"Supporting Healthy Lives for the Elderly"... UNIST's Care Robot 'Raemi' Wins CES Innovation Award

Professor Kim Kwan-myeong of the Department of Design Realizes Social Value by Developing Elderly Care Robots

From Research and Development to Commercialization... Proving the Successful Integration of Design and Engineering

In South Korea, which has entered a super-aged society, technology to support the healthy lives of the elderly from their 60s to 90s is urgently needed.

To address this, a team of professors from the Department of Design at UNIST (President Jongrae Park)?Kwanmyung Kim, Heeseung Lee, Kyungho Lee, and James Self?has developed a service robot called ‘Lemmy’ to improve the quality of life for the elderly, gaining significant international attention.

UNIST Department of Design research team (Professor Kwanmyung Kim, third from the left). Photo by UNIST

The care robot ‘Lemmy’ will receive the Innovation Award at CES 2025, the world’s largest electronics exhibition held in Las Vegas, USA, in January 2025. At this exhibition, the team plans to showcase their technology and introduce the future and potential of care technology to global business representatives and consumers.

Calling the care robot 'Lemmy (LEMMY)'. Provided by UNIST

‘Lemmy’ is a service robot designed to support the twilight years of the elderly and enhance their quality of life. It helps seniors live independently and improves their daily activities, generating high expectations.

This robot is evaluated as an innovative product combining technical excellence and practicality. It has received positive responses for solving various problems of an aging society and realizing social value.

CES (Consumer Electronics Show) is a global exhibition held annually to unveil innovative technologies and electronic products, where outstanding products in technology, design, and user experience are announced. The CES Innovation Award is given to products with excellent quality and performance, and Lemmy’s receipt of this award proves its technology and social value are internationally recognized.

Professor Kwanmyung Kim, the project’s principal investigator, said, “Our goal at the UNIST Department of Design is to create innovative products and services through the convergence of design and engineering.” He added, “This achievement was made possible thanks to the collaboration of Professor Heeseung Lee, who developed the robot control technology, Professor Kyungho Lee, who designed the intelligent UI/UX through AI technology, and the researchers.” He emphasized the importance of an integrative approach between design and engineering.

Professor Kim’s project began in 2021 with support from the Korea Evaluation Institute of Industrial Technology (KEIT), and Shinsung Delta Tech and J Design Works were responsible for product manufacturing and design, realizing a user-friendly product.

The project is ongoing with a goal of completion in 2025, and commercialization is expected in the future.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.