Weird Science

Cyclopea · 04-10-2010, 01:03 AM

Post cool interesting science stuff here.
Share, discuss, reflect.
Biology, Astronomy, Tech, Geology, Physics, Chemistry, Social, etc.
Whatevah you got....
Bring on the clones, nano, anthropology, particle acceleration, robotics, gen mod, space, theoretical and any other fun stuff!

Cyclopea · 04-10-2010, 01:08 AM

Japanese robo-suit promises superpowers for greying farmers
April 9, 2010 by Antoine Bouthier

A Tokyo Agriculture and Technology (TAT) University postgraduate student is seen demonstrating the new power-assist suit for elderly agriculture workers, developed by TAT professor Shigeki Toyama. The power assist suits are said to reduce the user's physical effort by about 62 percent.
While Robocop and Iron Man can dodge bullets and crush villains, a new powered suit from Japan promises its elderly users more modest powers, such as pulling up radishes without getting a backache.

Unlike its heavily-armed Hollywood counterparts, the Power Assist Suit aims to make life easier for Japan's army of greying farmers.
The metal-and-plastic exoskeleton boasts eight electric motors that amplify the strength of the wearer's arms and legs, as well as sensors that can detect movements and respond to commands through a voice-recognition system.

Professor Shigeki Toyama and his team developed the power-enhancing suit at the Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, and Toyama plans to set up a company to start producing the futuristic outfit by the end of the year.

"If the farmer bends over to grasp a radish, his back will be firmly supported," said Gohei Yamamoto, one of the students working on the team, as he recently demonstrated the suit on his university campus.
"A brief vocal instruction will instantly straighten the rods along his legs, giving him the power he needs to pull the vegetable without effort."
Fifteen years in the making, the robosuit will soon hit the market in Japan to help ageing farmers harvest their fruit and vegetables while avoiding backaches and nasty cramps, its developers say.

Japan, with a low birthrate and a high life expectancy, is facing a demographic crisis as its population rapidly ages and shrinks.
Industrial robots have long been common in Japan, and robo-suits are making inroads in hospitals and retirement homes, where they can help carers lift patients or aid in physical rehabilitation exercises.
But with two thirds of the country's farm-workers already over 65 years old, the agriculture sector is a potentially lucrative untapped market.
The suit should hit the Japanese market in 2012, when it will initially retail for about one million yen (11,000 dollars), a price tag its makers hope to halve if the device is mass-produced, the team said.

There are however no plans so far to sell the suits overseas.
"I doubt that the suit would sell in Europe and in America, where foreign migrants workers often perform farm-related tasks," Toyama said.
The team has developed a heavy-duty 30 kilogram (66 pound) model, for lifting big loads and pulling vegetables out of the ground, and a 23 kilogram version designed for lighter tasks such as picking grapes.

The robo-suits can reduce the user's physical effort by 62 percent on average, the inventors say. When bending knees the muscular activity is reduced by half, and the suit can also take most of the strain out of crouching.

"We conducted a survey of 102 people for the latest model, asking what part of the body hurt when they picked grapes," Yamamoto said. "Most farmers complained about aches in their arms, necks and lower backs."

The suits are already tough, but soon they will also become smarter.
By the end of the year Toyama plans to start working on augmented reality goggles on which useful information could be displayed for the farmer, in much the same way as data is projected onto the inside of a fighter jet's cockpit.

Useful information might include how ripe the grapes are, or the user's heart rate and calorie consumption, said Toyama. "The goggles would tell you for instance how long you've been working and when you should rest."
(c) 2010 AFP

Rockinonahigh · 04-10-2010, 09:12 AM

I wonder if this robo suit could be modified for use by ppl with disablities or spinal injuries? It already has the ablity to hepl normal ppl so it should work if applied to the concept of the disabed or others who could benefit from it.it also ould be made smaller to be less bulky..food for thought.

theoddz · 04-10-2010, 10:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rockinonahigh

I wonder if this robo suit could be modified for use by ppl with disablities or spinal injuries? It already has the ablity to hepl normal ppl so it should work if applied to the concept of the disabed or others who could benefit from it.it also ould be made smaller to be less bulky..food for thought.

Wow, that was my thought, too. I wouldn't be a bit surprised if the technology that went into that suit didn't "evolve" into something to aid the physically challenged.

