Taizo Robot Exercise Instructor For Japan's Seniors
Taizo, the robotic exercise instructor, is exactly what Japan's aging population needs to stay in shape. Based on the HRP-2m Choromet bot from General Robotics, it leads groups of seniors in performing preventative care and rehabilitation exercises. The robot's name is a play on the Japanese word for "calisthenics".
The exercise robot was devised to entice as many seniors as possible to take part in a regular exercise program. It can also use its voice and speech recognition engine to interact with other participants.
Take a look at this short video of the charming Taizo robot exercise instructor.
Taizo's joints have 26 degrees of freedom; I'm wondering how many degrees of freedom the joints of Japanese seniors have...
Thanks to Ashley, here's a pretty good manga and anime antecedent to the idea of an exercise robot. In the 2001 series Chobits, Sumomo is a "mobile persocom", essentially an animated laptop computer. She leads Hideki in wakeup exercises every morning and dances in standby mode.
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