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It looks like a washing machine on wheels, but the bulky contraption vacuuming the hallways of a Tokyo high-rise is a robot.
Japanese researchers hope that (1) robots like this one will be the answer to a pressing question hanging over the country -- how to cope with an ageing population and a declining labor force.
The vacuuming machine developed by Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd is already cleaning floors in about 10 buildings around the country, including a 54-floor (2) skyscraper in central Tokyo.
The device operates at night after office workers have gone home. It takes elevators to move from one floor to another.
Such robots capable of operating in homes, offices and other venues outside factories are still rare even in Japan, a powerhouse in the field of robotics and home to roughly 40 percent of the world's industrial robots.
Japanese researchers are racing against time to build robots smart enough to serve the needs of the elderly in a country in which 40 percent of the population will be over 65 by 2055.
(3) Prototypes of new robots capable of performing mundane tasks will be unveiled in 18 months.
Such machines do not need to be (4) humanoid, although robots that resemble people have some advantages, said Shimoyama. ■Reuters
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