Robear: the bear-shaped nursing robot who'll look after you when you get old

Japanese government wants to increase acceptance of technology that could help fill the gap in the nursing workforce

A robot “Robear” lifting a woman for a demonstration in Nagoya, central Japan. The robot can transfer frail patients from a wheelchair to a bed or a bath. Photograph: Jiji Press/AFP/Getty Images

A number of companies have explored the idea of humanoid robots as future home-helpers for elderly people. The latest experiment from Japan is distinctly more bear-shaped, though.

“We really hope that this robot will lead to advances in nursing care, relieving the burden on caregivers today,” said Toshiharu Mukai, leader of the project’s robot sensor systems research team.

Meet Robear, an experimental nursing-care robot developed by the RIKEN-SRK Collaboration Center for Human-Interactive Robot Research and Sumitomo Riko Company.

Unveiled this month, the robot is designed to lift patients out of beds and into wheelchairs, as well as helping those who need assistance to stand up. Robear weighs in at 140kg, and is the successor to heavier robots RIBA and RIBA-II.

“We really hope that this robot will lead to advances in nursing care, relieving the burden on caregivers today,” said Toshiharu Mukai, leader of the project’s robot sensor systems research team.

“We intend to continue with research toward more practical robots capable of providing powerful yet gentle care to elderly people.”

That’s an increasingly urgent challenge in Japan, where the elderly population is growing fast. According to Riken, robots like Robear can play an important role in taking the strain off nurses and caregivers, who may be having to lift patients 40 or more times a day, risking lower-back pain in the process.

Design Specs

The new robot developed by the RIKEN-SRK Collaboration Center for Human-Interactive Robot Research in Nagoya is a successor to RIBA, which was announced in 2009, and RIBA-II, which was developed in 2011.

The new ROBEAR robot is lighter than its predecessors, weighing just 140 kilograms compared to RIBA-II’s 230 kilograms, and it incorporates a number of features that enable it to exert force in a gentle way.

Specifically, it includes actuator units with a very low gear ratio, allowing the joints to move very quickly and precisely, and allowing backdrivability, meaning that the force encountered by the actuators as they perform their tasks can be quickly fed back into the system, allowing softer movement.

It also incorporates three types of sensors, including torque sensors and Smart Rubber capacitance-type tactile sensors made entirely of rubber, which allow for gentle movements, ensuring that the robot can perform power-intensive tasks such as lifting patients without endangering them.

The robot also improves on its predecessors by having a small base, making the total system more lightweight. It avoids falling over through the use of legs that can be extended when necessary for lifting a patient but retracted to allow the robot to maneuver through tight spaces such as doorways.