Page 173 - Modern Robotics Building Versatile Macines

CYBORG ODYSSEY 153

SOLVING PROBLEMS: SAFER BATHS

One of the projects undertaken by Kevin Warwick’s team at the
University of Reading illustrates how it is possible to come up with
a simpler, lower tech solution to a problem that seems very compli-
cated at first.
The problem was how to enable epileptic persons to bathe alone
safely. People with epilepsy usually prefer taking care of their daily
needs instead of relying on a companion or attendant for assistance.
Epileptic seizures are largely unpredictable, and if one occurs while
a person is in the bathtub, it is possible he or she might drown. The
Reading team sought a way to detect the onset of a seizure so the
water could be quickly drained from the tub.
Epileptic seizures vary greatly in their severity and outward signs.
In some cases limbs thrash wildly, while in others the only sign may
be a flickering of the eyelids. Although there are characteristic brain
waves associated with a seizure, wearing a cap full of sensors and
electrodes is awkward—not to mention potentially dangerous in a
wet environment.
Warwick devised a simpler solution. He took an ordinary pair of
eyeglass frames (without lenses) and attached moisture sensors to
them. If a person wearing the glasses has a seizure that causes his or
her head to slump into the water, the sensor sends a signal to a relay
that opens the drain and empties the bath.

insect-like walking robots. These robots generally follow the “sub-
sumption architecture” first developed by Rodney Brooks. That is,
they are decentralized, with layers of behavior ranging from simple
avoidance of obstacles to exploration and mapping the world. Each
of Walter’s legs is separately operated and synchronized by a “heart-
beat” signal. If a leg is removed or disabled, the other legs compen-
sate, just as with an insect.
As with humans and other organisms, the brain or central pro-
cessor in a robot with distributed architecture needs only to send a
master signal to start walking or undertake another activity. The
lower-level “nervous system” takes care of the rest, allowing the