How this Boise group is using virtual reality to help children on autism spectrum

A Boise nonprofit has formed to help treat children on the Autism Disorder Syndrome spectrum using virtual reality, which could eventually help train them for jobs.

The organization, Autism XR, is just getting off the ground at the Idaho Water Center.

“You’re living with autism, but it doesn’t define you,” said Mitch Alexander, president and executive director, whose day job is purchasing manager for Fleetwood Homes.

A number of people involved with the organization, including Alexander, have children diagnosed on the ADS spectrum. He started treating his 11-year-old son, Nathan, with virtual reality at age 5 to help prepare him to ride on an airplane.

“How well that all went gave my wife and I more confidence,” he said.

Designing autism therapy

The success of that effort led Alexander to try treating his son with other VR systems, which generated similar results.

“It’s not what he’s looking at so much as the exclusive confined presentation,” he said.

Alexander, who had been working with Idaho’s virtual reality community, including VR1 and Black Box VR, is now working with psychiatrists and a pediatric neurologist to help develop autism therapy. He is also working with John Anderson, program director of the Virtual Technology & Design Lab at the University of Idaho, who is using the program as a real-life problem research scenario for students in his Virtual Design III class, some of whom are on the ADS spectrum themselves.

On Nov. 1, the group held an “autism summit,” where the students’ 25 projects were presented.

“The one that won is one of the kids on the spectrum,” Alexander said. “Just the process itself has allowed him to come out of his shell.”

The winning project is intended to help children with autism learn to interact with others.

Autistic kids struggle socially

“Most kids on the spectrum struggle socially,” Alexander said.

The project is theater-based and uses drama to allow the child to play characters in their favorite books in VR.

“It allows kids who struggle socially to practice interaction and carry that over to reality,” he said. “Those will become the first applications that we will build.”

Alexander has mapped out the first 10 years of the organization’s strategic plan, the first five years of which will include Anderson’s students building the actual applications.

“Our initial goal was to get as many younger kids and newly diagnosed families into VR as possible, and get them comfortable with the initial experience,” he said.

‘Stimming,’ stress, brain scans and eye tracking

That was going to involve building “stimming,” or stimulation tools, which people with autism sometimes use to help deal with stressful situations.

Tools will also gauge a child’s response, such as through brain scanning and retinal tracking, to see how long effects last, Alexander said.

“We’ll watch and see what the eyes are doing,” he said. “The calming effect is an easy one.”

At the same time, the organization wants to build a VR tool to demonstrate to family members what being on the ADS spectrum is like, Alexander said.

Job training, VR and AR

The next five years was originally intended to build job training applications, partnering with the University of Idaho virtual design lab to help create sensory-friendly interior designs, Alexander said. But the organization has gotten so much positive feedback that that effort is going to be moved up, he said.

In January, the organization plans to kick off its fundraising campaign, which it started with a presentation during the Festival of Trees.

“The convergence of virtual reality/augmented reality technology, occupational therapy and job training has real potential and could benefit so many kids and young adults who are on the ADS spectrum,” said Tiam Rastegar, executive director of Trailhead, who serves on the Autism XR board, in an email message. “As a father of a young child on the spectrum, I am especially passionate about the impact this work could have on the lives of so many families, including ours.”