Two Disabled Japanese Individuals Plan to Summit Breithorn, 4,164 Meters High in the Alps (Switzerland) with the Help of Climbers in Robot Suits. How Does This Unique Robot Suit Assist Disabled Individuals?
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Seiji Uchida Practicing Climbing |
The climbing expedition in August 2006 is expected to be the first trial of technology developed by Japanese researchers. The research team behind the robot suit hopes it will benefit individuals with physical disabilities, as well as the growing elderly population. The suit, named HAL, is powered by batteries and recognizes bodily movements through natural electric currents that run across the skin’s surface, assisting with subsequent movements. In this way, it enhances mobility and strength for the wearer.
Seiji Uchida, 43, has been in a wheelchair since a car accident in 1983. He will be carried to the summit of Breithorn by Takeshi Matsumoto, a friend and his physical therapist. Matsumoto will wear the HAL robot suit to be able to carry his friend up the mountain. Also in the climbing team is Kyoga Ide, a 16-year-old boy with muscular dystrophy. This young man will also participate in the climb, being carried by another guide wearing a robot suit.
Uchida shared that during his three years of recovery after the car accident, he looked at a calendar featuring the landscapes of Switzerland, which captivated him to the point that he dreamed of visiting the country. He said: “No one would be foolish enough to take a disabled person climbing with them, and even if they did, it wouldn’t be safe to use a wheelchair. Fortunately, we are leveraging this new robot technology to test our limits.”
Weighing approximately 50 kg, Uchida, combined with his own weight and that of the robot suit, means Matsumoto must climb with a total weight of around 150 kg. Uchida expressed his main concern was that the snow would melt before they completed their climb, as this would make his friends’ responsibilities even more challenging. Uchida pursued his ambition to climb in Switzerland after seeing Yoshiyuki Sankai, a professor and engineer at Tsukuba University (Japan), demonstrate the HAL suit on television last year. This climbing team will be led by Ken Noguchi, a well-known climber in Japan.
