RAMSES : a robotic assistant and a mobile support environment for speech and language therapy

Abstract

Speech and Language Therapy (SLT) is an area focused in the rehabilitation of people suffering from different kinds of disorders and disabilities related with language and communication. According to latest estimates of the World Health Organization, the most of countries do not have appropriate structures to provide healthcare and rehabilitation services these persons. On those grounds, this paper presents a robotic assistant with the aim to help Speech and Language Pathologists (SLP) during the therapy activities. This approach is based on an integrative environment that relies on mobile ICT tools, an expert system, a knowledge layer and standardized vocabularies. This proposal has been tested on 65 children suffering from different kinds of disabilities, and the achieved results are encouraging.

Exploring the Potential of Social Robots for Speech and Language Therapy: A Review and Analysis of Interactive Scenarios

“…In [48], the authors offer the use of a robotic assistant and a mobile support environment included in speech and language therapy. The approach in the pilot study is based on an integrative environment that involves mobile Information and Communications Technology (ICT) tools, an expert system, a knowledge layer, and standardized vocabularies.…”

“…The participants in this scenario are the therapist, the children, the robotic assistant (the model can be used by relatives and students, too). Activity description [48], page 75…”

“…The youngsters are observed to show increased verbal production and participation via SARs. The latter contribute to improvements in articulation, and phonological, morphosyntactical, and semantic communication [13,33,[35][36][37]43,44,48,49,57]. Auditory skills: Children learn and develop language through listening.…”

“…SARs can also repeat words and provide support when necessary. In addition, robots can give visual and auditory feedback which is essential for therapists [15,48,60].  Speech rate control: Social robots can aid children in practicing speaking at a slower rate, offering real-time feedback to improve fluency gradually [22,23,39].…”

“…SARs are able to initiate and support communication and enrich child's vocabulary. They also help therapists train and assess linguistic capabilities of children and adolescents with language impairments[6][7][8]13,[15][16][17]23,32,35,38,39,[41][42][43][44][45][47][48][49][53][54][55][56][57][58][59]62].•Articulation therapy: Social robots can help children with speech disorders practice pronunciation and articulation exercises. The youngsters are observed to show increased verbal production and participation via SARs.…”