Individuals unable to move around independently can now look forward to the latest offering by the health section. Experts from the University of Hertfordshire have introduced a new robot that employs its cognitive skills to help people with damaged limbs walk again. The cognitive features of these robots will be built in the Cognitive Control Framework for Robotic Systems (CORBYS).
We have already come across some robots that enable people to walk, but the need for constant attention and monitoring by therapists does arise. However, the current technology aims at averting the need for keeping a track on the patient. Scientists will focus on the high-level cognitive control of these robots and their synergy with human behavior.
“We believe that all organisms optimise information and organize it efficiently in their niche and that this shapes their behaviour – in a way, it tells them to some extent what to do. We believe it will help our system to take decisions similar to organisms and to better ‘read’ the intentions of the human it supports,†said Dr Daniel Polani. “Furthermore, we will use these techniques to balance the lead-taking between robot and human.â€
The new robot is allegedly based on biologically-inspired principles and methodologies that have been developed at the School of Computer Science over the past few years. The project will divulge two demonstrators, among them a unique mobile robot-assisted gait rehabilitation system. This self-aware system is predicted to learn and optimally match the requirements of the user at different stages of rehabilitation.
The developed robots with cognitive features apparently have great significance for people with disabilities.