Japan has been able to stay competitive despite high wages and a high cost of living largely because Japanese companies continue to innovate, to become more efficient. Also, because Japanese and the better Japanese universities are great at innovating.
Japan may not be the land of inventions, but Japan does know how to make improvements.
A group from Tokyo University of Science will test power-assist robotic suits in a factory setting.
Man, woman, grandpa and grandma will be able to don power suits that conform to the human body and supplement the wearer's strength.
"Hey grannie, can you hold up the front of that car so I can finish this weld?"
The device will weight about 3kg (6.6) lbs but give the wearer about 15kg (33lbs) of extra muscle. Well, maybe a car is asking too much.
A subsidiary of Sumitomo Construction in Chiba will be the test site for the first two suits.
Japan does innovation. Japan does efficiency. Japan does robots.
What do you think?
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