Robotic startup LuxAI has teamed up with the Interdisciplinary Centre for Security, Reliability and Trust (SnT) of the University of Luxembourg to build social robots that can help build social skills.
Designed specifically to aid those who lack such skills, such as children with autism, stroke patients recovering from brain trauma or dementia patients, LuxAI’s robots can be programmed by practitioners to ensure their patients get the help they need, according to their unique situation.
For example, if trying to help a child speak better, it can be programmed to teach certain vocabulary. If trying to build up the strength in a stroke patient, it can be pre-programmed with exercise that will train the patient’s mind or body to concentrate just on the parts that aren’t functioning properly.
“Robots that are supposed to interact with humans have to process a great deal of information very quickly, and adapt their behaviours according to the interaction,” LuxAI’s CEO Pouyan Ziafati told Biz Community.
“We have already run the prototype through practical tests. It received excellent scores for its social expressiveness, emotionality and ease of use,” he added.
He went on to explain the robot provides a platform on which it can be programmed easily, using natural techniques, rather than a doctor needing advanced technology skills.
“Practitioners who want to teach a robot how to train stroke patients, for example, can’t learn their way into it. They need an interface by which they can program the robot intuitively and naturally.”
“Non-IT-expert people have made the first tests with our robots. They were able to program the robots for their purpose within 20 minutes. Our software lets anyone do it.”
