Tech ZenBot: robotic gear for pilgrimages

[thomas]

Pilgrims in Shikoku have been testing robotic gear, the Walk Mate, developed by the Tokyo Institute of Technology. Already in use in medical centres, the experiment conducted last December was the first outdoor trial.

Photo credit: Kodai Kinoshita

It was part of an experiment to see how the machine would fare in supporting the religious pilgrims on the tough terrain. They were walking the "henro" pilgrimage in the Shikoku region to trace the footsteps of Kukai (774-835), a Buddhist priest, also known as Daishi or Kobo Daishi. After the test was over, a woman in her 50s who climbed a 500-meter slope between two temples with her husband called the technology "marvelous." [...] While Walk Mate has been used in medical centers and elsewhere for physical therapy since 2018, it was only tested for outdoor use for the first time in this recent verification trial. The experiment took place in Zentsuji, where Kukai hails from. The test used a sloped road that connects the Mandaraji and Shusshakaji temples, which are the 72nd and 73rd destinations along the pilgrimage route.

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Tokyo Institute of Technology and ANA Group conduct a demonstration experiment on a pilgrimage equipped with a walking support robot

The Tokyo Institute of Technology and the ANA Group announced a collaboration aimed at creating a new travel style that encourages travelers by supporting the walking of robots. On December 12, the walking support robot "Tokyo Institute of Technology and the ANA Group conducted a demonstration...

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