Music Management

In this section, the ways in which music can be of help for the PwD during mealtimes while interacting with the robot will be elaborated.

Association

It is known that playing certain music during certain activities can cause people to create an association between the music and the specific activity. For this project, the idea is that, if the prototyped robot is actually used for a longer period of time and the music that is linked to certain mealtime moments, the PwD will be positively stimulated by the music to eat and/or drink.
This way, not only the conversation with the robot, but also the music played by the robot, will unconsciously encourage the PwD to eat and drink.
Furthermore, using music to start and/or finish the interaction between the PwD and the robot may also cause the PwD to associate the music with the interaction with the robot.

Emotion

As stated in previous sections, PwD's might become angry or agitated or experience other negative emotions during mealtimes. For this project, the idea is that playing music during these mealtimes will not only stimulate the PwD to eat and/or drink, but also to play music of such a genre that calms the PwD. Ultimately, the aim is to let the music cause a reduction in negative emotions experienced by the PwD during mealtimes.
Also, starting the interaction with the robot by playing soft tunes may help in preventing the PwD to get startled by the interaction with the robot.