Honda to start leasing walking assistance device

A Honda Motor Co. engineer demonstrates the walking aid in Tokyo on Tuesday. | AFP-JIJI

Honda Motor Co. will start lease sales in November of its Honda Walking Assist Device for use in mobility rehabilitation at hospitals and other facilities in Japan.

The 2.7-kg device, which is worn on the waist and thighs, helps to lift the user’s knees when walking.

It uses technologies employed by the automaker’s Asimo bipedal humanoid robot and is designed to help people recover their ability to walk after suffering incapacity such as paralysis following a stroke.

In time, wearers will acquire strength in their leg muscles and may find it easier to walk without the device’s assistance, Honda said.

Health care professionals such as physical therapists need to be with the wearer when the device is used as it has to be configured to the way the wearer walks.

The device has already been used at some medical institutions since 2013 on an experimental basis.

Honda aims to lease 450 units annually. The device, which can be used for about an hour on a single charge, will be leased for ¥45,000 per month.

Japan is fast embracing the use of robotics in daily life. The government’s revamped Japan Revitalization Strategy lists support for robotics research and development as one of the main areas of focus.

Earlier this month, Tokyo’s Haneda airport said it will test new robot technologies under a joint project with leading robotics developer Cyberdyne Inc. In the initial phase of the project, Cyberdyne will provide its HAL exoskeletal robot suits to help airport workers complete loading tasks.

Furthermore, the Huis Ten Bosch theme park in Nagasaki Prefecture opened the Hen na Hotel (Weird Hotel) this month, which has robot front-desk staff. Other robots serve coffee and do the cleaning.

Meanwhile, Mizuho Bank has introduced Pepper, SoftBank Corp.’s talking humanoid robot, in its flagship branch in central Tokyo as a receptionist.

Source;
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2015/07/22/business/tech/honda-start-leasing-walking-assistance-device/#.VbDw4rWd67R

Honda Walking Assist Device begins clinical research study in Chicago

by Shane Macglaun of www.slashgear.com

Honda has announced that its Walking Assist Device has begun a clinical research trial in the US. The trial is underway in Chicago at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago. During the trial, physical therapists and other researchers will be performing a scientific assessment of the Honda Walking Assist Device or Stride Management Device.


This will be the first large scale clinical research study on the Honda device in the US. Honda’s Walking Assist Device is designed to be worn over clothing. It looks like a bulky belt and hides compact motors inside that are driven by battery power. The rigid frame allows the device to help lit the legs of the user.
Honda designed the device to help people walk that have limited or reduced mobility due to injury, illness, or other causes. The Honda Walking Assist Device is expected to help stroke victims regain their mobility. The Walking Assist Device has a control computer inside the housing that uses data gathered from hip angle sensors while walking.

The data that is gathered allows the internal computer to help improve the timing of each leg lifting from the ground and extending forward or backward to give the user a longer stride, making walking easier. The device attaches to the body using belts allowing it to be worn by people of varied body size. The battery inside the device is good for over an hour of use per charge and the entire Walking Assist Device weighs 6 pounds. The Honda Walking Assist Device went into broad hospital trials in Japan in May.

Source;
http://www.slashgear.com/honda-walking-assist-device-begins-clinical-research-study-in-chicago-18305790/

Honda Walking Assist Device goes into broad hospital trial

by Chris Davies of www.slashgear.com

It’s been a long while since we first saw Honda’s exoskeleton-like Walking Assist Device – 2008, in fact – but the first 100 units are finally strolling into broader service in Japan. 100 of the 2.6kg gadgets, which strap onto the legs and hips so as to help the wearer walk more steadily and with a longer stride, have been deployed as part of a loan program across Japanese hospitals.


In total, fifty hospitals will get to try out the Walking Assist Device, with each location getting two units: one medium (for hip widths of up to 340mm) and one large (for hip widths of up to 380mm). Each unit can run for more than an hour on a single charge, Honda says, with the 22.2V Li-Ion battery fitting into the control pack that sits at the small of the back.

