Duck' as a continuation of its Aflac Childhood Cancer Campaign, in an effort to find new modes of delivering healthcare to children in need.
Children lose a great deal of autonomy after receiving a cancer diagnosis as they're taken out of school to undergo an average of 1000 days of treatment. This adorable robotic duck serves as a friendly companion, helping children achieve a new level of control. Through an accompanied interactive app, the device encourages children to maintain their care routines, which can include medical exercises, eating and bathing. In addition, the duck can help the patient communicate with parents or care takers as it can mirror the patient's mood using a RFID-enabled emoji card. The duck can offer comfort to the patient through quacking, dancing and even nuzzling.
My Special Aflac Duck has been awarded the Tech for a Better World Innovation Award, at this year's 2018 CES.
Key Themes Behind This Trend
- Robotic Companions for Healthcare
- The development of interactive robotic companions for healthcare to help patients achieve a new level of autonomy.
- Interactive Apps for Healthcare
- The development of interactive apps to accompany healthcare devices that can encourage patients to maintain their care routines.
- Rfid-enabled Emotional Mirroring
- The development of RFID-enabled devices that can mirror the patient's mood to improve communication with caregivers.
Where This Applies
- Healthcare
- The healthcare industry can integrate interactive robotic companions and apps to help patients with long-term treatments have greater autonomy and improve their quality of life.
- Robotics
- The robotics industry can continue to develop interactive robotic devices that can assist in healthcare and improve the life quality of patients.
- App Development
- The app development industry can create interactive apps to accompany healthcare devices and assist patients in maintaining their care routines to improve their wellbeing.
