Will the little seals that only sell the cute machine really comfort the patient?

Release date: 2016-04-08

Paro is a machine seal from Japan. It is not a toy in the hands of children, but an old man who is used to calm lonely or emotionally disturbed. The manufacturer says that Paro is a medical aid.

Does a doll really have a therapeutic effect? Recently, a report from the non-profit organization Front Porch Center for Innovation and Wellbeing showed that Paro really helps people to relieve their anxiety.

Let's first take a look at how Paro works. The robot is a plush toy on the surface, but it integrates multiple sensors such as motion, temperature, light, and sound to respond to human behavior.

We experienced Paro at the International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in January 2016, which maximizes the imitation of real pet and human interaction, like a docile puppy: you talk to it, touch its body Paro will make different feedbacks, the specific performance is to shake his head, kneel, twist or blink.

Paro also learns the habits and preferences of users and continues to show a gesture that makes you feel happy.

“Paro improves the behavior and mental state of people with Alzheimer's disease and reduces the use of psychotropic substances,” says designer Takanori Shibata.

The Paro, which was introduced in 2003, has been used in some medical and residential institutions. The report mentioned above was tested against its actual effects.

The study involved 920 cases in which Paro was used in the treatment of Alzheimer's disease. The results showed that 60% of patients showed calmness and restlessness after interacting with Paro. In addition, 97% of the elderly living alone in the study have significantly improved their social skills.

A robot similar to Paro also has Hasbro, a cat that can communicate with people for $99.

For lonely, experienced elderly people, machine animals are more convenient than real pets. After all, cleaning up and taking care is also a matter of energy.

Hasbro robot cat

There will be more and more elderly people around the world. The aging report released by the US Census Bureau last month said that the population aged 65 and over now accounts for 8.5 percent of the world's total population, reaching more than 600 million people. If this trend continues, this number will reach 17% in 2050.

Fortunately, robotics can not only help you clean your home, or optimize the production of the factory, it can also play a role in serious medical issues related to aging.

Source: Curiosity Daily