Japanese tech powerhouse Kawasaki is working on the so-called Power Assist Suit, a wearable robot that helps humans carry objects weighing 30-40kg without any effort from the muscles. The suit is actually one of quite a few similar models currently available in Japan.
The Kawasaki robot features a total of four motors in the parts covering the hips and knees (see picture below). The control unit and lithium battery are placed in the part placed around the lower back.
According to Kawasaki, the self-supporting robot is designed in a way that wearers don’t feel the weight of the suit itself when moving around. The Power Assist Suit can be adjusted to the length of the wearer’s legs and doesn’t take more than a minute to put on and off, Kawasaki promises.
The company wants to commercialize the robot after testing it out in its own factories for one to two years.
Here’s a video that shows a human walking around with the Power Assist Suit:
Via Robonable [JP]