Robots Conquering the Frontiers of autism and Technology

The number of children impacted by autism continues to grow. This means a life time of challenges as these children strive to become independent and self-supporting adults. Early intervention can have a significant positive impact on the shape and richness of their future. Having resources that helps parents and teachers as well, cope with the very real challenges and burdens that they jointly face can also be a contributor to a family, home and learning environment that is more calm, nurturing and progressive.

At ChartaCloud | ROBOTTECA we are committed to our passion of breaking through to the new and ever-expanding potential that the new frontiers of technology offer in autism breakthroughs - in research, clinical studies and in robot-mediated behavior intervention therapies.

To advance this initiative we organized and hosted the first Interdisciplinary Workshop for Robot-mediated Behavior Intervention and brought together leading researchers and clinicians to share their ‘state-of-the-art’ findings and progress in applied robot based technology for autism therapies.

You can see recordings of this workshop at www.rmbiworkshop.com.

BOTTOM LINE WORKSHOP FINDING: The use of a robot creates communication breakthroughs and lasting positive impact upon and for children with autism.

There are two proven, leading options for robot mediated behavior interventions:

·        The NAO robot from SoftBank Robotics

·        The Milo robot from RoboKind

Using the NAO Robot offers multiple pathway resources in support of this discipline. With the NAO robot you can:

1.      Create your own custom robot behaviors for child unique intervention sessions.

2.      Utilize the leading resource library of pre-programmed intervention robot behaviors.

The NAO Robot is a proven performer in autism. NAO is engaging and tireless in its interactions, and creates an immediate sense of enthusiasm, connectivity, responsiveness and joy.

The Milo Robot is a robot specifically designed for autism engagement therapies. Milo with its unique ‘facial expression’ technology allows Milo to model facial emotions. Milo can speak, smile, laugh and walk. Milo creates immediate engagement allowing the effective delivery of a comprehensive, evidence-based social curriculum. In fact, students with ASD engage with Milo at rates as high as 90% compared with only 3% engagement with humans.

Working continuously with the world’s autism technology leaders in robotics we provide a comprehensive and ever-evolving ‘ecology of behaviors’ that you can draw upon. With these behaviors use of these robots by non-technical users is easily accomplished which means that the robot can also be used in conventional classroom settings and do double duty as the platform for STEM educational curricula.

Mike Radice is Chairman of the Technology Advisory Board for ChartaCloud | ROBOTTECA

Autistic Persons: the “Star-gate” Guides to Artificial Intelligence

 It is increasingly being recognized that many individuals on the spectrum have significant potential and value as computer code developers, as programmers. Factually, several major technology companies have established focused corporate programs to embrace and develop the potential of this unique human resource. It is becoming ever more understood that autistic persons are another type of true person – an autistic person, and as such in many instances they possess extraordinary insight and focus. I believe that the present, conventional view of an autistic individual as simply a great programmer is about to change and change dramatically. Why?

There are a very few things if any, in today’s world of technology that garners more attention than the advance and the future of artificial intelligence (AI) ‘systems’. From Stephan Hawking to Elon Musk to Bill Gates it seems, everyone has an opinion about its dangers and benefits to mankind. My view is that AI does represent a potential path forward for the salvation of a human race that seems to have missed the opportunity to save “its” planet or have moved soon enough and fast enough to prepare an escape to populate another planet in our solar system. AI represents another opportunity. The merits of differing views are a debate for another day. The march towards AI will continue. It is here that autistic individuals with their unique facilities will soon be found to be our “Star-gate guides”.

One of the most intense sectors of focus is on the integration and embedding of AI in the development of humanoid robots. Let’s look at this for a moment. Here, we are trying to get these robots to ‘learn’ how to interface with humans, how to recognize the emotional state of a human, how to understand its own environment - in sum, embody a ‘cognitive capacity’. IBM offers the following attributes to help define cognitive embodiment: personalization, liveness, agency, and presence. In essence, we are trying to overcome and develop in robots much of the very same challenges autistic individuals face every day. I think you see my point…who better to advance AI than individuals with practiced insights in how to actually address these exact challenges.

I believe that we will see technology prone autistic individuals leap to the next level one that is above basic computer programming by being our guides in the emerging world of robots and AI. Who better to teach than an experienced individual? My faith in humanity’s destiny is that we have been given in some autistic persons the knowledge and insights to help us get it right.

Mike Radice is Chairman of the Technology Advisory Board for ChartaCloud ROBOTTECA More can be seen about Mike on LinkedIN and about ROBOTTECA at www.robotteca.com

Ten Discoveries by a Technologist Learning About autism

I became engaged with the intersection of autism and technology by way of humanoid robots. I wanted to answer two questions about what is emerging as ‘robot-mediated behavior intervention’ for autism. Does it work? Does it have a meaningful and lasting impact? In attempting to answer these questions I thought it would be a good starting point to bring together the leading researchers and clinicians to share their findings and insights. To that end, I set out to host a workshop on these very questions. The resulting participation was world class, and the amount of interest in viewing this workshop ‘live’ by individuals from around the world was amazing. The full workshop can be viewed at www.rmbiworkshop.com.

