Ruchik Mishra
Date:
Speaker
Ruchik Mishra is a PhD candidate at the Louisville Automation and Robotics Research Institute (LARRI), Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Louisville, KY. His current research spans the areas of Affective Computing, Deep Learning, and Robotics and their application in healthcare. It involves modeling engagement during a therapy session of children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). His prime focus is to leverage the deep learning algorithms to create an emotional feedback loop between a robot and a child in the context of autism therapy, facilitating personalized and adaptive robotic interventions.
Speaker Links: Personal Website - Google Scholar
Abstract
Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) has been inclusive of a wide range of conditions. According to the revised version of the DSM-5 in 2013, people with autism spectrum disorder exhibit: (1) challenges in social interaction and communication and, (2) restricted and repetitive behaviors. The personalization of therapy for children with ASD has been found to be crucial in comparison to a universal approach. This personalization demands the ability to adapt to the individual’s needs and engagement levels to avoid disinterest or meltdowns [1]. Hence a closed loop human-robot interaction becomes imperative where the robot generates content in real time during the intervention based on the affective feedback of the individual involved. This affective feedback is captured with the help of physiological signals collected using the Empatica E4 wrist band which collects Blood Volumne Pulse (BVP), Electrodermal Activity (EDA) and Skin temperature. The physiological data collected can not only be used to make classifications of emotions or engagement during therapy, but can also forecast them for the future [2].
Papers:
- [1] R. Mishra. Towards adaptive and personalized robotic therapy for children with autism spectrum disorder. 2022 10th International Conference on Affective Computing and Intelligent Interaction Workshops and Demos (ACIIW). IEEE, 2022, pp. 1–5.
- [2] R. Mishra and K. C. Welch. Towards forecasting engagement in children with autism spectrum disorder using social robots and deep learning. SoutheastCon 2023. IEEE, 2023, pp. 838–843.