Regresar

An ecosystem based on ontologies and robotic assistants to support the development of social communication skills in children with autism

Abstract:

The term Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASDs) covers conditions such as autism, childhood disintegrative disorder and Asperger syndrome. In this line, the World Health Organization (WHO) points that core symptoms of ASD are: a mixture of impaired capacity for reciprocal socio-communicative interaction and a restricted, stereotyped repetitive repertoire of interests and activities. In light of the above, it is fundamental for a person with ASD to develop skills to communicate with his/her peers, share ideas, and express feelings and needs. On those grounds, in this paper we present an intelligent ecosystem to support the development of social communication skills in children with ASD. This ecosystem relies on ontologies and robotic assistants, and is able to adapt the intervention plans according to the patient's profile. The robotic assistant has been put to test in a pilot experiment carried out with 32 children of regular schools. The achieved results are positive due to the versatility of the robot and the proposed system.