Speaker: Dr. Nilanjan Sarkar, Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Vanderbilt University

Abstract:  The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates 1 in 68 children in the United States have an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).  ASD is associated with enormous individual, familial, and social cost across the lifespan. There is an urgent need for efficacious treatments that can be delivered across resource-strained environments.  In this context, robotic technologies may yield intervention platforms with substantial promise for impacting early core symptoms of ASD. This seminar will provide a brief background of robotics research in ASD intervention and then introduce the research on the design and preliminary testing of robotic intervention platforms and environments for young children with ASD at Vanderbilt University. 

Biography:  Nilanjan Sarkar is a Professor of Mechanical Engineering (primary) and Electrical Engineering and Computer Science (secondary) at Vanderbilt University. He received his Ph.D. from the GRASP Lab at the University of Pennsylvania. He directs the Robotics and Autonomous Systems Lab and co-directs the Autos Lab at Vanderbilt University. Dr. Sarkar’s research interests are in dynamics, controls, robotics and human-robot and human-machine interactions. He is a Fellow of the ASME.