Toyota
Motor Corp. is bringing high tech to health care, as it works on a family of
robots geared to lift patients and help the paralyzed walk.
The Independent Walk Assist is mounted onto
the patient's paralyzed leg, and helps the knee to bend to facilitate natural
walking. (Photo courtesy of Toyota)
The company announced this week that it
expects to begin selling the health aid robots in 2013.
"[Toyota] endeavors to provide the
freedom of mobility to all people, and understands from its tie-ups with the
Toyota Memorial Hospital and other medical facilities that there is a strong
need for robots in the field of nursing and healthcare," the company said.
"We aim to support independent living for people incapacitated through
sickness or injury, while also assisting in their return to health and reducing
the physical burden on caregivers."
One of the robotic devices in the Toyota
Partner Robot series is a mechanical exoskeleton for people's legs. The device,
dubbed the Independent Walk Assist, uses computer sensors to help people
suffering from paralysis or other ailments to walk again.
The device seems similar to a robotic
exoskeleton developed by researchers at the University of California at
Berkeley that helped a paralyzed student walk across the stage to receive his
diploma last spring. University researchers began working on wearable robots in
2000 when the U.S. military backed their research to help soldiers carry heavy
loads for longer periods of time.
Toyota is working on several other health-care
related robots, including the Patient Transfer Assist. This machine uses a
mobile platform, weight-bearing arms and robotic controls to lift and move
patients as if they're being carried by another person, according to Toyota.
The robot is designed to be used by caregivers or patients.
"Each robot incorporates the latest in
advanced technologies developed by [Toyota], including high-speed, high-precision
motor control technology, highly stable walking-control technology advanced
through development of two-legged robots, and sensor technology that detects
the user's posture as well as their grasping and holding strength,"
reported Toyota.
Earlier this week, economists from MIT told an
audience at a robotics symposium in Cambridge, Mass. that robots and computers
will be moving in greater mass into the workforce , even replacing humans in
mid-level jobs, such as clerical and call center workers.
The economists said the shift to more robots
in the workplace will change the economy in the near future and create a demand
for worker retraining.
Robotic exoskeletons have been the subject of
a wide-ranging research in the past decade. In 2009, the Japanese company
Cyberdyne Inc. built a robotic suit dubbed Robot Suit HAL . Also a robotic
exoskeleton, Hal was designed to be worn much like a real suit, only this one
is aimed at helping people achieve mobility after suffering a stroke or
accident.
The arms of the Patient Transfer Assist are
equipped with precise control functions to provide gentle transport similar to
being carried by a person.
Sharon Gaudin
Business & Investment Opportunities
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