Honda suggests the gadget can be useful for both indoor or outdoor walking, though it cautions against using the walker in the rain and on non-flat surfaces. So far, it’s been trialled on a small scale in seven different hospitals, where physiotherapists and doctors have apparently given the system a tentative thumbs-up.


Although it lacks the immediate geek-appeal of Honda’s ASIMO robot, the Walking Assist Device shares a big part of the robot’s intelligence. Both are based on the company’s studies into walking styles; in the case of the exoskeleton, a bevy of sensors are used to track hip-angles, and thus make sure the motors kick in as appropriate to help guide each step.

It’s not Honda’s only unusual transportation system we’ve seen over the past few years. Although the company is best known for its cars, it also keeps plugging away at more personal methods of getting around, including oddball designs like the UNI-CUB unicycle and the moto compo folding scooter.


Source;
http://www.slashgear.com/honda-walking-assist-device-goes-into-broad-hospital-trial-29284034/

Honda Unveils Experimental Walking Assist Device With Bodyweight Support System

Better hope this doesn't malfunction in that position.....

Japan, November 7, 2008–Honda Motor Co., Ltd. unveiled its second experimental walking assist device that helps support bodyweight to reduce the load on the user's* legs while walking, going up and down stairs, and in a semi-crouching position. Honda will now begin testing the device in real-world conditions to evaluate its effectiveness.

The new walking assist device with the bodyweight support system reduces the load on leg muscles and joints (in the hip, knees, and ankles) by supporting a portion of the person's bodyweight. The device has a simple structure consisting of seat, frame, and shoes, and the user can put it on by simply wearing the shoes and lifting the seat into position. Moreover, a mechanism that directs the assisting force toward the user's center of gravity and the ability to control the assist force in concert with the movement of the legs – both unique Honda innovations – make it possible for the device to provide natural assistance in various postures and motions.

Honda began research of a walking assist device in 1999 with the goal to provide more people with the joy of mobility. Honda developed the knowledge required to develop the walking assist device from its thorough study of human walking represented by the research and development of Honda's advanced humanoid robot, ASIMO. This research has been conducted by the Fundamental Technology Research Center of Honda R&D Co., Ltd. in Wako, Saitama. To evaluate the effectiveness of the experimental model of the walking assist device with bodyweight support system, Honda will test the walking assist device at its Saitama Factory (in Sayama, Saitama) starting this month.

*This device is designed for people who are still capable of walking on their own.

For the rest of the news release;

http://world.honda.com/news/2008/c081107Walking-Assist-Device/

Honda's Walk Assist

Corporate June 30, 2008

Honda to Conduct Collaborative Testing of its Walking Assist Device

Japan, June 30, 2008– Honda Motor Co., Ltd. will begin collaborative testing of its experimental walking assist device as from July 1, 2008, with Shinseikai Medical Group, Kasumigaseki-Minami Hospital (Kawagoe, Saitama prefecture). The device was created to support walking by the elderly and other people with weakened leg muscles.*

The compatibility and effectiveness of Honda’s walking assist device will be evaluated during rehabilitation training to help people relearn to walk safely and efficiently, that is conducted at Kasumigaseki-Minami Hospital. The testing also will identify and study areas of effectiveness and potential issues from different perspectives by the trainees, physical therapists, doctors and researchers.

Honda began research of a walking assist device in 1999 with the goal to provide more people with the joy of mobility. The cooperative control technology utilized for this device is a unique Honda innovation achieved through the cumulative study of human walking just as the research and development of technologies was conducted for Honda’s advanced humanoid robot, ASIMO. With this device, the user’s stride will be lengthened compared to the user’s normal stride without the device and therefore the ease of walking is achieved.

Currently, the device is in the feasibility stage and Honda has been showcasing and gathering feedback from a wide range of people who experienced the device at relevant trade shows including the International Trade Fair on Barrier Free Equipments & Rehabilitation for the Elderly & the Disabled (BARRIER FREE 2008) held in April (at Intex Osaka) and at the Welfare 2008 in June (at Nagoya International Exhibition Hall).

* people who can still walk on their own