December 23, 2020 Journal article Open Access

LHF Connect: A DIY telepresence robot against COVID-19

Paola Vivani; Michele Maimeri; Manuel Barbarossa; Cristiano Petrocelli; Mattia Poggiani; Gianluca Lentini; Giorgio Grioli; Laura Carrozzi; Maria Rosanna Fossati; Manuel G. Catalano; Mauro Ferrari; Antonio Bicchi; Danilo Caporale; Claudia Calderini; Marina Carbone

This contribution describes a case study of a "do-it-yourself" (DIY) opensource service and related product to help combating the COVID-19 emergency. It illustrates the birth of LHF Connect, a project designed to facilitate communication between patients isolated in COVID-19 hospitals' ward and their relatives. LHF Connect is a teleoperated robot that can move in autonomy around the hospital. A User Centered Design approach, methods and specific tools helped in managing crucial steps of the design process such as i) the collection of needs coming from the context, stakeholders and end-users; ii) defining the service blueprint; iii) imagining finishing concepts; and iv) managing the communication activities. The initiative has been promoted by a multidisciplinary team of researchers (mainly roboticists with the help of specific competences coming from Design discipline).