The Japanese robot revolution: with an aging population and a looming labor shortage, Japanese scientists are pushing hard to develop advanced androids and integrate them into human society

New American, The, Nov 13, 2006 by Dennis Behreandt

Star Wars was--and remains--a cultural phenomenon for many reasons, but one of its most striking aspects in 1977 was its depiction of a human society permeated by robots. And not just any robots, but humanoid robots. In the original Star Wars movie, filmmaker George Lucas envisioned robots, or "droids," many of them bipedal and looking in a general sense like humans, as being of vital importance in helping maintain the material infrastructure of society.

Science fiction was far from reality in 1977. But in the last few years, robotics has finally begun to take visible steps toward realizing Lucas' vision. Today several Japanese firms, including such recognizable companies as Honda, Toyota, and Mitsubishi, are introducing prototype personal robots that look the part of C3PO, Lucas' "protocol droid."

Embracing Technology

After World War II, Japanese industry was in tatters with seemingly little hope of being able to compete in a future marketplace dominated by American manufacturing muscle. According to Timothy Hornyak, author of Loving the Machine: The Art and Science of Japanese Robots, the Japanese saw technology as "a way to save their own country from ruin--from sliding backwards into being a colony of these imperial powers who were circling the country like sharks." The Japanese, always confident and self-reliant, looked to technology as a means of independently rebuilding their nation. "They did not develop this latent technophobia that you see in the West," Hornyak told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.

The Japanese continue to believe that advanced technology is the key to maintaining the stability of Japanese society. Presently, Japan has one of the world's lowest birth rates and some of the world's longest life spans. Demographically, this means that Japan's population is aging and facing a manpower shortage, as well as a need for personal assistants and companions for a graying population. According to The Economist, it is expected that the Japanese population will shrink over the next four decades. For many in Japan, robots are being viewed as the means to head off this looming demographic crisis. "With Japan's aging population, we need robots that can alleviate the burden of human tasks," says Toshihiko Morita, director of Fujitsu's Autonomous System Laboratory.

Concern for the well-being of an aging population is what spurred the creation of PARO. Developed by Japan's National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), PARO is described as a "mental commitment robot" designed to provide comfort and companionship to those who are lonely or shut in. The device is designed to look like a seal or a cat and looks more like a toy than a serious piece of technology. But it represents a serious step toward developing robots that interact with people in a naturalistic manner. A video distributed by AIST shows the robots interacting with people and animals and describes their intended use. "Mental commit robots," the AIST narrator says, "will enrich human life by providing joy and comfort through physical interaction.... The robot's shape, movement, sound, and texture adequately stimulate the human sense so that the human will feel affection and comfort towards the robot."

As interesting as PARO is in its ability to form emotional bonds with people, the truly revolutionary nature of Japanese robotics is demonstrated in the advanced capabilities of ASIMO, the humanoid, bipedal robot created by Honda. An amazing leap forward in technology, it is difficult to do justice to ASIMO in writing. The four-foot tall, 119 pound robot must be seen to be believed, and Honda, fortunately, has provided plenty of video on its website. The videos show ASIMO running, greeting people, pushing a cart, and exercising, among other things. With ASIMO, Japanese robotics technology has nearly matched Star Wars levels of sophistication.

According to Honda, ASIMO, which stands for Advanced Step in Innovative Mobility, is no mere marionette, but features impressive levels of artificial intelligence. According to Honda, ASIMO "is capable of interpreting the postures and gestures of humans and moving independently in response. ASIMO's ability to interact with humans has advanced significantly--it can greet approaching people, follow them, move in the direction they indicate, and even recognize their faces and address them by name. Further, utilizing networks such as the Internet, ASIMO can provide information while executing tasks such as reception duties. ASIMO is the world's first humanoid robot to exhibit such a broad range of intelligent capabilities."

And ASIMO has a job. Honda began using ASIMO in its new office in the city of Wako, Japan, in the spring of this year. According to Satoshi Shigemi, the leader of the Honda team that is developing ASIMO, "The level of Asimo's capability was just good enough to entertain people on the stage in the past, but the new Asimo can work at places closer to us." According to Shigemi, "The new Asimo can perform the task of a receptionist or information guide automatically." As impressive as this is, the ultimate aim is to integrate robots like ASIMO into human society. "Honda is aiming to create a humanoid robot that can help people and live together with people," Shigemi said.