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Japanese Deploying Powered Exoskeletons for Elderly

Posted by michael on from the tall-buildings-in-a-single-bound dept.

FoeNyx writes "The AFP is reporting that 30 Tokyo firms have planned to set up a joint-venture in next spring to market an 'exo-skeleton type power assist system' named HAL (Hybrid Assistive Leg) developed by Yoshiyuki Sankai, professor and engineer at the Sankai Lab, a Cybernetics specialized Laboratory of the Tsukuba University. When will the next generation be available?" The elderly with their exoskeletons and the bionic nurses will make quite a sight at Japanese nursing homes.

3 of 352 comments (clear)

  1. Social commentary by Chagatai · · Score: 4, Informative
    Sligtly OT, I know, but Roujin Z was actually a witty social commentary on several factors in Japan. First, it criticized the social atmosphere in Japan where the elderly are increasingly being dumped by their families to caretakers and set aside to die slowly. However, compared to the number of convalescent homes in the US, the Japanese are still far more respective to their elderly than Americans overall. Think Grandpa Simpson.

    Second, it criticized the government and its lackluster attitude. This is an increasingly common theme in Anime and Japanese movies as people are becoming more irritated at their government, also illustrated in other well-known shows like Akira and Bubblegum Crisis. Wouldn't you be upset if your government had several trillion dollars in debt and an interest rate less than two percent? Oh, wait...

    Lastly, it also showed the gregarious overuse of technology as a means to solve all social ills. The bed that houses the "test" elderly man is designed to cater to his every need and technically keep him going without human interaction (though it is mentioned that he could communicate with other elderly via the bed's comm system). And, in case of nuclear attack, the bed will seal itself in concrete permanently.

    Altogether, Roujin Z was a funny film and a good satire. My favorite part is when the bed assimilates the Daibutsu (Giant Buddha) and goes for a walk to the hospital.

    --
    --Chag
  2. Re:Good News / Bad News by Rethcir · · Score: 2, Informative

    What about the most underrated american action cartoon of all time, ExoSquad? God I loved that show back in the day. (don't worry, i was in 8th grade)

  3. Re:Why WLAN by thebigmacd · · Score: 2, Informative

    Telemetery. Why do people have to make a big deal finding flaws when they just ignore the obvious?