"Transitional Wearable Companions'' (TWC) are interactive, multisensory, animal-shaped soft toys, developed as a support tool for early intervention in neurodevelopmental disorders (NDD), with particular reference to Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). Thanks to internal electronics, TWC can emit coloured lights, nice sounds and mild vibrations when touched on the paws. Such stimulations are usually very reinforcing to children and attract their attention. TWCs can be used by the therapist to stimulate children's social skills (imitation, shared attention, eye contact) through sensorimotor games. Using a control app, the therapist can also adapt the TWC's responses (colour of lights, type of sound or music) to the child's preferences, to increase their interest. In this way, the TWC remains a stimulating game that keeps the child's attention high.
TWCs, as a potential product, lie somewhere between classic interactive toys for young children (such as interactive puppets, which are fun but limited in their operation), and more advanced technologies aimed at older children (such as robots or virtual reality, which are very stimulating but complex to use). In practice, TWCs are simple enough to be used with young children, but interesting and complex enough to arouse the subject's interest and participation. This 'niche of use' has been confirmed by numerous therapists, who have viewed TWCs at trade fairs, and who have described them as innovative devices that are currently not available on the market. Moreover, TWCs, thanks to their internal electronics, can collect behavioural data, which is useful for monitoring the child's social skills. This makes TWCs a potential research tool as well as a therapy support tool.
Italy