Understanding the World as Perceived by those with Autism Spectrum Disorder

Understanding the World as Perceived by those with Autism Spectrum Disorder

Researchers developed a head mounted display simulator for reproducing perceptual experiences

Mar 16, 2015

A group of researchers developed a head mounted display simulator for reproducing the perceptual experiences of individuals with Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD).

Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka University -- NAGAI Yukie (Specially Appointed Associate Professor), Qin Shibo (2nd year student in the master's program), ASADA Minoru (Professor)

Research Center for Advanced Science and Technology, The University of Tokyo -- KUMAGAYA Shinichiro (Specially Appointed Lecturer), AYAYA Satsuki (Specially Appointed Researcher)

Individuals with ASD have symptoms such as hyperesthesia and hypoesthesia which manifest as enhanced visual contrast and reduced contrast sensitivity, cause them to see images colored in grayscale gradients, and present acute sensitivity to noise. This group analyzed what signals from visual and auditory senses caused such symptoms and modeled that process computationally, a world first. This group's achievements will be of some help in understanding how the unique perception of those with ASD affects their socializing skills and in proposing support methods that are truly beneficial to them.

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To learn more about this research, please view the full research report entitled " Autism Simulator Employing Augmented Reality: A Prototype " at this page of the Proceedings of the 4th IEEE International Conference on Development and Learning and on Epigenetic Robotics website.

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