How to Build a Supervised Autonomous System for Robot-Enhanced Therapy for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder
Esteban Pablo G.,
Baxter Paul,
Belpaeme Tony,
Billing Erik,
Cai Haibin,
Cao Hoang-Long,
Coeckelbergh Mark,
Costescu Cristina,
David Daniel,
De Beir Albert,
Fang Yinfeng,
Ju Zhaojie,
Kennedy James,
Liu Honghai,
Mazel Alexandre,
Pandey Amit,
Richardson Kathleen,
Senft Emmanuel,
Thill Serge,
Van de Perre Greet,
Vanderborght Bram,
Vernon David,
Yu Hui,
Ziemke Tom
Affiliations
Esteban Pablo G.
Robotics and Multibody Mechanics Research Group, Agile & Human Centered Production and Robotic Systems Research Priority of Flanders Make, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels, Belgium
Baxter Paul
Centre for Robotics and Neural Systems, Plymouth University, Plymouth, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Belpaeme Tony
Centre for Robotics and Neural Systems, Plymouth University, Plymouth, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Billing Erik
Interaction Lab School of Informatics, University of Skövde, Skövde, Sweden
Cai Haibin
School of Computing, University of Portsmouth, Portsmouth, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Cao Hoang-Long
Robotics and Multibody Mechanics Research Group, Agile & Human Centered Production and Robotic Systems Research Priority of Flanders Make, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels, Belgium
Coeckelbergh Mark
Centre for Computing and Social Responsibility, Faculty of Technology, De Montfort University, Leicester, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Costescu Cristina
Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, Babeş-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca, Romania
David Daniel
Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, Babeş-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca, Romania
De Beir Albert
Robotics and Multibody Mechanics Research Group, Agile & Human Centered Production and Robotic Systems Research Priority of Flanders Make, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels, Belgium
Fang Yinfeng
School of Computing, University of Portsmouth, Portsmouth, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Ju Zhaojie
School of Computing, University of Portsmouth, Portsmouth, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Kennedy James
Centre for Robotics and Neural Systems, Plymouth University, Plymouth, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Liu Honghai
School of Computing, University of Portsmouth, Portsmouth, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Mazel Alexandre
Softbank Robotics Europe, Paris, France
Pandey Amit
Softbank Robotics Europe, Paris, France
Richardson Kathleen
Centre for Computing and Social Responsibility, Faculty of Technology, De Montfort University, Leicester, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Senft Emmanuel
Centre for Robotics and Neural Systems, Plymouth University, Plymouth, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Thill Serge
Interaction Lab School of Informatics, University of Skövde, Skövde, Sweden
Van de Perre Greet
Robotics and Multibody Mechanics Research Group, Agile & Human Centered Production and Robotic Systems Research Priority of Flanders Make, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels, Belgium
Vanderborght Bram
Robotics and Multibody Mechanics Research Group, Agile & Human Centered Production and Robotic Systems Research Priority of Flanders Make, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels, Belgium
Vernon David
Interaction Lab School of Informatics, University of Skövde, Skövde, Sweden
Yu Hui
School of Computing, University of Portsmouth, Portsmouth, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Ziemke Tom
Interaction Lab School of Informatics, University of Skövde, Skövde, Sweden
Robot-Assisted Therapy (RAT) has successfully been used to improve social skills in children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) through remote control of the robot in so-called Wizard of Oz (WoZ) paradigms.However, there is a need to increase the autonomy of the robot both to lighten the burden on human therapists (who have to remain in control and, importantly, supervise the robot) and to provide a consistent therapeutic experience. This paper seeks to provide insight into increasing the autonomy level of social robots in therapy to move beyond WoZ. With the final aim of improved human-human social interaction for the children, this multidisciplinary research seeks to facilitate the use of social robots as tools in clinical situations by addressing the challenge of increasing robot autonomy.We introduce the clinical framework in which the developments are tested, alongside initial data obtained from patients in a first phase of the project using a WoZ set-up mimicking the targeted supervised-autonomy behaviour. We further describe the implemented system architecture capable of providing the robot with supervised autonomy.
