Emotionally Intelligent Robots to Support Human Sustainability

Socially and emotionally intelligent robots with human-like looks are one of the latest social innovations from Japan to promote sustainability and the well-being of human society. "Matilda" and "Jack" from NEC Japan are human-looking robots that respond to human touch and communication.

Matilda is a female robot that is capable of talking, dancing, singing. She even blushes. More importantly, Matilda is being trained to become a nurse to care for the elderly. Researchers at the La Trobe University in Melbourne, Australia are conducting trials in nursing homes to understand how patients will interact with this new technology.

One of the researchers of Matilda, Dr. Mei Tai Chu, said that a patient of dementia played quiz with Matilda and was so excited that he could even come up with a few correct answers. Dr. Chu said that emotionally intelligent robots such as Jack and Matilda were programmed to read face expressions of humans and pick up signals of anxiety and distress.

Dr. Chu lifted Matilda in her arms to demonstrate its capabilities, and the robot responded by shouting. The multi-lingual robot asked Dr. Chu to put it back on the floor, otherwise it would fall. At the same time, it blushed and its cheeks turned reddish while it spoke. Dr. Chu explained that Jack and Matilda had eyes fitted with cameras and sensors in their bodies. Matilda was programmed to be sincere and blush like girls, while Jack was naughtier in comparison.

Dr. Chu said, "The robots make a contact with the eyes of a person and then follow him/her if they make any movement. They communicate with the person and become their companions, especially of the elderly people. Thus, these robots have a personality." About the power source of the robots, she said that both were battery operated and could also work on electricity. "The robot has been provided with an external power cord to run power through it for allowing it to perform various applications."

La Trobe University's Research Centre for Computers, Communication and Social Innovation (RCEESI) is involved in the design and development of socially and emotionally intelligent robots, or humanoids, such as Jack and Matilda. The goal is to use this technology to provide support for the sustainability and well-being of the society in critical areas such as health care and human resource management.

Source: The Times of India

Photo Credit: Nahhan