HAL power suit to be sold in Europe

Robot venture firm Cyberdyne Inc. plans to market its strength-boosting HAL power suit in Denmark and elsewhere in Europe, officials announced Tuesday at its new R&D center in Tsukuba northwest of Tokyo.

The firm plans to begin mass-production of a lower-body version of the Hybrid Assistive Limb this month, and will market the boosters as a healthcare apparatus to hospitals and other care facilities. It aims to open a subsidiary in Denmark in fiscal 2009 and focus on leasing the exoskeleton in northern Europe, which has large populations of elderly like Japan.

A demonstration at the press event marks one of the few times that HAL has been worn by people other than Cyberdyne's usual user, who appears in all the publicity shots. I'd heard that HAL takes an extremely long time to calibrate so that it can pick up muscle nerve signals that can be detected in the skin. The calibration seems a big obstacle to commercialization.

I'd asked Cyberdyne about whether reporters would be allowed to try HAL ahead of mass-production, but was told no. Instead they suggested visiting a new promotional facility, the Cyberdyne Studio, slated to open at the end of this month in a shopping center in Tsukuba. I'd like to see the product being used in real-world situations.


Via Nikkei Net

Powersuits for all

Classy. But can it tango?

Those who fear the rise of robots and artificial intelligence have just gotta love one project in Japan that hits all the right buttons - Tsukuba University Professor Yoshiyuki Sankai's efforts to commercialize a strength-enhancing robotic suit.

The product name: HAL. The company: Cyberdyne.

Coincidence? Perhaps. Regardless, Sankai's robosuit, which boosts arm and leg power in response to user brain signals, just jumped closer to commercialization thanks to a 1 billion yen capital injection from major Japanese homebuilder Daiwa House Industry Co. The company took a 15% stake in Cyberdyne, a venture set up by Tsukuba U. and helmed by the good professor.

They plan to start mass production with annual output of 400 HAL suits, which are designed to help elderly Japanese stay mobile and independent longer. Wearers can tote objects weighing over 20 kg, no sweat, but they can't leap tall buildings yet. The suits would be available for rent or purchase, with a possible price tag of about 500,000 yen, or $4,200. Daiwa House is also planning HAL classes at its fitness club and even special HAL homes for wearers, according to Nikkei News.

I can already see newly young oldsters partnering up for another servo waltz.

HAL-lelujah.