assistance in walking, showering, shopping, and other
innumerable activities of daily living. Aside from the
obvious lack of personal interaction, what can we expect
from the long-term caring of elderly humans by robotic
servants and assistants? How would you feel if you were
fed, bathed, and dressed by robots? I suspect you would
long for your ‘free range’ days without the benefit of
your robotic keeper.
If I ever find myself in a retirement home under
the care of a robotic assistant, I want the final say in
my welfare. But most likely, the retirement home
management would control my every movement. In
effect, I could potentially become a mere extension of the
robots, under indirect control by staff coldly controlling
my movements with a joystick or keyboard. Such a future
doesn’t sound like nirvana to me.
I think it is incumbent on designers and developers of
assistive robots to think about how to best empower the
user/patient, without placing control of movement in the
hands of a business manager or politician.
If you’re involved in the design and/or development
of assistive robots, please consider sharing your design with
your fellow readers. I look forward to hearing from you. SV
REFERENCES:
[ 1] Ellison, H. 1957. Wanted in Surgery. Quinn Publishing Co, NY.
[ 2] Hu JC, Wang Q, Pashos CL, Lipsitz SR, Keating NL. Journal of Clinical
Oncology. 2008 May 10; 26( 14):2278-84. Abstract available from
www.pubmed.gov.
5 reflectance sensors on underside
Item #975
$99.95
battery charger
connector
piezo buzzer
4 AAA
batteries
(not included)
The Pololu 3pi robot is a high-performance, compact
mobile platform featuring:
* Two metal gearmotors
* Five reflectance sensors
* 8× 2 character LCD
* Three user pushbuttons
* Buzzer and LEDs
All peripherals are connected to an ATmega168
microcontroller running at 20 MHz, with free C-programming push-on/push-off
tools, libraries, and support for the Arduino environment. power button
reset
button
30: 1 micro
metal
gearmotors
* High-traction silicone tires
* Speeds exceeding 3 ft/sec
using innovative constant-voltage motor supply
optional
power LED
ISP
programming
connector
removable 8x2
character LCD
user pushbuttons
robot diameter is 3π cm (~ 3.7 inches)
Find out more at www.pololu.com/3pi or by calling 1-877-7-POLOLU.
SERVO 09.2008 7
