The Autism News | Français

Il est jaune, petit et mignon et s’appelle Keepon. Derrière ce petit poussin, enfin disponible en France, se cache un robot capable de danser en rythme et de réagir lorsqu’on le touche. Au-delà des vidéos virales que vaut ce petit gadget adorable mais non dénué de défauts décevants.

Conçu à l’origine par Hideki Kozima pour aider les enfants malades, Keepon a rapidement fait le buzz sur internet dès 2007. Il est alors composé de quatre moteurs, deux caméras dans les yeux ainsi que d’un micro dans le nez et est capable de réagir au toucher. Marek Michalowski de l’Université de Pittsburgh va alors permettre à ce petit bout de caoutchouc de devenir mondialement célèbre en le programmant pour qu’il puisse danser en rythme. Face à la demande croissante, Keepon se devait d’être commercialisé à grande échelle. C’est chose faite depuis quelques semaines aux Etats-Unis et en Grande Bretagne. En France, il est disponible sur le site lyonnais: www.robot-advance.com

Lire l’article

Partagez votre opinion! Donnez votre avis en remplissant le formulaire ci-dessous.

Partagez cette nouvelle avec vos amis, famille, collègues en cliquant sur les raccourcis ci-dessous:

The Autism News | Español

GRE presentó en México el robot NAO , el cual fue desarrollado por la compañía francesa Aldebaran; el robot permite la interacción con el ser humano, gracias a las características técnicas con las que cuenta, puede jugar futbol, bailar y se levanta solo cuando se cae, entre otras características.

Actualmente, más de 2,000 NAOs son utilizados por laboratorios y universidades en todo el mundo para la investigación y educación en los campos de la robótica, informática, ciencias cognitivas, matemáticas, óptica y visión, así como detección de movimiento, entre otros. En México, ya son 20 robots los que se encuentran en algunas de las instituciones educativas o de investigación como UNAM, ITAM, ITESM e INAOE.

El robot, al estar dirigido al mundo de la investigación, también se utiliza para mejorar las condiciones de niños con autismo. En Estados Unidos, el robot ya está dentro del programa de la Universidad de Notre Dame para estos propósitos. Y en México, GRE ya está en pláticas con el Teletón para usarlo con los niños.

Con un peso de 6 kilogramos y una estatura de 58 centimetros, contiene una serie de sensores – 2 cámaras, 4 micrófonos, un sensor de distancia de sonar, 2 emisores/receptores de IR, 1 junta inercial, 9 sensores táctiles, 8 sensores de presión; distintos dispositivos para expresarse – sintetizador de voz, luces LED, 2 bocinas de alta calidad y un CPU (situado en la cabeza) que ejecuta un kernel de Linux y soporta software propietario de ALDEBARÁN (NAOqi), además de un segundo CPU (ubicado en el torso).

Más información

Por favor, comparta su impresión! Denos su opinión ya sea por medio de Facebook o rellenando el formulario que se encuentra en esta página.

Comparta estas noticias con sus amigos, familiares o colegas por medio de la siguiente página del sitio:

The Autism News | English


Dubai: A new robotic treatment approach could revolutionise autism care and education, a world leader in humanoid robotics told XPRESS.

French-based Aldebaran Robotics, in which Intel Corporation has invested capital, were in town to showcase the power of robots in the classroom to Middle East academia and research institutions. NAO is the first versatile and programmable humanoid robot to be used as a standard platform for Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) students.

According to Pascal Morel, Area Sales Manager, EMEA, Aldebaran Robotics, autistic children normally face difficulties in interacting with people, but a cute, adorable and friendly humanoid like NAO could help improve their interaction skills — and subsequently their lives.

Morel said: “Humans express different emotions through the face. Autistic children face difficulty in interacting with these different modularities. But robots can be programmed to control or limit these modularities helping them act as an interface between autistic kids and people.

“Psychologists often face problems in getting these children out of their shell, but robots could help to break the ice. As the children interact more with the robots, we can progressively include more modularities such as movement of hands, face, body, or emotions through the eyes, face, etc, so that these children get used to interacting with more modularities and are finally able to interact better with humans.

Please share your reaction! Give your opinion by filling out the form below.

Share this news with friends, family, or colleagues by clicking on the shortcuts below:

The Autism News | English


Robots aren’t known for their soft side. They build cars and defuse bombs; they don’t, as a rule, make friends or deal with feelings. But a few groups of researchers around the world are working to build robots for an unusual purpose: Making emotional connections with autistic children who often struggle to interact with humans.

There’s something about machines that really seems to resonate with many kids with autism, says Maja Mataric, co-director of the Robotics Research Lab at USC. These children often have trouble reading human emotions and social cues — complexities they don’t have to worry about when they’re around a mechanical being.

“Robots are simpler than people,” Mataric says.

