Nomura Creates a Robotic Walking Assistant

This is for all of you out there that read the ballroom dancer-bot story and decided you needed to master walking before dancing. Nomura Unison Co. along with Tohoku Universities' Kazuhiro Kosuge and Yasuhisa Hirata have created a robotic walking assistant that not only senses its user's behavior, but also detects obstacles in its way and the slope of the floor. The robot is unmotorized but is able to apply the brakes in order to help its user maintain their balance.

They plan on marketing the robot for rehabilitation, the elderly and physically disabled. The unit should be available for around $4,000 USD.


[Via Engadget ]