If I had one of those suits, I could work til I dropped.....dead.

Wait a sec........I WANT to retire.

~Theo~

Medusa · 04-10-2010, 07:30 PM

Mind-reading Software?!

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/0..._n_530009.html

evolveme · 04-10-2010, 07:33 PM

http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap100410.html

Too big to post, so clickity click.

Cyclopea · 04-10-2010, 11:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rockinonahigh

I wonder if this robo suit could be modified for use by ppl with disablities or spinal injuries? It already has the ablity to hepl normal ppl so it should work if applied to the concept of the disabed or others who could benefit from it.it also ould be made smaller to be less bulky..food for thought.

Yes it will be interesting to see how it develops- the bulkiness and also the weight- I think the lighter version is over 40 lbs which seems heavy...

Quote:

Originally Posted by theoddz

Wow, that was my thought, too. I wouldn't be a bit surprised if the technology that went into that suit didn't "evolve" into something to aid the physically challenged.

If I had one of those suits, I could work til I dropped.....dead.

Wait a sec........I WANT to retire.

~Theo~

Ha! That's a good point- we do want to retire some day, don't we? lol.
Here's a fascinating and moving vid of Dean Kamen's (he's the guy that invented the awesome Segway vehicle) robotic prosthesis project for DARPA. For those who don't have the time, watch at about the 8:00 mark for incredible footage of the device in use as it exists now-

Beast Lee · 07-28-2016, 11:57 PM

I would recommend googling an analogy of physical matter. For example ( I read this years ago so don't quote me) sub atomic particles are to small for us to imagine so put it on a scale that u can. If a proton in a diamond were the size of a soccer ball, the electrons spinning around it would be smaller than gnats and several miles away. The next soccer ball sized proton would be 10 miles away. The point? Matter is essentially an energy field.
If the sun were the size of a basketball the earth would be the size of a peppercorn 30 yards away. That makes me suspicious of gravity. You can google your own analogies. I'm watching u gravity

04-10-2010, 01:03 AM	#1
Cyclopea Member How Do You Identify?: Butch Lesbian Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Exit Zero Posts: 1,267 My Photo Gallery Thanks: 1,694 Thanked 1,617 Times in 633 Posts Rep Power: 226199	Weird Science Post cool interesting science stuff here. Share, discuss, reflect. Biology, Astronomy, Tech, Geology, Physics, Chemistry, Social, etc. Whatevah you got.... Bring on the clones, nano, anthropology, particle acceleration, robotics, gen mod, space, theoretical and any other fun stuff! __________________ http://forum.axishistory.com/images/...arious/eye.jpg

04-10-2010, 01:08 AM	#2
Cyclopea Member How Do You Identify?: Butch Lesbian Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Exit Zero Posts: 1,267 My Photo Gallery Thanks: 1,694 Thanked 1,617 Times in 633 Posts Rep Power: 226199	Japanese robo-suit promises superpowers for greying farmers April 9, 2010 by Antoine Bouthier A Tokyo Agriculture and Technology (TAT) University postgraduate student is seen demonstrating the new power-assist suit for elderly agriculture workers, developed by TAT professor Shigeki Toyama. The power assist suits are said to reduce the user's physical effort by about 62 percent. While Robocop and Iron Man can dodge bullets and crush villains, a new powered suit from Japan promises its elderly users more modest powers, such as pulling up radishes without getting a backache. Unlike its heavily-armed Hollywood counterparts, the Power Assist Suit aims to make life easier for Japan's army of greying farmers. The metal-and-plastic exoskeleton boasts eight electric motors that amplify the strength of the wearer's arms and legs, as well as sensors that can detect movements and respond to commands through a voice-recognition system. Professor Shigeki Toyama and his team developed the power-enhancing suit at the Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, and Toyama plans to set up a company to start producing the futuristic outfit by the end of the year. "If the farmer bends over to grasp a radish, his back will be firmly supported," said Gohei Yamamoto, one of the students working on the team, as he recently demonstrated the suit on his university campus. "A brief vocal instruction will instantly straighten the rods along his legs, giving him the power he needs to pull the vegetable without effort." Fifteen years in the making, the robosuit will soon hit the market in Japan to help ageing farmers harvest their fruit and vegetables while avoiding backaches and nasty cramps, its developers say. Japan, with a low birthrate and a high life expectancy, is facing a demographic crisis as its population rapidly ages and shrinks. Industrial robots have long been common in Japan, and robo-suits are making inroads in hospitals and retirement homes, where they can help carers lift patients or aid in physical rehabilitation exercises. But with two thirds of the country's farm-workers already over 65 years old, the agriculture sector is a potentially lucrative untapped market. The suit should hit the Japanese market in 2012, when it will initially retail for about one million yen (11,000 dollars), a price tag its makers hope to halve if the device is mass-produced, the team said. There are however no plans so far to sell the suits overseas. "I doubt that the suit would sell in Europe and in America, where foreign migrants workers often perform farm-related tasks," Toyama said. The team has developed a heavy-duty 30 kilogram (66 pound) model, for lifting big loads and pulling vegetables out of the ground, and a 23 kilogram version designed for lighter tasks such as picking grapes. The robo-suits can reduce the user's physical effort by 62 percent on average, the inventors say. When bending knees the muscular activity is reduced by half, and the suit can also take most of the strain out of crouching. "We conducted a survey of 102 people for the latest model, asking what part of the body hurt when they picked grapes," Yamamoto said. "Most farmers complained about aches in their arms, necks and lower backs." The suits are already tough, but soon they will also become smarter. By the end of the year Toyama plans to start working on augmented reality goggles on which useful information could be displayed for the farmer, in much the same way as data is projected onto the inside of a fighter jet's cockpit. Useful information might include how ripe the grapes are, or the user's heart rate and calorie consumption, said Toyama. "The goggles would tell you for instance how long you've been working and when you should rest." (c) 2010 AFP __________________ http://forum.axishistory.com/images/...arious/eye.jpg

