HAL robotic suit rental is ready for Tony Stark wannabes, the elderly

If you'll recall, Tsukuba University professor Yoshiyuki Sankai designed a robotic suit called HAL-5 a few years ago. Production of this handicap-overcomer began back in 2006, and as promised, manufacturer Cyberdyne (not to be confused with Cyberdyne Systems, best known for its genocidal Skynet AI and army of Terminator robots) is finally ready to crank it out in large numbers. Starting this Friday, HAL will be available for rent in Japan at the modest rate of $2,200 per month. Sankai hopes it will prove useful to the elderly and folks with disabilities by providing super-strength mechanical assistance when they send brain signals to move their limbs. HAL may be used for good but it won't be used for awesome; Sankai has turned down military-types who've expressed interest.

[Thanks, Evan]

[Paradox @ Oct 7th 2008 5:58PM]

I would love to have one :D

[Flashpoint @ Oct 7th 2008 6:08PM]

I just want to see these made more practical so parapalegics can make use of them. I already know for the first couple of months, everyone will be staring at parapalegics running around in these, but I wanna see them able to walk again. We've got so many paralyzed and amputeed troops. I know it won't happen soon, but I hope it does.

I'd also like a bulletproof nanosuit in 3XL.
I don't need cloaking, but MAXIMUM STRENGTH is a must.

[Crack Head DooFuss @ Oct 7th 2008 11:00PM]

i,m disabled , i can,t see anyone disabled affording 2200 bucks a month,i dream of
something like this for a long time,but i know it would change my life if i ever had one,
i guess the price will come down but 2200 bucks is 3 months pay for a disabled person
so time you pay mortgage, food and bills ,even if i don,t smoke crack i still could never
save that kind of coin in 2 years ,but as long as the military doesn,t get to abuse it i say
i get to dream for a another decade .

[SKI @ Oct 8th 2008 10:40AM]

If you had one, you could return to work and the tiny disabled benefits wouldn't be a deterrent.

[Johan S @ Oct 7th 2008 5:59PM]

"manufacturer Cyberdyne (not to be confused with Cyberdyne Systems, best known for its genocidal Skynet AI and army of Terminator robots)"

Umm how do we know? This thing could very easily be a first stage prototype, they could be perfecting the neural net processor in some other lab. Once that's done, this suit could operate autonomously.

[Sachin @ Oct 7th 2008 6:55PM]

so THAT'S what the Terminators in Terminator Salvation will look like.

on a more serious note:

H.A.L.

Human -> Autonomy with a Laser eye. Duh.

or Humanity will Always Lose.

*shivers*

[Evan @ Oct 7th 2008 8:13PM]

FYI: Cyberdyne is also the company that made robotic maid girls in the anime "Hand Maid May".

[Josh @ Oct 7th 2008 8:33PM]

Maybe all the suits are part of a hive mind and they're simply hiring them out to people as a cheap way of training the AI..

[Andy TGD @ Oct 8th 2008 5:53AM]

I dunno guys, I'm getting more of an Imperial Storm Trooper vibe from this one.

"Move along, move along..."

[who? @ Oct 7th 2008 6:00PM]

I. Am. Iron Man. duna duna duna duna dah dah dah. ;-)

[Ray @ Oct 7th 2008 6:25PM]

Forget ironman! I SHALL BECOME MASTER CHIEF!

[Ollie @ Oct 7th 2008 6:01PM]

A company called Cyberdyne and a robot named HAL? This won't end well.

[Podaman @ Oct 7th 2008 6:27PM]

Lets just hope Clarence Boddicker doesn't get ahold if it.

[kyle allen @ Oct 7th 2008 9:25PM]

i think cyberdyne is a subsidiary of yoyodyne propulsion systems

[ChuChu @ Oct 7th 2008 6:03PM]

Wouldn't extended use of something like this cause some sort of physical dependency? In other words, your body gets used to being mechanically assisted and reduces muscle tissue because it thinks it doesn't need it anymore. So is it just intended for short term usage such as taking on super villains once in a while?

[Lowest Ranked @ Oct 7th 2008 6:46PM]

The muscles will only experience severe atrophy if they are never moved or used. A suit like this which would still bend your joints and flex your muscles will keep them in relatively normal condition. The same concept is used in physical rehabilitation like kick starting bipalegics leg nerves but having them strapped to a exersice bike.

[Gene @ Oct 9th 2008 12:19AM]

This can actually do just the opposite. Those with disabilities that caused them to be bedridden could use this to get muscles working again that they haven't used in a long time

My mother has multiple sclerosis, a bad form of it. It's been six years since she could stand up from a sitting position, eight years since she's been able to walk without assistance (a walker, the arm of another person, etc). Her physical strength has slowly been deteriorating for the past fifteen years.

A device like this would allow her to move much more freely unassisted. Although this device would be doing almost all of the work she would use muscles that she hasn't used in a long time, giving them a work out. Slowly, she would start becoming less dependent on the device, turning down the power on it slowly so it's not doing as much.

She may never walk or stand on her own again, but something like this could get her a lot of the way there. It would do the exact opposite of what you're thinking.

[jacob @ Oct 7th 2008 6:06PM]

how are the elderly to afford this exactly? lmao its gonna be hilarious, people walk around in these!!!! xD

[Joel Stephen @ Oct 7th 2008 8:50PM]

Unlike us silly bailout the rich Americans the Japanese have a national healthcare system and it works....if we had one we too could be cyborgs...and it will be hilariously awesome

[Benson @ Oct 7th 2008 6:15PM]

Says who it won't be used for awesome?

