An Encounter with Learning at SFC Leads to Research on Robots That Notice "Pain"

During the summer vacation of my first year of high school, I had the opportunity to participate in a summer program at Yale University. There were about 10 participants from Japan, and the classes, which were taught entirely in English by current Yale professors and integrated a wide range of academic fields, were very stimulating. Seeing the researchers engrossed in their own work, I was inspired and thought, "Research is fascinating!"

Because of that experience, I searched for universities based on the condition of "being able to learn across disciplines" and found SFC. The classes introduced on the website were very appealing, and I was also drawn to the sight of senior students enjoying unique research and learning from their first and second years. I was determined to study at SFC and decided to enroll.

After enrolling at SFC, I found many classes I wanted to take, regardless of whether they were in the arts or sciences. So, I took classes in various fields such as architecture, biology, and healthcare, up to the maximum number of credits allowed. As a result, the keywords "communication" and "healthcare" emerged as the direction of my interests. Furthermore, learning about the existence of dialogue robots that serve as human partners or buddies in Professor Kazunori Takashio's class solidified my research field.

The reason for this stems from a thought I had since high school. When I visited a nursing home as a volunteer, the elderly people I met confided in me, saying, "I have aches and pains all over my body, but I can't bring myself to say it." The reasons varied from person to person—hesitation to bother busy caregivers, fear of worsening relationships by being seen as troublesome for complaining repeatedly, and uncertainty about whether it was okay to mention pain they could endure—but I was deeply shocked to find that many people struggled with the difficulty of communicating their pain. While I wanted to solve this problem somehow, I hadn't found a concrete solution. Professor Takashio's class sparked the connection between my awareness of this issue and my studies, leading me to think, "A dialogue robot might be able to solve the problem of the elderly finding it difficult to communicate their pain!" I then jumped into the Takashio Research Group in my first year.

Although my goal was clear—"to create a dialogue robot that solves the problem of the elderly finding it difficult to communicate their pain"—I had absolutely no knowledge of robotics. Therefore, I didn't know where to begin my research, and everything started with trial and error. It was thanks to SFC's highly flexible curriculum that I was able to acquire the practical knowledge and skills necessary for robot development and research by taking classes such as programming and data science. I also supplemented my knowledge with classes in psychology and cognitive science, which are necessary for human interaction, and healthcare, which is needed for empirical testing, thereby designing my own learning path.

Acquiring fundamental knowledge sparks ideas for implementing the target system, which in turn leads to the next set of knowledge to be gained. Currently, in addition to developing a dialogue program that makes it easier to communicate pain by utilizing dialogue strategies from the medical field (insights gained through fieldwork), I am also building a system where a dialogue robot lives with the user as a partner. It monitors them through daily conversations, detects "differences from the usual" through various sensing technologies, and notifies family or a hospital if a major abnormality occurs. Specifically, it is a dialogue system that detects abnormalities by focusing on pain-related statements in daily conversation and gestures or actions such as rubbing the affected area, and then asks about and records the pain. My project was selected for the Yamagishi Student Project Support Program (an original SFC research grant system), and I have been able to conduct fulfilling research while receiving research grants.

To advance my research, I am conducting fieldwork in Nichinan, Tottori Prefecture. My connection with Nichinan began when I participated as an SA (Student Assistant) in the Camp for Designing the Future, a three-day, two-night event held in the town.

Things that I thought were good ideas in the lab sometimes turn out not to be so in the actual field. Being able to engage in fieldwork, which is full of insights and new discoveries, is an incredibly valuable environment that constantly makes me aware of the connection between research and society. So far, I have been staying on-site at a pace of five times a year, and with the cooperation of government officials and medical professionals, I have been repeatedly improving the dialogue system for social implementation. This has included accompanying them on home-visit nursing rounds and receiving advice on the system.

In January 2025, I conducted a proof-of-concept experiment where outpatients in the rehabilitation department of Nichinan Hospital interacted with the implemented dialogue robot. What was impressive about this experiment was that the elderly participants felt a sense of familiarity with the robot, viewing it as "an entity that notices and empathizes with my pain." In a survey conducted with physical therapists after the experiment, we received feedback that the subjects were able to speak about their pain more spontaneously compared to their usual behavior. Many participants, despite the brief interaction, said they wanted to "take it home." This made me feel the future potential of the research: the function of "noticing" the user's pain seems to create a sense of naturalness and empathy in the conversation, lowering psychological barriers and leading to the action of confiding about "pain." Furthermore, hearing the voices of many people during fieldwork also boosts my research motivation. It is incredibly rewarding to see people happy with what I've created, even though it's still under development.

I am participating in SFC's Four-Year Integrated Undergraduate and Master's Program, which allows students to obtain two degrees in four years: a bachelor's degree from the Faculty of Policy Management and a master's degree from the Graduate School of Media and Governance. Therefore, I will finish my undergraduate studies this year and continue my research in graduate school for one year starting next year.

I believe a benefit of this program is that finishing the master's program early expands future possibilities, such as advancing to a graduate school abroad. Although the number of required credits increases, I was able to fully enjoy school life outside of classes by serving as an executive in a student organization, joining the kyudo (Japanese archery) club, and participating in business contests. Above all, I was able to gain an intensive learning experience by joining a research group from my first year.

My current goal is to achieve the social implementation of the dialogue robot system in Nichinan before graduating from SFC. I haven't decided on my path after graduation yet, but I hope to become someone who can make a significant impact and contribute to society by leveraging the practical learning approach I acquired at SFC and the many experiences I gained through various activities. Even after I graduate, I want to lead a life of continuous learning.