Friendly educational robot designed to help kids with autism

Robots could be used to help kids diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), according to a new research project carried out jointly by a university and a robotics startup. Researchers at Spain's Universidad Miguel Hernández and the Spanish Aisoy Robotics company are collaborating to investigate how the latter group's pint-size educational Aisoy robot can enhance the effectiveness of therapy sessions at the UMH University Clinic -- particularly related to developing children's emotional, social, and cognitive skills. As an example, the robot will express emotions a child can then identify, or suggest playing certain games. Over the course of their time together, the idea is that kids will build up emotional attachments with the robot, and the interaction will aid with therapeutic adherence. "We already have an Emotional OS, called Airos, which includes an emotional engine, a cognitive engine, and a decision engine," José Manuel del Río, Aisoy's CEO, told Digital Trends.