Nao Robot
NAO- the humanoid robot is designed to interact with people- mainly children. NAO robots are primarily used in schools (K12 and STEM) education and research. Also, these robots are deployed for the development of “children of determination” or children with Autism needs. Since the Robot is packed with a variety of sensors it can do a variety of tasks such as walk, dance, speak, and recognize faces and objects. This is the result of a unique combination of mechanical engineering and software. NAO is also used as an assistant by companies and healthcare centers to welcome, inform and entertain visitors.
Softbank Robotics Europe reverts to its former name of Aldebaran
SoftBank Robotics Europe will now operate under its original name, Aldebaran, the creator and manufacturer of NAO robot in 2006 and Pepper with SoftBank in 2012. With the acquisition by United Robotics Group (URG), the company is now building towards becoming a European leader in service robotics companies. URG is a group of eight European robotics companies united in one group with an ecosystem of 300+ highly qualified technology-inspired people, driven by a shared set of human values, always focusing on customer needs, product quality, data privacy and sustainability. The main goal of URG is to develop a new generation of robots, combining the best of both worlds, human interaction social robots and skillful industrial robots, CobiotX – Robots For Humans. It will also continue to improve its offerings for existing products such as Pepper & NAO. Jacky’s Business Solutions will continue to work with Aldebaran and support their ongoing developments in humanoid robots Pepper and Nao, across the GCC. If you want to explore robotic solutions for your organisation, reach out to our team on vms.sales@www.jackys.com to set up a meeting. What was the purpose of the NAO robot created by SoftBank Robotics? NAO robot is the first robot created by Aldebaran. This humanoid robot was created specially for education and research. For what is NAO Robot best known for ?" NAO is best known as the “Educational robot”. NAO robot is the best tool for education and research. Nao can be used in the training of the children with Autism.
Gems Legacy School embraces robotic literacy
GEMS Legacy School (formerly known as The Kindergarten starters) has been digital since Ms. Asha Alexander took over as its Principal 11 years ago (2011). She is also the Executive Leader – Climate Change, at the school. As such going digital was a no brainer for her. She explained, “When I took over the school 11 years ago, it was a traditional school and I wanted to shift to digital learning and change the way the children at our school learnt, so I took away the text books as a strategy to allow children and teachers to explore learning beyond what the textbooks had to offer.” According to Alexander, digital learning meant changing the mindsets of teachers, parents and children. It is now the only Indian curriculum school without text books. Everything is digital. As parents and teachers bought into digital learning, the transition to online learning during the pandemic was seamless for GEMS Legacy teachers and students since they were already learning digitally. GEMS Legacy is doing the same with Robotics now. Robotic literacy is of great importance not just to Ms. Alexander but to her staff and students. She added, “Robotic literacy is not being recognised by educators these days but it should be. Robotics is not just about teaching it separately. It should be an integral part of their learning at all levels because when these kids finish school, robots will be everywhere, in all industries and in all aspects. Our duty as educators is to equip our students with the skills that will enable them to meaningfully contribute to problem solving and logic in their future. Our students don’t just have robots in one class because we think they should start early – kids learn as they grow.” GEMS Legacy strives to have robots (including several Nao from Softbank Robotics, represented in the Middle East by Jacky’s Business Solutions) at all levels. The school has encouraged and created coding and scratch learning around robotics and drones as part of their curriculum. The older students learn to code and program these robots and use them to teach the younger students. This makes it easier for them to learn as well as creates better engagement between teachers and students no matter what the lesson. It also teaches students logical and computational thinking. As a school catering to the mid-market segment, the management has to prioritise its budgets and spending but Alexander, with the buy in from her management, prioritises technologies like AI, robotics and drones as a key investment for her teachers and students. “We need at least one robot for each class so that the kids develop problem solving abilities and critical thinking is introduced. AI and robotics is the future so we need to prioritise this now,” she added. GEMS has an AI curriculum and are using the technologies that are age appropriate and recommended by the school’s technical team for each Grade. They also work with teachers and the vendors to ensure that they stay abreast with the latest technology tools to ensure they (the teachers) understand the usefulness of the robots and technology before leveraging them as part of their lessons to students. Alexander concluded, “I hope to see more the schools and educators prioritise technology and give these students the skills and knowledge at the right time, to prepare them for the future.” Gems Legacy School embraces robotic literacy
Softbank Robotics’ NAO gets a software update
