Smart rehab aids subject of R & D

Two government-affiliated research organizations will cooperate in the development of electronically controlled artificial limbs, intelligent wheelchairs and other equipment capable of assisting the handicapped in their daily lives, thus shortening the rehabilitation process.

The project team will begin full-scale research and development in fiscal 2004, aiming to put such smart rehabilitation aids into practical use in three to five years.

The joint project of the National Institute of Advance Industrial Science and Technology and the National Rehabilitation Centre for Persons with Disabilities is expected to cost 300-500 million Yen a year.

The research team aims to develop artificial hands and legs that are controlled by electric signals received from the user’s nervous system and wheelchair that moves automatically according to audio and electric signals transmitted to it.  As well, the team targets a voice recognition system that can respond to even vague commands, and low-priced televisions and personal computers equipped with remote control sensors that follows eye and finger movements.

Source: Science & Technology In Japan

Date: February 2004