In Sweden, there will be robotic nurses
Last reviewed: 23.04.2024
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At the Swedish University of Technology have developed a robot-nurse who is able to monitor the status of a person around the clock, bring food or medicine, besides, the robot can talk to the client or call an ambulance if necessary.
The robot prototype was named Hobbit, specialists from Sweden, Vienna and Greece worked on its creation and the 89-year-old pensioner from Sweden will be the first trust robot.
The developers have calculated that the cost of the budget version of the robot will be within 12 thousand euros. The cost of models equipped with additional functions will reach 100 thousand euros. The main customer of the novelty can be a service that provides home care to pensioners who work in Sweden.
The issue of care for pensioners in Sweden is very acute. According to statistics, in 2000, 22% of residents aged over 60 lived in the country, and by 2050 the proportion of the elderly population will reach almost 40%. With such figures, there may be a shortage of professionals to care for all who need it and the electronic nurses will help fill the gap.
In the field of creating robot servants, Japanese engineers have long been leading, as in this country a large percentage of the elderly population. But engineers from Sweden also were able to offer a number of worthy and original developments in this area.
A couple of years ago, Stephen Von Rump developed a care and communication complex called the Giraffe, who is constantly in touch with the client at any point, provided that he is connected to the Internet (Swedish pensioners do not have this problem). If necessary, the system sends a request for help and a health worker is sent to the person. The cost of such a complex is about 1.5 thousand euros, which is quite expensive by Swedish standards, however, such a system is cheaper than payment for living a relative in a nursing home.
Also, Swedish specialists from the University of Melardalen developed special gloves that help people with paralysis of the hands. Equipped with a special electric drive gloves help to take and carry small items.
Specialists from the same university last year created a robot in the form of a cat that can murch (artificial sound can not be distinguished from the present). Experts argue that the murmuring is soothing to a person. By the way, in the Finnish capital in one of the nursing home "live" artificial young seal, which can produce a variety of sounds and respond to the touch. Such robotic seals were developed by specialists from Japan specifically to fill the lack of communication among elderly people living alone. Doctors say that after "communication" with an artificial seal, the condition of an elderly person improves, both emotionally and physically. Japanese experts called their robot - therapeutic.
It is worth noting that artificial electronic animals are bought by young healthy people who can not get a living pet (due to allergies, lack of time for leaving, etc.).
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