Honda connects brain thoughts with robotics

By YURI KAGEYAMA, AP

A Honda Motor Co. employee wears a headgear with codes attached during a dem...

TOKYO — Opening a car trunk or controlling a home air conditioner could become just a wish away with Honda's new technology that connects thoughts inside a brain with robotics.

Honda Motor Co. has developed a way to read patterns of electric currents on a person's scalp as well as changes in cerebral blood flow when a person thinks about four simple movements — moving the right hand, moving the left hand, running and eating.

Honda succeeded in analyzing such thought patterns, and then relaying them as wireless commands for Asimo, its human-shaped robot.

In a video shown Tuesday at Tokyo headquarters, a person wearing a helmet sat still but thought about moving his right hand — a thought that was picked up by cords attached to his head inside the helmet. After several seconds, Asimo, programmed to respond to brain signals, lifted its right arm.

Honda said the technology wasn't quite ready for a live demonstration because of possible distractions in the person's thinking. Another problem is that brain patterns differ greatly among individuals, and so about two to three hours of studying them in advance are needed for the technology to work.

The company, a leader in robotics, acknowledged the technology was still at a basic research stage with no immediate practical applications in the works.

"I'm talking about dreams today," said Yasuhisa Arai, executive at Honda Research Institute Japan Co., the company's research unit. "Practical uses are still way into the future."

Japan boasts one of the leading robotics industries in the world, and the government is pushing to develop the industry as a road to growth.

Research on the brain is being tackled around the world, but Honda said its research was among the most advanced in figuring out a way to read brain patterns without having to hurt the person, such as embedding sensors into the skin.

Honda has made robotics a centerpiece of its image, sending Asimo to events and starring the walking, talking robot in TV ads. Among the challenges for the brain technology is to make the reading-device smaller so it can be portable, according to Honda.

Arai didn't rule out the possibility of a car that may some day drive itself — even without a steering wheel.

"Our products are for people to use. It is important for us to understand human behavior," he said. "We think this is the ultimate in making machines move."

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Honda unveils robotic legs that could improve people's mobility

From correspondents in Tokyo

Moving ... Honda's new robotic legs / AFP

HONDA has unveiled a new walking assist machine designed to make it easier for the elderly to climb stairs and help factory workers.

The computerised leg device is the latest addition to walking technology developed by the Japanese automaker, which announced the world's first two-legged walking robot, ASIMO, in 2000.

The 6.5kg device - consisting of a saddle, leg-like frames and shoes - can reduce the load on users' legs while walking or climbing and descending stairs by supporting bodyweight, Honda said.

Honda said the motor-powered machine is still at an experimental stage, but elderly people and people undergoing rehabilitation who need support for their leg muscles and joints are the main target.

The device is also expected to help assembly workers to keep a crouching position, Honda said, adding that it plans to test the device at one of its factories north of Tokyo.

Like with a unicycle, users ride on the seat sustained by frames that can bend and extend like knees with two motors controlled by signals from sensors inside the shoes.

"We used ASIMO's technology for developing the walking assist device," Masato Hirose, a senior engineer at Honda Research and Development, said.

"ASIMO is designed to be used as a tool, but the walking assist device is designed to complement real human bodies," he said. "Both will exist for the sake of people."

ASIMO, which resembles a child in an astronaut suit, has been used as a receptionist and master of ceremonies at home and overseas, while dancing and singing with musicians at concerts.

Honda has yet to decide on further details such as when the latest device will go on sale and at what price, but the company sees a market for it in Japan, which has an ageing population.

"First, we hope to have visible results in rehabilitation and other medical fields," Mr Hirose said.

"Then we will look at welfare as another target."

Last year, Honda unveiled its first walking assist device with a stride management system, which can help users move their thighs back and forth.