An intelligent system based on ontologies and ICT tools to support the diagnosis and intervention of children with autism

Abstract

The World Health Organization (WHO) claims that one of each 160 persons in the world are diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASDs). However, in low- and middle-income countries this situation turns more complex, given that the prevalence of ASDs is not adequately estimated, or is unknown. On those grounds, in this paper we present a new approach based on semantic web, ontologies, and intelligent ICT tools (mobile tools and robotic assistants) to provide an effective support during the diagnosis and intervention stages of children with ASDs. Our system has been put to test on a pilot experiment carried in two stages: in the first one 32 children were surveyed about the functionality and appearance of the robot, while in the second stage we have evaluated the system services that are based on ontologies and the semantic web.