Development of a Chatbot to Encourage the Use of Assistive Technologies and Reduce the Rate of Discontinuance

Abstract

Assistive Technology is an interdisciplinary group of tools that assists people with impairment. Even though 30% of people that use these discontinued using them, complicating their autonomy, quality of life, and social inclusion. For that, a prototype of Chatbot was developed to assist individuals with impairment to increase their adherence to Assistive Technologies. Chatbots are virtual assistants that interact with their users through messages, images, videos, and sounds, using an Artificial Intelligence tool named Natural Language Processing to simulate a person. It can be used in smartphones, computers, and other devices. This prototype was developed in the BLiP® platform, introducing a Knowledge Base with all the essential information about Assistive Technologies. The prototype assessment consisted of the White Box (Structural) and the Black Box (Functional) tests. The prototype was tested and presented a great flow of conversation and no errors in the structure. Besides the benefits provided, Chatbots cannot substitute a healthcare professional but only assist. Chatbots can be potential assistants that will increase and improve healthcare treatments.