Nao, the popular education robot from Softbank Robotics, is getting an important update that will roll out globally to its install base. According to the company (and several of our clients) this is a long awaited update, a new software version for NAO is now ready to install. The update includes a new robot configuration tool that offers easier settings, better stability with choregraphe desktop, several bug fixes and an overall Improvement in performance. The new configuration tool for configuring NAO comes with step by step wizard, that provides contextual help. It also provides quick access to key settings and information accessibility and readability have been improved. This update is in line with the statement from Softbank Robotics that we shared earlier. In the statement, they said, “We are fully committed to ensure the continuity of service for customer care, repair and cloud services. All our existing and upcoming contracts with partners and customers will of course be honoured.” Please reach out to Jacky’s VMS team on vms.sales@www.jackys.com if you need help with your updates or would like to set up a consultation. Softbank Robotics’ NAO gets a software update
AskNao makes NAO accessible to all children
Designed in Paris by Softbank Robotics Company, NAO is one of the most well-known humanoid robot in the world, with nearly 10,000 units distributed worldwide, used in research, technological training, point-of-sale animation, education and more. It is one of the more versatile and high-performing robots to meet the expectations of teachers and researchers. NAO easily creates empathetic link with kids, inspire and drive them for physical and intellectual exercises, develop social and emotional skills. AskNAO Tablet, developed by ERM Robotique France, makes the robot even easier to use and program, so that everyone can benefit from NAO’s power for young pupils’ education. Three main lines of work have been developed: Use NAO to introduce students to programming and skills development through the handling of innovative devices. Use NAO as an education assistant to transmit knowledge and skills to one or more students with autonomous mini-educational sessions. NAO is, therefore, the support of a differentiated playful and captivating teaching within the class. NAO is also an outstanding tool for specialized education, including autism treatment, as evidenced by a growing number of studies. we offer a software suite developed in collaboration with several specialized centers, with a content designed for children with specific needs. NAO has great qualities that are perfect for special needs education. It is captivating, predictable, neutral, tireless, and has multi-faceted interactivity. It is a technological humanoid interface that naturally attracts children. It helps create communication between the child and their environment. NAO is easy to understand, helps reduce children's anxiety, and minimizes risk of over-stimulation. It constantly encourages children and can repeat instructions, which helps build their confidence. Whether through touch, voice, or sight, NAO offers many possibilities to interact with it. If you want to learn how NAO can add value to your school or educational institution, drop us an email on vms.sales@www.jackys.com. AskNao Makes NAO Accessible To All Children
Softbank Robotics shares special teaching resources for Nao
Softbank Robotics has released two textbooks – one for teachers and one for students – the most complete eBooks written to learn how to program NAO robot. The 78-page Basics ebook is meant to help students and teachers to get to know the highly interesting field of modern robotics in a playful way. It includes structured topics for beginners with exercises. The textbook also starts to guide students towards independent work and supports teachers in accelerating the learning regarding their programming skills, workflow. From basic, to beginner, to advanced and expert, the book includes step by step guide for students to learn how to connect NAO, control, and program it with Choregraphe. It also includes the integration of external programming environments such as Python or C ++ that opens up a multitude of possibilities for students. The second book, Creative Project Ideas – Do it NAO6 (141 pages), covers planning, programming and optimization of programs and games for NAO6. It will allow teachers (and students) to make use of knowledge learned with The Basics textbook and broaden them with new creative projects. It comes with organised content that guides users through a structured project ready to test like NAO as a sales assistant, NAO plays rock-paper-scissors, etc. This empowers students to explore, create and easily plan their own projects and execute them. With robotics taking centre-stage in education, Jacky’s has been working with schools and universities across the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Oman to provide tools and solutions for robotics through its association with Softbank Robotics for the Middle East region. Register to download the textbooks or email mailto:vms.sales@www.jackys.com if you want to know more about Nao or need some help. Softbank Robotics Shares Special Teaching Resources For Nao
Abu Dhabi Sports Council feature Pepper and Nao in special workshop
The Abu Dhabi Sports Council organized a workshop entitled "Future trends of the UAE" with the participation of athletes associated with its Sports Care Program at Zayed Sport City in Abu Dhabi last month. The event was attended by senior athletes and bodies from around the region covering sports. Pepper and Nao, our humanoid robots from Softbank Robotics, were at the event, welcoming guests and hosts during the event including celebrity guest, Emirati footballer, Ismail Matar. The Abu Dhabi Sports Council creates an environment that contributes to enhancing the importance of sport and sport programs for all segments of the community, and to implement best and latest international systems to promote competing at local, regional and international levels. For further details on a customized solution for your clinic or hospital and how Pepper and our robot content management system can help you customise, please reach out to Jacky’s sales team on Jane.Victorioso@www.jackys.com. Abu Dhabi Sports Council Feature Pepper And Nao In Special Workshop
