NAO humanoid robot training scheduled at FHSU

The Fort Hays State University Science and Mathematics Education Institute has acquired a humanoid NAO robot.

FHSU SMEI is providing a special training session Sept. 12 and 13 for campus faculty to learn how to use the robot for applications within their specific disciplines. Once trained, faculty members will be allowed to borrow the robot for use in their own projects.

According to a news release from FHSU SMEI, the Aldebaran Softbank Group’s NAO robot stands 23 inches tall and has a full range of movements and elaborate behaviors. The robot features:

• 25 degrees of freedom for movement
• Two cameras so that NAO may see its surroundings
• An inertial measurement unit that tells NAO whether it is upright or sitting down
• Touch sensors to detect your touch
• Four directional microphones so NAO can hear you

Combining these hardware and software technologies with other technologies and programming allows NAO to respond to his surroundings. Since NAO has a unique, open operating system, users gain the ability to add behaviors and to create new applications that take advantage of NAO’s capabilities.

nao autism — Mateo works with NAO at the University of Notre Dame’s FUN Lab for autistic children.

” We are excited about the possibilities and the opportunity to work with this unique project,” said Dr. Paul Adams, physics professor and the Anschutz Professor of Education.

First produced in 2006, NAO (pronounced “NOW”) has become a useful tool for treating autistic children, a unique platform for teaching programming skills, and many other applications.