Wirelessly Controlled Mimicing Humanoid Robot Assisting Children with ASD in learning Focused and Coordinated Behaviors

Educational humanoid robots have started to find there place in institutions for children with special needs and Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) children therapy centers. Most of the humanoid robots are expensive, or come with specific software or method for controlling the robot. This gives limits to what can be done with the robot and the software or method used may not allow expansion of the robot functionalities or possible applications. This paper presents an of system integration example with custom-built graphical toolkit used in controlling a simple toy like robot, the robot (RoboSapien), for a variety of customizable functions and applications. The main focus is on the activities and games that can be used with this platform in order to customize enhance the functionalities of the robot to suit the therapy process for the child under consideration. The mimicking mode of the robot, where the robot mimics the behavior of the user, has been found to be very promising for catching attention, making children involve in an activity, and retain their interest for longer period of time. Several activities have been developed and tested with children having ASD and have shown remarkable improvement in concentration spans, focus, and willingness to follow instructions.