Japan develops a human tail

Japan develops a human tail

Researchers at the Japanese University of Keio have developed a robotic tail designed to help older people maintain their balance, especially for those who can not stand and walk steadily.

According to a team of researchers at Q University, the gray device, dubbed the Arque, is 1 meter long and mimics the tail of cheetahs and other animals that use their tails to maintain their balance while running and climbing.

"The tail keeps the balance like a pendulum," said Junichi Nebeshmia, a graduate student and researcher at the University's Embodied Media Project, showing an automatic tail attached to his waist. "When a person tilts his body in one direction, the tail moves in the opposite direction."

While Japan is leading the industrialized countries looking for ways to retain its population: more than a quarter of them over the age of 65 are mobile and productive, other countries have turned to migrant workers to replenish their diminishing workforce.

The automatic tail, which uses four artificial muscles and compressed air to move in eight directions, will remain in the lab at the moment because the team is looking for ways to make it more flexible, Nebeshima said. .

In addition to helping the elderly to walk steadily, the team also examines industrial applications of the automated tail, which will serve as a help to the balance for blue-collar workers. warehouse loaded with heavy loads.

"I think it would be nice to integrate this sophisticated artificial tail into everyday life, when we look for more help with balance," Nebeshima said.