When Technology Meets Demography
Again, I’m just really pleased to find a good news story, in the sense that the news is good.
TOKYO - If you grow old in Japan, expect to be served food by a robot, ride a voice-recognition wheelchair or even possibly hire a nurse in a robotic suit — all examples of cutting-edge technology to care for the country’s rapidly graying population.
“…buyers crowded round a demonstration of Secom Co.’s My Spoon feeding robot, which helps elderly or disabled people eat with a spoon- and fork-fitted swiveling arm…” “…The Tokyo-based company has already sold 300 of the robots, which come with a price tag of $3,500…” “…A rubber and nylon “muscle suit” developed by the Tokyo University of Science helps keep the elderly active by providing support for the upper body, arms and shoulders…” “…The intelligent wheelchair TAO Aicle from Fujitsu Ltd. and Aisin Seiki Co. uses a positioning system to automatically travel to a preset destination, and uses sensors to detect and stop at red lights, and to avoid obstacles…” “…A full-body robotic suit developed by the Kanagawa Institute of Technology outside Tokyo is a massive contraption powered by 22 air pumps to help nurses hoist patients on and off their beds…”
When all this shows up in the UK, maybe we should have a ’self-funding technology tax’ so that sales of new technology products produce revenue that allows for the products being offered within the NHS.
That’s a pretty radical idea–any comments?
October 4th, 2007 at 3:22 pm
I think I personally would rather see 1) better preventive medicine; 2) better support for human carers. A friend of mine spent the last two years taking care of his elderly father, who just died. I doubt either he or his father would have preferred robots. But help and support to make the job easier (which, you know, saved the country money, when you think about it) would have been very welcome, I’m sure.
wg