ROBOTS READING AUTISTIC KIDS

MINDS

Done by: Wadih Khnaizir

GENERAL IDEA ABOUT AUTISM

There is no
cure for
autism yet.

The autism awareness ribbon

reflects the mystery and
complexity of the autism spectrum

ROBOTS

Robots are made of roughly the same components

as human beings: a body structure with moveable

joints; a muscle system outfitted with motors and
actuators to move. A robot is computerized and
works based on computed commands and orders.

Robots are used to replace human beings

sometime in applying simple tasks that require
basic movement or action. They have helped in
expanding technology to a whole new level and
enhance the way we thing to keep on improving
in this specific field.

Every twenty minutes a child in the

U.S is diagnosed with autism. But
despite the surge in cases there has
been no way to ID whats really
taking place inside the autistic mind,
until now !

Most recent intelligence quotient (IQ) as of age 8

years among children identified with autism

THE DISCOVERY:
The discovery is a simple machine that can know if the child is

stressed or not
Computer engineer in Vanderbilt University Nilanjan Sarkar, Ph.D

build a mind reading robot.

This robot literally reads a kids mind and can determine his

mood.
For the robot to know the kids mood, the kid must be playing a

simple game of hoops with a medical twist.

HOW DOES THE ROBOT WORK:

The robot determines the kids mood based on the way he/she is

playing.
The robot changes the speed of the game by adding relaxing

music for example or by speeding up the game to let the kid relax
and put him/her in a better mood.
Heart rate, skin temperature, and muscle movements are main

references that the robot refers to for action.

 The robot helps doctors know what triggers anxiety and tension in

autistic kids.
Researches found the robot identified a childs correct mood 80

percent of the time by having an experienced therapist do the

same work at the same time.
The robot is undoubtedly a great success and can adapt to the

behavior of a kid to know more about how he is going to react and

why.

A FINAL WORD ABOUT THE

DISCOVERY AND FUTURE WORK THAT
IS PLANNED:
Some help, some hoops and a lot of understanding. For kids, its

a slam dunk.
Autistic kids work better with robots because theyre more

predictable and consistent than humans.

Researches main goal now is to create smaller robots to work

with kids in their homes.

Research on this topic

began in 2008 and until
today work is still being
done to develop the
concept to create a mini
robot for kids to use at
home.

 The experiment was held with the help of Vanderbilt University

that put all of its effort to reach such an amazing result.

What makes this experiment so important is its breathtaking idea

that robot can actually read an autistic kids mind.

Never before has this idea been mentioned and this is why it

caught the eye of many and made many researchers interesting

in being part of a life changing experiment.

VANDERBILTS VIDEO :

Robots Reading Autistic Kids' Minds - Vanderbilt University

THE FUTURE OF AUTISM:

Vanderbilt university stated that about 1 in 88 children has been

identified with an autism spectrum disorder according to estimates

from CDCs autism and developmental disabilities and based on
the research that is being held this percentage is going to
decrease in the next five years.
A project related to the robot created is being worked on and is

expected to show results in the year 2020 that will not only read
autistic kids minds but also allow them to communicate.

INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT

AUTISM
Parents who have a child with an ASD have a 2%-18% chance of

having a second child who is also affected.

A small percentage of children who are born prematurely or with

low birth weight are at greater risk for having ASDs.

ASDs are reported to occur in all racial, ethnic, and

socioeconomic groups.
ASDs are almost 5 times more common among boys than among

girls

Data & statistics. (2013, JUNE 27). Retrieved from

http://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/autism/data.html

Robots reading autistic kids' minds. (2011, JANUARY 1). Retrieved from
http://www.ivanhoe.com/science/story/2011/01/814si.html

Robots reading autistic kids' minds. (2012, JUNE 23). Retrieved from
http://www.aip.org/dbis/APS/stories/21006.html
Interactive robot helps children with autism. (2013, JANUARY 12).
Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7T7cIY-MIxc