04-10-2010, 07:30 PM	#5
Medusa Mentally Delicious How Do You Identify?: Queer High Femme, thank you very much Preferred Pronoun?: Mme. Relationship Status: Married to JD. Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Atlanta Posts: 10,446 My Photo Gallery Thanks: 5,995 Thanked 42,872 Times in 7,835 Posts Rep Power: 21474861	Mind-reading Software?! http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/0..._n_530009.html __________________ . . . Buy ButchFemmePlanet Merch Here: https://teespring.com/stores/butchfemmeplanetcom-merch

04-10-2010, 07:33 PM	#6
evolveme Member How Do You Identify?: honeysuckle venom Preferred Pronoun?: a pistol and a sugar cane Relationship Status: I promise to aid and abet Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: in between poems where ceilings are floors and joe ghost floats achromatic toward day Posts: 514 My Photo Gallery Thanks: 229 Thanked 737 Times in 228 Posts Rep Power: 288948	NASA Photo of the Day http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap100410.html Too big to post, so clickity click. __________________ Class, race, sexuality, gender and all other categories by which we categorize and dismiss each other need to be excavated from the inside. - Dorothy Allison

07-28-2016, 11:57 PM	#8
Beast Lee Junior Member How Do You Identify?: Visualization Preferred Pronoun?: He, but she turns me on Relationship Status: Single Join Date: Mar 2016 Location: Milky way Posts: 10 My Photo Gallery Thanks: 2 Thanked 17 Times in 7 Posts Rep Power: 9	Reality I would recommend googling an analogy of physical matter. For example ( I read this years ago so don't quote me) sub atomic particles are to small for us to imagine so put it on a scale that u can. If a proton in a diamond were the size of a soccer ball, the electrons spinning around it would be smaller than gnats and several miles away. The next soccer ball sized proton would be 10 miles away. The point? Matter is essentially an energy field. If the sun were the size of a basketball the earth would be the size of a peppercorn 30 yards away. That makes me suspicious of gravity. You can google your own analogies. I'm watching u gravity

04-10-2010, 09:12 AM	#3
Rockinonahigh Senior Member How Do You Identify?: stone butch Preferred Pronoun?: makes no diffrence,I know who I am. Relationship Status: single,maybe looking if the right person comes along. Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: shreveport,Louisiana Posts: 4,907 My Photo Gallery Thanks: 4,682 Thanked 14,937 Times in 3,936 Posts Rep Power: 21474855	I wonder if this robo suit could be modified for use by ppl with disablities or spinal injuries? It already has the ablity to hepl normal ppl so it should work if applied to the concept of the disabed or others who could benefit from it.it also ould be made smaller to be less bulky..food for thought.