b. Use Case with Claims
Use case UC-01: Finding Overlapping Interests Between Patients
| Scope | |
| Objective | Enhance social connections and reduce loneliness by helping dementia patients discover and share shared interests |
| TDP | TBD |
| IDP | TBD |
| Actors | Social Robot (conversation partner, memory support) Dementia Patient (socializer) Caregiver (human support) |
| Pre-Condition | Rebecca is in the common areas or in an activity and is unsure of who is around her and what to talk to others about |
| Post-Condition | Rebecca knows shared interests with peers and feels more confident starting a conversation |
| Action Sequence | 1. Rebecca enters an activity or common area and robot notices her alone 2. Robot greets Rebecca and asks her a question (ex. how was your day, what is your favorite music genre, etc.)
3. Robot recognizes key interests of Rebecca through conversation and stores information
4. Robot recalls and retrieves Rebecca's interests and compares it to other participants present in the area 5. Robot guides Rebecca to Mary who also loved to travel and creates an introduction or re-introduction (ex. "Remember your friend Mary who loves to travel? Would you like to talk to her?")
6. Robot continues to facilitate different conversations and activities around the room as needed
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| Claims (title) | Function | Effect(s) | Action Sequence Step(s) |
| CL1 Interest gathering | Ask questions, store answers | Patient preferences are captured and remembered | Steps 2-3 |
| CL2 Social matching | Match interest with others | Patient is reminded of similarities with others and will feel more engaged/interested in the conversation | Step 4 |
| CL3 Conversation facilitation | Encourage interaction through introductions and conversation starters | Patients feels more confident and relaxed engaging in conversation | Steps 5-6 |
Use case 2: Scheduling Meaningful Activities
| Scope | Enable dementia patients to participate in meaningful daily activities and reduce boredom through contextual reminders, personalized scheduling, activity facilitation. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Objective | Provide meaningful structure and reduce boredom in the patients' day by organizing and facilitating activities based on personal preferences and contextual cues | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| TDP | TBD | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| IDP | TBD | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Actors | System: Social Robot (activity scheduler and reminder) Primary: Dementia Patient (activity participant) Secondary: Caregiver (human support) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Triggers |
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| Pre-Condition |
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| Main Flow | MF1. Robot detects unstructured time or recognizes the patient’s idle state. MF2. Robot retrieves data on available activities, locations, and required caregivers. MF3. Robot cross-references patient interests and current availability. MF4. Robot offers suitable activities using polite, supportive phrasing:
MF5. Patient responds verbally or through tablet interface. MF6. Robot confirms choice, provides reminder when closer to activity, provides guidance or directions, and notifies caregivers if their presence is needed. MF7. After the activity, robot asks for quick feedback: “Did you enjoy that?” or notes attendance/participation. MF8. Robot updates patient preference data accordingly. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Alternative Flows | AF1: Patient declines → Robot offers gentle alternative (“Would you like to do something quieter, like reading or listening to music?”). AF2: No available activities → Robot engages patient in conversation, suggests conversation with another patient, or suggests a solo task. AF3: Patient is confused or unsure → Robot repeats the prompt more slowly or displays a visual option on its tablet. If needed, alerts a caregiver. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Post-Condition |
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| Exceptions |
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| Data Used / Produced |
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| Claims (title) | Function | Effect(s) | Action Sequence Step(s) |
| CL1 | Activity organizing and scheduling | More time spent in meaningful activity blocks; fewer idle periods. Patients feel less bored. | MF4, MF6 |
| CL2 | Personalized activity matching | Increases user interest and likelihood to join activities. | MF3 |
| CL3 | Persuasive but polite prompting | Supportive tone increases comfort and trust causing more willingness to join activity and interact with robot. | MF4, MF6, MF7 |
| CL4 | Data collection | Allows the robot to provide more useful suggestions. | MF1, MF2, MF3, MF6, MF7, MF8 |
| CL4 | Notification and reminder system for patients and caretakers | Patients know what is happening at the facility. Caretakers feel less burden keeping track of activities. | MF6 |
| CL4 | Providing contextual suggestions | Contextual reminders improve recall and activity follow-through. | MF4 |