Creepy child robot thrashes in dentist chair to help trainees prepare for unruly kids
The Pedia_Roid robot was developed by Showa University Dental Hospital’s Department of Orthodontics, alongside Japanese robotics startup Tmsuk, to help train medical students
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Japan: Child robot developed to train paediatric dentists
A horrifying life-like robot ‘child’ which cries, vomits and thrashes around is being used by trainee dentists to help prepare them for unruly young patients.
A group of medical students in Tokyo are practicing emergency procedures on the machine, named Pedia_Roid.
She stands at just 5ft 1in and automatically reacts to anything that might cause a real human pain.
In a video, the bot, which appears to come in a variety of outfits, is seen thrashing around as its eyes creepily roll back into its head.
And then dentistry students are also seen attempting to check into the ‘patient’s’ mouth as it wriggles its legs on the seat.
From mild tantrums to critical medical symptoms, it is said to be capable of mimicking anything.
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And that includes secreting saliva and vomiting at random.
The robot was developed by Showa University Dental Hospital’s Department of Orthodontics, alongside Japanese robotics startup Tmsuk.
Koutaro Maki, vice director of Showa University Dental Hospital, said: “Medical skill and ability is first built upon failure.
“One’s skills only improve once they have failed once.
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“Therefore, we figured that a robot is the only way that would allow students to learn from their failures without inconveniencing patients.”
Yusuke Ishii, the engineering division director of Tmsuk, added: “Medical workers really need to experience medical emergencies.
“It is important they experience a situation where something goes wrong and that’s what it can simulate.
“It is difficult to get experience in paediatric dentistry because there are no opportunities to practice. In addition, there is the risk that children will move wildly because with children, when their medical condition suddenly worsens, it’s hard for them to express that situation.
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“So it is necessary to have the experience and knowledge to monitor and treat the patients. But they (the medical workers) don’t have this training opportunity, so they administer the treatment in real situations (without enough training).
“So we developed this so that they can practice on a simulation.”
Experts there have previously made two other models, making this Pedia_Roid a “third-generation” creation.
The newest version allows instructors to use a separate touch panel to control bodily functions, such as sneezing, coughing and throwing up.
The user can send signals to air cylinders in the robot’s joists to cause movement across its entire body, including the mouth and tongue.
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It means it expresses physical reactions and facial expressions.
Meanwhile, signs of a medical emergency, including convulsions and heart failure, can also be displayed.
Despite the robot being the thing of nightmares, students say they’re delighted to have such an advanced tool to practice on.
One student said: “This robot is quite different from those up to this point in that its movements are very close to that of a real patient.
“One actually feels the difficulty of working on it as a patient, as it has a very lifelike presence to it.”
Showa University hopes that eventually it can replace real humans for students’ final clinical exams with the robots.
The robot costs approximately $195,000.
Tmsuk hopes to develop it further so it can help people in other childcare industries, such as elementary school teachers and paediatricians.
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