The Information and Robot Technology Research Initiative, a research body of the prestigious University of Tokyo, has developed a small desktop robot that assists elderly people in managing daily tasks. The robot was developed in cooperation with various Japanese companies such as Toyota and Fujitsu.
Mamoru-Kun (“Little Protector”) is a robot that is able to tell his owner where an object he or she lost or misplaced within a certain area is located. He can do it verbally or by pointing at the object. Alternatively, Mamoru-Kun is even kind enough to tell his bigger robot buddy get the object for his owner. It’s also possible to let him warn people to take their medicine in time.
The robot stands 40cm tall and weighs 3.8kg. He has 4 joints (two in the neck and one in each arm) and is equipped with a microphone and speakers. Mamoru-Kun is cell phone-controlled.
Users have to register and record items they regularly misplace in advance. Once they did that, the area in question will be constantly covered by various cameras, which are connected to Mamoru-Kun.
The project team involved in the project team says Mamoru-Kun’s abilities could be especially beneficial for elderly and sick persons. Commercialization of the assistance system is planned to begin by 2018.
Via Robot Watch [JP]