JapanSugoi

We’ve featured a variety of cool and strange robots on Japansugoi before but here is one we really like. Simroid, the “simulator humanoid” is a 160cm tall, silicone-skinned, air powered female patient robot who wears a pink sweater and lipstick red shoes and was created to help train Japanese dental students improve their patient communication skills and techniques.

Developed by Dr. Naotake Shibui of the Nippon Dental University in Tokyo, who co developed the robot with engineers from Kokoro Co., Ltd (the company who also developed  Actroid, the well-known receptionist android).  Simroid can follow spoken instructions, closely monitor a dentist’s performance during practice treatments and most importantly, react in a human like way to mouth pain (by saying “Ouch, that hurts!” in Japanese of course.)

Simroid is modeled after a 28-year-old Japanese woman with a fear of dentists and sensitivity to pain which has  earned her the nickname “Pain Girl” (Ita-gaaru).  Besides the sensors in her mouth, there are sensors embedded in her chest to teach male dental students to pay close attention to where they should NOT be placing their elbows.