"Elderly", they say; some 60ish ex-Marine will get hold of one of these, and the bad
(or otherwise in the way) guys won't know what, um, "awesome"d them.

[Lowest Ranked @ Oct 7th 2008 7:04PM]

Dude, your punctuation was a little.... overkill.

[Benson @ Oct 7th 2008 7:08PM]

Quoth he of the quad-dot ellipsis.

[Trevor @ Oct 7th 2008 7:49PM]

You can use quad dot ellipses if it's the end of a sentence.

ex: He lived happily ever after....

You're actually supposed to put a period after the 3rd dot.

[Benson @ Oct 7th 2008 7:56PM]

True, but if that was the end of the sentence, then I call capitalization on the next sentence "overkill."

(The pedant in me is compelled to point out that you still use a three-dot ellipsis, followed by a one-dot period. But I honestly can't tell which Lowest Ranked typed there...)

[Lowest Ranked @ Oct 7th 2008 8:26PM]

Guys, get the hell off my ellipsis.

[XIYL @ Oct 7th 2008 6:15PM]

This article proves that Engadget isn't just a bunch of Apple fanboys, they also really like the Terminator.

[Lowest Ranked @ Oct 7th 2008 7:06PM]

I think the search results for 'skynet' turn up more than enough results to prove their love for all things Terminator.

http://www.engadget.com/search/?q=skynet&invocationType=wl-gadget

[StinkyPete @ Oct 7th 2008 6:19PM]

Depending on where the brain wave information is collected, couldn't this be used as a remote operated platform as well? Kinda reminds me of Mass Effect armor.

[Christian @ Oct 7th 2008 6:20PM]

I wanna wear one just because it has glowing joints

[Lowest Ranked @ Oct 7th 2008 7:07PM]

Then you must really like Trony Guy; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3609OtM138c

[linuxamp @ Oct 7th 2008 7:11PM]

Those aren't glowing joints, they are all arc reactors.

[Lowest Ranked @ Oct 7th 2008 7:51PM]

You're just too smart for your own good.

[Christian @ Oct 7th 2008 6:22PM]

it just occured to me, $2,200/mo is crazy, who's tax dollars are gonna pay for that? Will insurance even cover for that? Wonder how japan would do that...

[Sarig @ Oct 7th 2008 8:00PM]

Don't worry, they don't pay tax dollars in Japan!

[bill @ Oct 7th 2008 8:26PM]

Haven't you heard of stealing?!

[Benson @ Oct 8th 2008 1:43AM]

Yakuza take care of their elderly and disabled, you know.

[LenSp @ Oct 7th 2008 6:27PM]

He can turn down the militaries of the world all he wants. It'll still be in their hands faster than he can sell it. Chinese, European, North Korean, and Russian spies will be tripping over each other in his offices and online in his computers every night.

I'd add the CIA, but these days they're way too busy talking to the NY Times to actually do any spying. *eg*

[Trevor @ Oct 7th 2008 7:52PM]

The military already has a better suit in the works being made by SARCOS. Google sarcos XOS, and you'll see.

[Bazza @ Oct 7th 2008 6:37PM]

So by your reasoning Samuel, military use is awesome instead of good use which is average. right?

Interesting.

[AutumnBringer @ Oct 7th 2008 7:43PM]

I *think* it's a reference to StrongBad, where he answers an email by asking a girl "Do you take off your face and hands when you go to sleep? If so, are you a robot? What kind of powers do you have? Do you use them for good or for awesome?"

So, this being a robot suit ... it kinda works, see? Maybe I'm wrong though and that's fine too :P

[Samuel Axon @ Oct 8th 2008 1:57AM]

@AutumnBringer:

Correct! You win 120 Engadget points. Sadly, such points don't actually exist, but feel proud anyway.

[Anthony @ Oct 8th 2008 8:00AM]

Not only was it a strong bad e-mail but the very first strong bad email if memory serves me.

[Harlo @ Oct 8th 2008 10:19AM]

Who needs robot arms and legs when you can just have the Cheat do everything for you?

[tanais @ Oct 7th 2008 6:39PM]

does turning down the military also include applicaions for those injured in military hospitals who could possibly benefit from this technology?

[mrD @ Oct 8th 2008 7:29AM]

Well I WANT One You guys can be master chief,Iron man But i got dibs on boba fett ok.

[lorddshadow @ Oct 7th 2008 9:49PM]

hhheeeelllllllllllllllllll noooo! do you know who i am? i'm the juggernaut! BITCH!

[Conrad @ Oct 7th 2008 6:47PM]

How smoothly does it operate? Wouldn't it jostle the elderly around?

I would think that would be worse for someone.

+1 for glowing joints

[bob @ Oct 7th 2008 6:54PM]

what happens when your in the middle of lifting a ton of weight and the battery dies?

[Danny @ Oct 7th 2008 7:02PM]

I cant believe no one has commented on "$2,200 per month".That's $26,400 a year, and $132,000 in 5 years. How much is it all worth?

BUT, you cant put a price on not being able to walk or move your arms then you all of a sudden can with this suit.

[evplasmaman @ Oct 7th 2008 7:08PM]

Yay for math!