In this workshop we also focused on two of the leading robots already being used in almost 400 robot mediated-behavior situations. The world class level of researchers, and their research programs and clinical studies are making significant contributions to the understanding this discipline.

What have I learned thus far? Candidly, this discovery exercise has opened many unexpected dimensions for further considerations.

1. It seems that we are on the cusp of understanding that those with autism should not be classed as disadvantaged. They are by definition, autistic people, and should be seen and understood as such and not somehow categorized into a group that is labeled as disadvantaged.
2. Autism is a lifelong issue and is not only ‘a child’ focused matter.
3. You cannot paint every autistic child as the same, or similar as the next. Just as each person cannot be classified as ‘common’ they too are each unique – just as every person is unique.
4. That there is an observable and joyful outcome for children who have the opportunity to engage with a non-threatening, ‘tirelessly responsive’ robot. The children like robots. It helps them become engaged, happy and responsive.
5. The positive impacts sustain themselves even once the robot mediated behavior ceases.
6. The robots serve as a powerful mediation element that can help calm those ‘frustration and rage’ moments – especially in school class rooms.
7. Fundamental learning is advanced.
8. We can learn and measure by observing the child’s interactions and actually measure a child’s positive engagement progress.
9. Robots can be used by non-technicians in a therapeutic manner.
10. Robots can help ‘unlock’ children and the robots will continuously improve as a behavior mediation platform.

So, I am encouraged about what I have discovered thus far and remain committed that my passion for advancing robot based technology in autism is well founded.

Mike Radice is Chairman of the Technology Advisory Board for ChartaCloud | Robotteca. More can be seen at www.robotteca.com

Answering the Most Frequently Asked Question: What does this robot do? Top ten Uses.

As I travel the country with our fleet of robots the most frequently asked question about any of the robots is always what does it do? What would I use it for? This question is asked at every robot encounter and about every robot we provide. So, for this writing I will answer that question about/for the NAO Robot from SoftBank Robotics. I will address other robots in later writings. More than 10,000 NAO robots are in use in over 50 countries. So that fact alone should be an indication of the robustness of NAO’s versatility, utility and functionality.

But first let’s address a few foundational issues that surround these questions. Underlying the posited questions is usually the feeling that robots are ‘job stealers’ and that they are a threat. What most are really asking is the question: ‘Will it eventually take my job away?” Well the fact is that in certain job classes that may very well be true. However, the job creation that I see being generated in the robot sector and what I observe in the scope of unfilled jobs ‘going calling’…employment opportunities abound. Just this week a major retailer was stuffing doors in our neighborhood with ‘We Have Jobs Open” flyers! While this is a good question, without robots in our industrial future, our economy will falter severely and that will be worse for jobs. My assessment is robots are a good thing.

This next issue I have found to be very, very interesting. Robots without a ‘human like face’ don’t seem to generate the angst that robots with a ‘head and face’ do. No one objects to the ‘robot’ that washes their dishes or their clothes. Or, the oven that cooks their food or makes their toast or their morning cup of coffee or caries them like an elevator does in a building. Well those are ‘machines’ well not really they are a class of robots, I think. It is when we add a ‘face’ and seeming intelligence for ‘conversation’ that things get edgy. So, when you can talk to your dish washer are you concerned that one day it will say “I am not working today!”? Or, “You need to do a better job scraping the residue from the dinner plates!” Upon reflection, I clearly remember the angst that surrounded microwave ovens when they arrived on the scene. “How does it do that?!” “Are we all going to die of radiation poising?” Try and find a home today without a microwave. The same adoption curve will happen for in home social robots. I therefore think it is the ‘head and face’ motif that makes us think that the robot differently and that it may have a sinister purpose of its own making.

Let us now turn to the actual question at hand and answer the “So what is it used for?” question.

Here are my top ten uses of the NAO Robot:

1.       HOSPITALS: as Pediatric Medical Assistants clinically proven to reduce pain and fear in children that face medical procedures.

2.       AUTISM Therapies: as mediated behavior intervention vehicles that help unlock the social communications capacities of children on the autism spectrum.

3.       SCHOOLS: as a STEM Robotics learning platform

4.       SENIOR LIVING COMMUNITIES: as social assistants and exercise therapy leaders

5.       LIBRARIES: as a ‘makerspace’ resource for community education and robot access

6.       RETAIL: as an art expert in an art gallery showroom

7.       SUPRMARKETS: as product educators

8.       BANKS: as customer service agents

9.       TRADESHOWS: as in-booth sales agents

1.   ENTERTAINMENT: as performers in stage and dance performances

I think the above gives a pretty good answer to the question and presents a view of the ever-growing utility of robots of the ‘social/collaborative’ class such as a NAO. In some of the above cases such as in pediatric medical care and autism the robot actually does what it does better, and delivers a better impact than humans. Robots are rising for sure.

