A robot-suitcase that might replace guide dogs

J-STORIES - Robots equipped with artificial intelligence (AI) may soon replace guide dogs for the visually impaired. A navigator robot that doubles as a suitcase has been developed by a scientist who is herself blind and is on display online as part of a Tokyo event held to support mobility and communication for the elderly and people with disabilities.

The robot is named AI Suitcase. If you tell the suitcase via a smartphone app where you want to go, it will provide voice guidance to not only to your destination, but also on places you pass. It uses information from cameras and sensors to detect and avoid obstacles, while also including functions that help users communicate with other people.

Chieko Asakawa demonstrated the AI Suitcase YouTube: AI Suitcase Consortium — Chieko Asakawa demonstrated the AI Suitcase YouTube: AI Suitcase Consortium

The development and practical application of the robot is being promoted by the Advanced Assistive Mobility Platform, in which IBM Japan and other major companies are participating (https://caamp.jp/). The initiator of the project is the director of the National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation (Odaiba, Tokyo), Chieko Asakawa, who is herself blind.

Asakawa’s eyesight began to weaken after an accident at a swimming pool when she was in elementary school, and she lost her sight completely at 14. She has been researching information accessibility technology since a previous job at IBM, and her aim is a society where those with visual disabilities, who often have concerns about mobility, can walk around towns and cities independently.

“We want to use the AI Suitcase to show how technology can bring this kind of significant change, and we will keep looking for other new technologies,” said Asakawa at a press briefing at the National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation (Miraikan) in Tokyo, where there are plans to put the robot on display.

Currently the AI Suitcase is on display at the Accessible Tourism Promotion Seminar, organized by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government. During this event, lectures and consultation sessions are held with the aim of creating a city that anyone can visit in comfort, while various examples of support for those with disabilities are also shared. The seminar takes place until the end of February.