Robot Technology Creates Easy Chair
From: Discovery Channel - 04/21/2005
By: Tracy Staedter

Researchers from Carnegie Mellon University say their new robotic easy chair
is just as big on design as it is on technology. Designers played a major
role in the development of the SenseChair prototype, to avoid creating
something that would intimidate seniors. "We feel that for elders, who are
our first audience, the metal man is probably not the right model," says
assistant professor of design and human-computer interaction Jodi Forlizzi,
head of the SenseChair team. Although the SenseChair is embedded with
sensors, motors, sounds, lights, a computer, and wireless technology, the
therapeutic chair has a contemporary shape, and its fabric is welcoming and
modern. The SenseChair consists of 12 sensors that identify vital signs,
sleep patterns, and normal activity level; 14 motors that gently rouse users
to shift positions that they remain in too long; sounds and voices to wake
users from naps; and eight lights to illuminate a room when users awake
during the evening. In-home trials are set for the summer for the chair,
which also has the ability to alert caregivers and medical personnel when
vital signs and activity patterns fall below normal levels. 

http://dsc.discovery.com/news/briefs/20050418/sensechair.html

Links:
SenseChair Robotic Prototype
http://www.gizmag.com/go/3921

SenseChair Robotic Prototype for Aging Population
http://www.cmu.edu/PR/releases05/050331_chairhug.html