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Review
. 2024 Feb 18;24(4):1321.
doi: 10.3390/s24041321.

Qhali: A Humanoid Robot for Assisting in Mental Health Treatment

Gustavo Pérez-Zuñiga  1 , Diego Arce  1 , Sareli Gibaja  2 , Marcelo Alvites  1 , Consuelo Cano  3 , Marlene Bustamante  1 , Ingrid Horna  1 , Renato Paredes  2 , Francisco Cuellar  1
Affiliations
Review

Qhali: A Humanoid Robot for Assisting in Mental Health Treatment

Gustavo Pérez-Zuñiga et al. Sensors (Basel). .

Abstract

In recent years, social assistive robots have gained significant acceptance in healthcare settings, particularly for tasks such as patient care and monitoring. This paper offers a comprehensive overview of the expressive humanoid robot, Qhali, with a focus on its industrial design, essential components, and validation in a controlled environment. The industrial design phase encompasses research, ideation, design, manufacturing, and implementation. Subsequently, the mechatronic system is detailed, covering sensing, actuation, control, energy, and software interface. Qhali's capabilities include autonomous execution of routines for mental health promotion and psychological testing. The software platform enables therapist-directed interventions, allowing the robot to convey emotional gestures through joint and head movements and simulate various facial expressions for more engaging interactions. Finally, with the robot fully operational, an initial behavioral experiment was conducted to validate Qhali's capability to deliver telepsychological interventions. The findings from this preliminary study indicate that participants reported enhancements in their emotional well-being, along with positive outcomes in their perception of the psychological intervention conducted with the humanoid robot.

Keywords: humanoid robotics; mental health; social assistive robot.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Ergonomic analysis of a patient in a seated position, focusing on extreme percentile ranges; front and side views.
Figure 2
Figure 2
The design focus focused on creating natural, human-like forms and organic shapes, as well as a closeness to a hospital environment.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Arrangement of designated parts according to the ergonomic analysis.
Figure 4
Figure 4
The manufacturing process of the Qhali robot.
Figure 5
Figure 5
A 3D model of a humanoid robot and composition.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Hardware architecture of the robot.
Figure 7
Figure 7
Internal design of articulate arms and head.
Figure 8
Figure 8
Differential drive system composition.
Figure 9
Figure 9
Top view of the robot that includes the field of vision of the components of the sensor system.
Figure 10
Figure 10
Ergonomic movements with articulate elements.
Figure 11
Figure 11
Detailed movement ranges executed by the robot.
Figure 12
Figure 12
Facial expressions on the robot’s face.
Figure 13
Figure 13
Elements for human–robot interaction.
Figure 14
Figure 14
Teleoperation interface main screens: (a) access; (b) video conference and robot control; (c) remote teleoperation; and (d) configuration of robot actions.
Figure 15
Figure 15
Screen flow diagram of the web interface.
Figure 16
Figure 16
Qhali performing her routine to a research group member.
Figure 17
Figure 17
Responses to the Godspeed questionnaire. Participants found the robot’s likeability and perceived intelligence to be slightly prominent.
Figure 18
Figure 18
Responses to the communication attributes. Participants reported finding Qhali’s gestures as easy to understand.
Figure 19
Figure 19
Differences in the treatment-perceived efficacy before and after the psychological intervention.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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