Telepresence robots can be beneficial for older adults by helping them stay socially connected and to access telehealth services; both factors are vital in maintaining health and wellness while aging in place. For older adults to willingly use telepresence technology, it is important to ensure that they do not experience barriers to adoption, such as issues with usability and privacy. In this study, we present a two-part research endeavor. Firstly, we developed two telepresence user interfaces (UIs): (1) the control condition—a generic UI design based on currently available telepresence robots; and (2) the experimental condition—a modified UI that was designed specifically for older adults’ capabilities and limitations, which also incorporated enhanced privacy features. Secondly, we conducted an in-depth within-subjects mixed-methods assessment of both UIs with 30 older adults (aged M = 71.00, SD = 5.50, range = 61–84 years). Both qualitative and quantitative data yielded positive results, suggesting that older adults perceived the experimental condition to be more usable and private than the control condition. The older adult participants provided insight on which usability and privacy features were perceived as critical, specifying features such as obstacle detection, adjustable robot height, and the ability to restrict room access. By conducting this preliminary study, we investigated what usability features are deemed critical for older adult usage of telepresence. Our goal is to improve the ease of use of telepresence robots, and to enable older adults to remain socially connected while aging in place.

远程呈现机器人可以帮助老年人保持社交联系并获得远程医疗服务，从而使他们受益；这两个因素对于在适当老化的同时保持健康和保健至关重要。对于愿意使用远程呈现技术的老年人来说，重要的是确保他们不会遇到采用障碍，例如可用性和隐私问题。在这项研究中，我们提出了一个由两部分组成的研究工作。首先，我们开发了两个远程呈现用户界面（UI）：（1）控制条件——基于当前可用的远程呈现机器人的通用 UI 设计；(2) 实验条件——修改后的用户界面，专为老年人的能力和局限性而设计，其中还包含增强的隐私功能。其次，M  = 71.00，SD  = 5.50，范围 = 61-84 岁）。定性和定量数据都产生了积极的结果，表明老年人认为实验条件比控制条件更有用和更私密。老年参与者提供了关于哪些可用性和隐私功能被认为至关重要的见解，指定了障碍检测、可调节机器人高度和限制房间访问能力等功能。通过进行这项初步研究，我们调查了哪些可用性功能被认为对老年人使用远程呈现至关重要。我们的目标是提高远程呈现机器人的易用性，并使老年人在原地衰老的同时保持社交联系。