Japan Creating Planet of Androids!

TOKYO – A new “breed” of robots now rolling [and walking!] off the assembly lines in Japan will no doubt change the future, not only in the way people work, and what work consists of, but also in the way they live their private lives.

The emergence of Japan as a leader in the design and production of first robots and now humanoids is, in fact, astounding, given the history of the country.

While the Industrial Revolution was going on in the West (from about 1750 on), Japan was virtually closed to the outside world and followed a policy of limiting, and in some cases prohibiting altogether, the kind of international trade and technological research that was part of the great changes sweeping Europe and the United States.

Furthermore, Japan had no tradition of the kind of state or private sponsored research that gave birth to the Industrial Revolution in the West. In fact, it was the policy of the Shogunate governments, particularly the last one that began in 1603 and ended in 1868, to maintain the status quo in both the economy and society.

So what happened? What changed in Japan? What made the Japanese suddenly become leaders in virtually every category of technology and science?

The national and political motivation that resulted in Japan becoming a technological superpower was, at first, an absolute obsession to catch up with the West in terms of military strength in order to avoid being colonized by Western powers, and later to achieve its own expansionary goals.

This motivation was fueled by a Zen-derived ability to focus on specific goals and to work toward them with incredible diligence, combined with a samurai-derived do-or-die spirit that was unbounded.

A second aspect of this extraordinary drive to catch up with – and surpass! – the Western powers was a deeply embedded view of themselves as a culturally and spiritually superior people who could achieve whatever they set out to do.

Another cultural factor that played a key role in Japan’s rapid rise to economic prominence was the fact that the Japanese were inherently “fuzzy thinkers” -- that is, they were imbued by their culture to think holistically, to view and see things from all angles; all perspectives.

This factor resulted in the Japanese being able to quickly understand the most complicated technology, often make improvements on it, and visualize how it could be utilized in a variety of ways.

And it is this cultural trait that has made the Japanese leaders in the creation of hard and soft robot technology. The stakes are high. Honda predicts that robots will eventually outpace its automobile business. If Honda and other proponents are correct, the size of the robotics industry could end up overtaking the PC industry.

Japan’s industrial giants are investing millions in developing consumer robots. Eye-catching robots like Sony's Aibo and Honda's Asimo have grabbed most of the headlines, but Japanese companies are developing practical robots that will be cheap, convenient and ubiquitous.

In early 2005, electronics maker Sanyo launched "Hopis," a medical robot designed for the consumer market. It looks like a toy but is packed with electronics – a speech synthesizer, a digital thermometer, a tonometer to diagnose eye disease, a glucose meter for diabetics, and various other sensors.

Designed to be an on-site doctor's assistant, Hopis is able to question patients in detail and send the answers to a medical center using its built-in wireless Internet connection. Mass production is expected to make Hopis a consumer item like a TV set or washing machine.

Labor-saving robots are hitting the market in growing numbers. In 2005, Fujitsu launched the Maron-1, a sentry robot that can be remotely controlled with an internet-enabled phone. The robot can send pictures of its surroundings to the owner's mobile phone. Equipped with electronic ears and eyes as well as proximity sensors, Maron-1 can alert the owner when it detects intruders.

Mitsubishi is also targeting the medical market with a robot that performs many functions of a human nurse. The multifunctional robot is 3.3 feet tall, weighs about 50 pounds, and moves on wheels. It is billed as house sitter, nurse and a "family friend."

The robot nurse is equipped with a video camera, voice- and face-recognition capabilities, and an always-on Internet connection. It can be programmed to remind its "master" to take medicine, and call for help if it detects unusual sounds or movements in the house.

“The Planet of the Apes” was far-out fiction. “The Planet of Androids” is present-day science.

Copyright © 2007 by Boye Lafayette De Mente
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Boye Lafayette De Mente has been involved with Japan, Korea, China and Mexico since the late 1940s as a member of a U.S. intelligence agency, student, journalist, and editor. He is the author of more than 50 books on these countries, including the first books ever on the Japanese way of doing business: Japanese Etiquette & Ethics in Business, first published in 1959 and still in print, and How to Do Business in Japan, published in 1961.

To see a complete list of his titles [each one linked to Amazon.com’s buy page], go to his personal website: http://www.phoenixbookspublishers.com/.