Q&A with Mohammad H. Mahoor and Josh Lane of Dream Face Technologies, LLC
Mohammad H. Mahoor and Josh Lane with their social robot, Ryan
Mohammad H. Mahoor received his PhD in electrical and computer engineering at the University of Miami in 2007, where he worked as a post-doctoral fellow and received the Marino Autism Research Institute award for his research on facial expressions analysis of children with autism. Mahoor joined the University of Denver in fall 2008, where he is currently professor of electrical and computer engineering. He is the president and founder of Dream Face Technologies.
Josh Lane graduated from DU in 2013 with a BS in electrical and electronics engineering. He went on to receive his MS in engineering technology from Purdue University. Much of his work has been in graduate research and lab management, including his role as lab manager of Purdue’s Collaborative Robotics Lab. Lane is the principal engineer of Dream Face Technologies.
Entrepreneurship@DU sat down with Mahoor and Lane (and their robot, Ryan) to learn about Dream Face, the potential of social robotics and why DU is a destination for innovation.
Q: How did Dream Face Technologies get started?
Mahoor: My research on social robotics started around 2010—it began with the idea that social robots could help children on the autism spectrum. We wondered how we could create our own robot that would suit people with different disabilities. We looked at other applications for social robotics. For example, people living with depression. The first version of our robot was a teddy bear we called the “eBear.” It was a bear-like robot we used for research on how we could help people with depression. Through our research with older people with depression, we learned that people with Alzheimer’s and dementia could benefit from a social robot as well.
That was when we started creating a humanoid robot, which has led to what we have now, Ryan. In 2014 we had the initial version of the head and neck of Ryan. That was around the time I founded Dream Face technologies, to take all of these ideas from the lab and make the real robot. We got our first grant in 2016, and that is when Josh joined us here. We are now on the third version of Ryan, and we are going through the arbitrations and modifications to bring him to market. We have done studies with Alzheimer’s and dementia patients through all of the versions of Ryan, and we essentially have our semi-final product right now.
At its peak, Dream Face has had 18 people on the team. Right now we have about 12 people. Since it was founded, the Dream Face team has been about 80% DU students and alumni. People come and go and it varies based on the funding we have, but we have always been very DU-centric.
Q: Josh, how did you get involved with Dream Face Technologies?
Lane: I had some classes with Dr. Mahoor as an undergrad, so I knew him from various projects in the engineering school. After grad school, when I moved back to Denver he asked if I wanted to join Dream Face. Most of my studies and research has been in robotics, so this is right up my alley!
I had never worked on a project quite like this. My senior design project involved eye-tracking—it was an application that could track eye movements on a computer screen, which is something that could assist quadriplegic patients and people living with disabilities. My other research was on search and rescue robotics. We created a snakelike robot that could search through rubble. Those never moved past the research phase, so Ryan will be the first that will really make it to the field.
Q: How can Ryan and social robots help Alzheimer’s and dementia patients?
Mahoor: The main idea is improving the quality of life of people with Alzheimer’s and dementia. Many of these people feel isolated. They live in senior care facilities, and they may not get the necessary care and attention that people need. Ryan provides companionship, and he is really designed for and capable of that.
Ryan has a variety of features. He can help remind people to take medications and go to scheduled activities. People can have conversations with Ryan about a variety of topics. He can read their facial expressions, understand their mood and empathize with them. He is also set up with a series of brain games, so people can play games against Ryan, or with Ryan, or solo. These games are designed so people can keep their mind stimulated, and some activities keep users physically active as well. Maybe you want to listen to music or look at family photo albums—these features tap into Reminiscence Therapy, which stimulates the memory and can really benefit patients. We have put together a wealth of features in Ryan to suit whatever a user’s needs may be.
Q: What makes DU the perfect home for Dream Face Technologies?
Mahoor: DU is really supportive of entrepreneurship. When it comes to innovation, the University is incredibly open-minded. To be able to initiate and work on this project, we have been at the mercy of various deans, provosts and even the chancellor. Other schools might not give us the flexibility and freedom to work on such a project, especially the entrepreneurship side of it. It has been a great place to fulfill these dreams, both due to the strengths of our engineering school and the University’s support of entrepreneurial efforts.
Lane: We have access to a lot of resources here that we otherwise might not have. We can use the machine shop, our high-end 3D printing facilities … we make the majority of everything inhouse at DU, which really speeds up development and brings down expenses quite a bit. It helps us develop the projects we actually want. It’s also a privilege having access to the student body—there is a lot of talent at DU and their support really helps projects like this.
Q: Can Ryan tell me a joke?
Ryan: “To the mathematicians who thought of the idea for zero … thanks for nothing!”