On May 16, the robot Gasparzinho received an honourable mention by the magazine Exame Informática, in the category “Social Responsibility”. The robot, which was created by iDMind and programmed/designed by the Institute for Systems and Robotics, has a very special mission: to reduce the impact of isolation on hospitalised children at IPO.

The robot has also been used in other research projects, such as the INTERIOR CMU-Portugal, which explores the use of autonomous robots in autism therapy. The Pavilion of Knowledge has another robot of this type that welcomes the visitors.

Gasparzinho is the result of of a combination of complex technological solutions and a series of concepts drawn from social psychology. The main goal of this project was to create a playfellow in real context and, at the same time, to stimulate playful and educational activities. The robot’s appearance was carefully thought. It was inspired by drawings of 119 children and students from different schools.