Utilization of remote control technique for effective RAA and RAT

A remote controlled robot as well as autonomous one was used for robot assisted activity (RAA) and robot assisted therapy (RAT) in the special nursing home for aged persons and the rehabilitation ward in the hospital. It was shown from the fieldwork at these working sites that RAA and RAT using remote controlled robot are effective especially in a rehabilitation program. The robot operator can control the robot as if the robot understands patient mind and can stimulate the patient through the robot. The effect of RAA and RAT was evaluated several method such as GSR measurement, patient's hand position and eye-contact analysis during practice and blood pressure measurement at before and after the practice. The results show remote control technique helps rehabilitation program although statistical data accumulation is still necessary. One of the problems preventing RAA and RAT from popularization is that we need the robot operator in addition to the therapist. We developed simple and handy operation console that can be handled by therapist during practice