The mayor of Seville, José Luis Sanz, received Satoshi Shigemi, president of the Honda Research Institute, together with a delegation from the multinational Honda (researchers from the Honda Research Institute and executives from Honda Motor) at the Seville City Hall.
At this meeting, Shigemi and the Japanese delegation informed Sanz of the advances in the materialization of the 'Haru in Hospital' project, a pioneer at world level, and also supported by the University of Seville and the Pablo de Olavide University, whose objective is to improve the educational development and emotional recovery of children who have to be hospitalized while receiving pediatric oncology treatment and care at the Virgen del Rocío Hospital.
In this sense, Sanz thanked Shigemi for "the firm commitment to Seville to develop the advances of this new robot that will improve the quality of life of all hospitalized children worldwide". Likewise, he pointed out that "this visit and Honda's work in Seville reinforce the strategic importance of Seville as a global research center and, in this case, in the health sector. Therefore, we will continue to reach out to these projects for the city to establish itself as a technological benchmark in southern Europe.
Shigemi
Satoshi Shigemi is a leading figure in the international technological community, with the creation of the Asimo robot, the first robot with advanced humanoid characteristics, the first version of which was presented in 2000, standing out. The Asimo robot is so emblematic as a symbol of Japanese technological capacity that it has been part of the entourage of the Emperors of Japan when they have received Heads of State, as happened during the official trip of the King and Queen of Spain, in 2018, when Asimo shook hands with King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia together with the highest Japanese authorities.
The visit to Seville by the President of the Honda Research Institute coincides with the celebration of the annual gala promoted by the Spanish Association for the Effects of Cancer Treatment (AEetc), a non-profit organization formed by parents of children with cancer whose main objective is to help surviving children with the after-effects of cancer treatment.
The 2024 edition of the gala will take place on the evening of Thursday, November 28, at the Casino de la Exposición, where one of the Association's awards, called 'ETC Engines Against Childhood Cancer' has been awarded to the Honda Research Institute and will be collected by its president, Satoshi Shigemi, together with its chief investigator, the Filipino Randy Gomez, and its principal investigator, the American Eric Nichols.
The Haru robot
Haru is a prototype robot designed by Honda Research Institute that integrates the UNICEF guidelines on the use of artificial intelligence for children. The objective in which progress is being made in Seville by the AEetc Association, with the technical and financial support of Honda Research Institute, is that Haru is increasingly a socially intelligent robot capable of detecting and processing human social and emotional signals, to respond to these behaviors in a developmentally appropriate way for children who are receiving cancer treatment and cannot attend school regularly. Creating conversation, play and learning to support both their education and to facilitate the work of doctors and nurses.
In addition to the physical robot, a simulator or virtual avatar of Haru has been designed and implemented on an iPad, which allows them to continue using the applications at home and, moreover, can be used by a greater number of children.