Still, robots may seem like unlikely candidates for a job usually filled by therapists. As Mataric points out, the general public usually thinks of robots as either cold and efficient workers (at their best) or outright evil beings bent on enslaving humanity (at their worst).

The researchers at USC have a different vision. “We’re trying to create something that’s endearing,” Mataric says.

The result: Bandit, a metallic-colored, child-sized robot that can win the attention — and even empathy — of hard-to-reach kids.

Bandit has a pleasant, inviting face with a movable mouth, archable eyebrows and camera eyes that let him “watch” his playmates. He also has proximity sensors to gauge whether kids are backing away or moving in. If they get too close, he can wheel away.

With his motor-driven arms, Bandit can automatically mimic the motions of children and lead a game of Simon Says. He can make sad sighs or happy chips, and he blows bubbles with the push of a button. He can also talk in soothing tones, although USC researches are just beginning to use Bandit’s speech in their work with children with autism.

Bandit, who has been around in various incarnations since 2007, is human-ish but still obviously a machine, which is exactly the look that Mataric and colleagues were aiming for. If he looked too much like a robot, kids wouldn’t want to be his friend. And if he looked too human, he would likely make kids with autism feel intimidated and overwhelmed. “It was a balance that we had to find,” she says.

So far, a few dozen kids with autism spectrum disorders have spent time with Bandit in various small studies. Mataric would like to have more kids visit, but she says it’s hard to find children and families who are willing and able to complete a study. Still, she has seen some real signs of progress. With Bandit’s encouragement, children have learned how to take turns and initiate play with others. Bandit has even inspired some children to smile socially for the first time, she says.

Bandit has an overseas soulmate of sorts in KASPAR, a robot who works with kids with autism in a lab at the University of Hertfordshire in England.

With his baseball cap, black hair and child-like face, KASPAR (the name is an acronym for Kinesics and Synchronisation in Personal Assistant Robotics) looks more like an oversized doll than a robot. But he’s still a big hit among the autistic.

While not every child is interested in KASPAR, “we’ve had a lot of successes over the years,” says senior research fellow Ben Robins, who has been working with the robot for five years.

Robins has heard from parents and teachers that kids who always seemed to be locked in their own worlds suddenly showed an interest in other people after spending time with KASPAR. “I can’t say for sure that the robot is responsible,” he adds.

Unlike Bandit, KASPAR doesn’t run automatically; a nearby researcher guides his actions with a remote control. Robins acknowledges that the bot isn’t as advanced as Bandit or many other robots out there. But that suits him just fine. “I’m working from the standpoint of the children, not the technology,” he says.

Los Angeles Times

Please share your reaction! Give your opinion by filling out the form below.

Share this news with friends, family, or colleagues by clicking on the shortcuts below:

The Autism News | Français

Keepon est un petit robot développé initialement pour aider les enfants autistes à fixer leur regard, leur attention. Mais suite à une modification de son fonctionnement, Keepon devient une star sur le site de partage de vidéos YouTube. A tel point qu’une version commercialisable, donc moins chère, est élaborée et sera vendue dans les prochaines semaines dans les magasins de jouets américains. Zoom sur ce charmant petit robot qui deviendra peut-être bientôt la coqueluche des enfants… et des plus grands.

Lire l’article

Partagez votre opinion! Donnez votre avis en remplissant le formulaire ci-dessous.

Partagez cette nouvelle avec vos amis, famille, collègues en cliquant sur les raccourcis ci-dessous:

The Autism News | English


As robots go, My Keepon appears underwhelming. It stands about 10 inches high and looks like two tennis balls fused together. It has no arms, no antennae, and no laser beams. What it does have is a wicked sense of rhythm. Fire up the stereo and My Keepon starts grinding away, spinning its torso and thumping its head to the beat.

My Keepon also has the backing of one of the world’s largest toy stores, Toys “R” Us, which has the exclusive U.S. rights to sell the robot, originally a therapeutic tool for autistic children. The retailer will begin lining the shelves with My Keepons in late October, priming it to be the big holiday hit. By Christmas, if the bet pays off, My Keepon’s career arc will look a lot like Dr. Phil’s: from therapist to globally recognizable celebrity. “When you see it rocking out, you just can’t help but love it,” says Richard Barry, a vice-president at Toys “R” Us.

Keepon’s story begins about seven years ago with Hideki Kozima, a Japanese expert in artificial intelligence and robotics at the School of Project Design at Miyagi University. Kozima theorized that an emotive robot could help autistic children, who can be overwhelmed in face-to-face interactions, by reducing the complexities of communication to a few simple gestures. A child pats the robot on the head. It responds with a playful bob. The child talks to the robot. It turns to face him and nods.

Please share your reaction! Give your opinion by filling out the form below.

Share this news with friends, family, or colleagues by clicking on the shortcuts below: