Allowing robots to help care for the elderly, a job typically seen as requiring a human touch, may be an unfamiliar idea in the West, however, many Japanese see them positively, largely because they are depicted in popular media as friendly and helpful.
Robots have the run of Tokyo's Shin-Tomi nursing home, which uses 20 different models to care for its residents.
The Japanese government hopes it will be a model for the future, for harnessing the country's robotics expertise to help cope with a swelling elderly population and dwindling workforce.
After the exercise session with SoftBank Robotics Corp's Pepper, a talkative robot, Kazuko Yamada, 84, said: “These robots are wonderful. More people live alone these days, and a robot can be a conversation partner for them. It will make life more fun.”
Plenty of obstacles may hinder a rapid proliferation of elder care robots: high costs, safety issues and doubts about how useful and user-friendly they will be.
The Japanese government has been funding development of elder care robots to help fill a projected shortfall of 380,000 specialized workers by 2025.
Director of the robotic policy office at the Ministry of Economy expects other countries to follow the same trend, which will open the door for a lucrative export industry.
According to estimates, Germany, China and Italy are among the countries, which based on their population structure, will be facing the same challenge soon.
