

MGOVMAGAZINE
34
Nadeen
a Virtual Human escorts elders
and plays with children
Nadia
Magnenat-Thalmann,
Director of Media Innovation
Institute in Nanyang Technological
University has invented a humanoid
robot (Nadeen) or called virtual human
can escort elders and plays with children.
Nadeen is a new type of humanoid robot
with brown hair, soft skin and kind face.
The scientists hope that Nadeen will
escort old people and children and assist
old people who suffer dementia.
Nadeen has been made similar to the
researcher invented it who has spent
almost 30 years in her professional life in
researches for manufacturing humanoid
robots or so –called virtual humans.
Nadeen –humanoid robot with assistance
of software programs to express different
emotions and to tell stories but it has not
been yet commercially offered. However,
the inventor, Thalmann hopes that day
will come in which such robots are used
to escort older people who suffer form
dementia.
She said that if those ill people left alone,
then their mental conditions will be badly
deteriorated, therefore, they are in need
for communication continuously. She
also added that Nadeen-humanoid robot
can make a dialogue and tell stories and
also it can play simple games.
Thalmann and her team work to develop
an emotional robot is able to play with
children. The project is still in the early
stages and no model has been yet
produced. She said that little robot will
be able to answer questions, to express
emotions and to know people in
addition, it is a social escort, it will
be bale to take care of children
in absence of parents and
to inform parents or
nuns in case of
any problems.