Furekit: Wearable Tactile Music Toolkit for Children with ASD

Abstract

AbstractChildren with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) face the challenge of social interaction and communication, leading to them often requiring significant support from others in their daily lives. This includes challenges like basic communication to convey their emotions to comprehension in early education. To aid with their early development, we propose Furekit, a wearable toolkit that encourages physical interaction via audio and tactile stimuli. Furekit can be attached to various parts of the body, can be operated wirelessly, and is equipped with both a speaker and a vibrotactile actuator. The audio and tactile stimuli are triggered when touched via a conductive pad on the surface, aiming to aid these children’s learning and social experience. From our conducted workshop with children with ASD, we found that Furekit was well-received and was able to encourage their spontaneous physical movement. In the workshop, Furekit shows its potential as an educational and communication tool for children with ASD.