From research to usable technology

The demonstration area at RomeCup 2026 (Rome, 28–30 April) will also feature some of the technologies developed by the Unit for Visually Impaired People (U-VIP) at the Italian Institute of Technology (IIT), designed to support children and young people with sensory disabilities. Researchers Davide Esposito and Andrea Senacheribbe will be presenting them at the event, showcasing a selection of tools designed to support motor, perceptual and social development through the use of sound, movement and interaction. Behind these projects lies research that combines neuroscience, developmental psychology and technology, with a very concrete aim: to help children navigate their surroundings, move about, play and learn more independently. Alberta Testa spoke to Monica Gori, head of the U-VIP unit, to understand where this work stems from and what impact it can have on people’s daily lives.

What does your work at the Italian Institute of Technology focus on? How did your interest in this field of research begin?

My work at the Italian Institute of Technology focuses on the study of multisensory development in children with and without visual impairments, and on the creation of technologies that can support their journey towards growth, independence and social participation. In the U-VIP laboratory, which I coordinate, we integrate neuroscience, developmental psychology, robotics and enabling technologies to understand how children construct their perception of space and the body, and how this process changes in the absence of sight.

My interest stems from a long time ago: as a child, I wanted to become a painter. Art was my first language, the one through which I learnt to know myself and others. Then at university, whilst studying psychology, I encountered neuroscience and fell in love with it. Meeting David Burr during my years at the CNR in Pisa marked a turning point in my career: it was there that I realised how perception acts as a bridge between our body and the world, and how understanding it can translate into practical tools for people. Thanks to Giulio Sandini, I then realised that neuroscience could make an important contribution to the development of new technology.

What technologies or prototypes will you be bringing to the RomeCup demonstration area, and what specific needs of people do they aim to address?

At RomeCup, Davide Esposito and Andrea Senacheribbe will be showcasing a selection of the technologies we have been working on in recent years to support children and young people with sensory disabilities:

ABBI (Audio Bracelet for Blind Interaction) is a sound-emitting bracelet that translates movement into acoustic feedback, enabling children with visual impairments to understand their body’s position in space and thereby facilitating movement, interaction and social development.

iReach, a multisensory technology designed for early intervention in infants with low vision, which enables the measurement and training of sensorimotor skills from the first months of life, in a non-invasive and scientifically controlled manner.SoBu, an app developed by Walter Setti, Davide Esposito and Niccolo Balzarotti, which transforms sounds and vibrations into tools for play and socialisation, offering audio-motor games accessible via smartphones and smartwatches. It stems from the work of our U-VIP unit and represents a digital evolution of the ABBI concept, making inclusive play accessible even remotely and on a large scale.InSegno, a web platform created and developed by Andrea Senacheribbe and Lorenzo Landolfi, offering comprehensive educational content in Italian Sign Language (LIS), including video lessons, interactive exercises, glossaries and teaching materials, designed to enable deaf students to follow lessons independently and in an accessible manner. It is also designed to promote truly inclusive learning in the classroom, involving both deaf and hearing students.

These technologies stem from a single vision: to make motor, cognitive and social development accessible to everyone, even when the senses do not provide the necessary information. Every tool we present meets a real need (moving, playing, learning, participating), because inclusion is not an abstract concept but a daily experience that technology can make a reality.

How can robotics contribute to tangibly improving people’s independence and quality of life?

Robotics, when designed in a human-centred way, can become an extension of a person’s perceptual and motor abilities. In the case of children with visual impairments, robots and smart devices can, for example:

• provide alternative sensory feedback when sight is unavailable;
• measure and train fundamental skills, such as coordination, balance or body awareness;
• accompany children in complex environments, creating personalised rehabilitation programmes;
• promote social interaction, because tools such as ABBI allow children to play with others in a natural way.

Robotics does not replace people: it amplifies their possibilities.

The RomeCup brings together research, businesses and young people. How important is it for a research centre like the IIT to take its projects out of the laboratory and engage with the public?

For us, it is fundamental. Research finds its true value when it succeeds in transforming into tools that improve people’s lives. Taking our projects out of the laboratory means listening to the needs of families, educators, students and businesses, whilst at the same time demonstrating how innovation can emerge from multidisciplinary approaches. A concrete example is SoBu, which represents a particularly significant story of technology transfer for our group. SoBu is in fact based on the scientific foundations of ABBI, our sound-emitting bracelet developed within the U-VIP Unit to support the sensorimotor development of blind children. Through years of research and clinical trials, ABBI has demonstrated its ability to improve the motor, spatial and social skills of children with visual impairments. SoBu has taken up this legacy and brought it into the real world, transforming that idea into an app accessible on smartphones and smartwatches, designed to reach families and children wherever they are. The transition from a scientific idea to technology that can be used every day is precisely why it is essential to engage with the public. Not just to raise awareness of what we do, but to build scalable, sustainable and genuinely useful solutions together. And it is also an important message for young people: research is not confined to laboratories, but can lead to social impact, business, and above all, opportunity.

In your research journey, what was a discovery or a moment that made you realise just how much technology can truly make a difference in people’s lives?

One of the most powerful moments was seeing a blind child wear ABBI for the first time and manage to find their way towards their mother by following the sound produced by her movement. It was a simple gesture, but it represented what research can achieve: transforming a neuroscientific principle into a tool that changes the way a child experiences their own body and their surroundings. My experience with families of babies with low vision, now involved in the iReach project, has also shown me how urgent it is to intervene early, when the brain is at its most plastic. The right technology can literally rewrite developmental trajectories.

If you had to describe in one sentence the future you envisage thanks to the technology you are working on, what would it be?

A future in which every child, regardless of their senses, can build their own space in the world with freedom, autonomy and joy.