Social network-safe robot Petimos guards children against cyberbullies

Invented by Adrian David Cheok at the National University of Singapore, Petimos is an interactive social robot designed to guard children against cyberbullies and other online crimes. Surveys have showed that 18 percent of 8- to 10-year-olds in the US use social networking sites, thus there is a strict need of someone who vigils upon these minors so that they aren’t victimized by the cyber world, this is what the Petimos does so efficiently. What the Petimos robot actual does is, it doesn’t let any new person add the child as a friend unless the person has come in contact with the Petimos first, and the parents are informed each time a friend request is made to the child, so they can keep a vigil on the account as well. The cute little furry robot works with an online social network called Petimo-World (Cheok hopes it will soon be used in other networking sites too) in which it is represented by an avatar, squeezing and pressing on which children can send gifts and messages online.

petimos social robot

Via: NewScientist