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WearCam & Autism
The WearCam is currently being tested as part of longitudinal studies with children from 12 to 24 months by the research team of the professor Claes von Hofsten, at the department of Psychology at the University of Uppsala in Sweden. The goal of these studies is to increase our understanding of the child's development process and to improve the chances of identifying possible deficiencies like for instance, Autism. In most forms of Autism, a telltale sign is the lack of attention the child pays to the people interacting with him. The WearCam and the subsequent Data Analysis can give an idea of the amount of attention the child is giving to the people around him.
The WearCam is able to record the front part of the visual field of the child. The recordings can, in a post treatment, be analyzed to understand the visual behaviour of the child. The WearCam can be adapted on any child who has a cranial perimeter in the range of 35 to 65cm. That range corresponds to a child between 6 to 18 months.
Two different versions
of the WearCam have been developped. The first one with a single
wireless camera, battery powered. Thanks to the RF transmission, the battery and its very
small weight, the WearCam is completely autonomous, and the child
is not limited in his movements and is completely free. It can be used for example in free
play situations. The second version of the WearCam is mounted on
a cap, and uses two cameras and two microphones. A single connector and cable takes care of
the video, audio and power tranmissions. This version is designed to be used in specific
situations, when the child is not moving freely, for example sitting at a table during
psychological test scenarios. For more technical informations, see Mechanical Design.
Videos
Selected publications
People involved in this project