robotic assistance can dramatically cut
already very high costs by performing
basic needs for the staff. Doctors with
a number of patients in multiple areas
of a large hospital can ‘see’ and
interact with all of their patients
through the robot’s cameras and
sound system.
A person’s home, on the other
hand, usually needs reliable help for
just a single individual. Most of this
dedicated help is usually physical
assistance as mentioned. We can
divide physical assistance into two
categories: object manipulation for
the senior and physical assistance to
the person to help them move
themselves. It is this latter category
that has been the stumbling block of
robot designers for decades.
We have all laughed at the TV
ads that make fun of an elderly
person who has fallen and then calls
out through their remote pendant:
“Help, I’ve fallen and I can’t get up.”
This really is not a comical situation at
all, as many people fall each day and
cannot get back on their feet or even
to a chair on their own. They may live
alone and have nobody to assist them
from the floor or into and out of a
bed, chair, or toilet.
The design stumbling block is not
that designers can’t build a robot to
assist people in a difficult physical
situation; it is the federal safety
regulations that are in place to protect
purchasers of such a robot from
further injuries from the robot itself.
The FDA Code of Federal Regulations,
part 890, “Physical Medicine Devices,”
and part F, “Physical Medicine
Therapeutic Devices,” part 890.5050
describe a “Daily Activity Assist
Device” category to which such a
robot will have to conform.
No manufacturer likes all of the
federal requirements for their
particular industry, but reputable
companies realize that these
regulations are there to protect
customers. Designers are wary of their
robot pinching, dropping, or injuring a
patient in any way.
I have spent almost 30 years
studying robot designs to give the
elderly the pride of independent living.
Care facilities are very expensive and
home care by professional caregivers
is even more costly.
Several years ago, I visited an
upscale care facility and interviewed a
dozen or so residents about how they
might feel if they could continue living
in their homes with the help of a
personal assistant robot, and most
welcomed the possibility;
independence and cost were the two
main factors. A $30,000 robot that’s
about the same price as the car in their
garage (that they could no longer drive
anyway) would certainly be preferable
to paying $5,000 to $10,000 a month
for care away from their home. A truly
functional and useful robot to assist
seniors can be designed and
manufactured with today’s technology.
Unfortunately, it might be years before
costs drop to $30K.
Final Thoughts
The robot shown in Figure 13 is
Elektro: Westinghouse’s amazing
Moto-Man first seen at the 1939 New
York World’s Fair. It truly did amaze
the attendees who stood around the
company’s exhibit and watched the
‘robot of the future’ talk, move its
head, and even smoke a cigarette.
The huge metal robot was held
fast to the floor, and though it could
shuffle its feet, it was controlled by
humans behind the scenes. The ad
that appeared in the Saturday Evening
Post in the summer of 1939 was
directed at ‘modern’ homeowners
who were beginning to see so many
new helpful electrical appliances
designed to assist homeowners.
The future of robotics is
anybody’s guess. There are so many
advances in AI and cloud computing,
facial and pattern recognition, speech
recognition, LIDAR and similar smart
visual sensors, highly functional robot
arms and hands, and even high
density power systems that smart
personal robots will soon be a reality
for all of us. Many household tasks
that are quite difficult for present
robots such as folding clothes and
washing dishes are being simplified,
and robot manipulative capabilities are
becoming more functional.
From homemakers needing help
in household tasks to seniors desiring
independent living, robot designers
are working hard to meet these
needs. When these ‘ends’ finally
meet, a Rosie or Jeeves personal robot
will begin to appear into homes of the
near future. SV
Actuonix Motion Devices .......................... 9
All Electronics Corp. ................................. 26
BotKits ........................................................ 21
CES ............................................................... 3
EarthLCD .................................................... 26
ExpressPCB ................................................ 14
Front Panel Express ................................... 25
Hitec ............................................................. 2
Maxbotix .................................................... 45
M.E. Labs ................................................... 20
Mikronauts ................................................. 36
NTE Parts Direct ........................................ 45
PanaVise .................................................... 36
Parallax ....................................................... 37
Pico Technology ........................................ 67
Pololu ..........................................Back Cover
Robot Power ............................................. 37
Routakit ...................................................... 15
SDP/SI ........................................................ 26
SuperBrightLEDS ....................................... 45
The Robot MarketPlace ............................ 23
Tormach ....................................................... 9
SERVO 12.2016 65
Figure 13. The Amazing Elektro from
Westinghouse at the 1939 New York's
World Fair.