Three Reasons for Social Robots: Mobility, Humanity’s construct and Anthropomorphism

I am constantly asked why does anyone need a robot of the social, companion class or type? It is the most frequently asked question that I encounter when demonstrating collaborative style robots. This question spans all age demographics and is often the opening query of knowledgeable analysts and investors. It is offered as question in search of an answer to what remains to be somewhat of a mystery. For the young – it is phrased as “what can this robot do?” but sounds more like “impress me”. For the more senior it is “why would I want this?” OK. Fair questions. When first encountered most social robots seem to be just computer tablets on wheels. And, sadly, most early social robot demonstrations seem to reinforce that view. They are made to dance or play a song to demonstrate their hardware construct, range of freedoms and gyroscopic features. Cool, it can dance and broadcast an MP4 file so, what’s next? Where is the utility?

This current stage of development of social robots seems however to be tracking to a positive set of attributes that better demonstrate current or potential utility. First, the overarching paradigm is that social robots represent a new style of interfaces to the world of knowledge and interactions with the world around us and thus the world around the robot. Out of these interactions will emerge ever more expansive human- robot interfaces. But here again the vector seems to be a deep reliance on A.I. to detect the state of mind, emotion, discussion or inquiry path the interacting human is on or facing. You don’t need a robot just to deliver the vast amount of the benefits of A.I. When that robotic based A.I. interaction is directed at a purposeful use case like helping a child understand a medical procedure or an autistic child develop a positive response to social cues it makes more sense.

Fundamentally, it seems to me that the initial support case for the utility of social robots points to the mobility of the robot. One you experience a robot coming to your location, especially if you yourself can’t easily move around, by simply calling for it or by driving it to you from a smartphone interface or planning it to show up at certain spot at a specific time you begin to sense “hey, this is better than my laptop”. I can even get it to follow me around. And the first time a robot motors around the house and seeks you out and determines whether you are sleeping or passed out- you will get it. Or, when the robot meanders into your meeting to get you on conference call you will discover the assistive features.

The next aspect I support of social robots one needs to consider that the world that has been created around us has been formulated and driven by our own ‘humanoid form’ construct. Chairs are designed for humans. Door knobs and handles are waist high. And when we encounter things in our life that are distinctly human such as a knee joint replacement surgery we see how a social humanoid robot can perform as guidance system to lead (and encourage) surgery recovery exercises. And with the growing lack of therapists and health aides – a humanoid robot is a prime ‘mirror like’ solution to lead these exercises – while the human caregivers can attend to things only humans can. So, a social, humanoid style robot seems to fill that gap and shortage nicely. Even more so, the session leading robot never tires or needs time off or a break.

Another aspect that has clinical cache supporting the case for robots is anthropomorphism. Fundamentally, people may not always believe what a computer system screen presents but they seemingly do trust a robot. Children have little trust in a doctor or a nurse but they do trust a robot when they are told by the robot that they will be OK when facing a medical or dental procedure. Placing faith in inanimate objects is a cultural attribute of humans and is easily subscribe to. Hence that ‘rabbits foot’ in your pocket or that ‘lucky shirt’ you wear on game day – anthropomorphism. Robots are loaded with it and thus can be put to purposeful missions like treating autism, giving instructions and sounding alerts that other devices cannot deliver as well or at all.

While there is a lot more to present and discuss as we experience the rise of the robots, mobility, human construct and anthropomorphism are my suggestions for beginning to answer the question – “why would I want a robot?” Next time, we will discuss the fact that they are engaging and fun!

Mike Radice is Chairman of the Technology Advisory at ChartaCloud Technologies and ROBOTTECA.com

ChartaCloud's ROBOTTECA Launches QIHAN's Sanbot Robot in U.S

ChartaCloud's ROBOTTECA Launches QIHAN's Sanbot Robot in U.S

A dispatch from the frontlines of social and service robots

The time has come to recognize that the use of social and service robots:

·         Reduces pain and stress in children facing medical procedures

·         Lessens the impact of autism

·         Brings affordable health care to rural communities

·         Reduces hospital re-admissions

·         Reduces the debilitating impact of loneliness and isolation on seniors

·         Helps student learn more and faster

·         Increases retail store sales

No need to ponder further whether social and service robots will find a role in the business models of hospitals, retail stores, retirement communities, skilled nursing facilities, schools, libraries and in the homes of those seeking to age-at-home. The reality is that they are already advancing these business models, being driven by ever more sophisticated hardware constructs and by the software that defines and manages a robot’s behavior.

Our social and service robots are at work today:

·         Serving as remote tele-medicine health examination and health care services platform

·         Enhancing autism engagement therapies and delivering lasting positive change

·         Serving as an assistant in pediatric medical procedures reducing pain and stress in children by as much as 50%

·         Leading group exercise sessions in retirement communities and skilled nursing facilities

·         Working in retail stores to enhance the customer experience and satisfaction

·         Models for teaching students about science, technology, engineering and math -STEM

·         Serving as concierge/hospitality helpers in hotels and at major conferences and trade shows

·         Enhancing the lives of seniors via tele-presence – reducing the debilitating impact of isolation and loneliness

In the earlier days of robotics, the question was: “What can they do?” The question now is: “How and when will I start to (read: need to) use this technology”.

Mike Radice is Chairman of the Technology Advisory for ChartaCloud’s ROBOTTECA www.robotteca.com