Avatar Robots

　OriHime is a new type of robot.// The robot functions as an avatar/for people in remote places.// If they use OriHime,/they can talk with other people/near the robot.// Users can also express various feelings/by controlling the robot’s head and hands freely.//
　OriHime is 23 centimeters tall/and has a camera,/a microphone,/and a speaker inside.// It can be controlled/with a computer/through the Internet.// Even physically disabled people/can control the robot/with a special eye tracking system.//
　OriHime was developed for people/who cannot be in a certain place/for various reasons.// It can be seen in classrooms,/business meetings,/family events,/and many other situations.//

　OriHime was created by Yoshifuji Kentaro.// The idea for OriHime/came from his own experience.//
　When Yoshifuji was young,/he was not able to go to school/for three and a half years.// He wanted to attend classes,/but he could not.// He was extremely lonely.// He thought,/“If I had an avatar,/I could be with my classmates/without going to school.”// During this period,/he became interested in designing robots.//
　Yoshifuji entered an engineering high school.// When he was 18,/he took part in an engineering contest/in the US.// He met various people there/and found his goal:/to help people/who cannot communicate with others easily.// That is/why he calls himself/a “robot communicator”,/not a “robot engineer.”//

　Even after Yoshifuji successfully created OriHime,/he was never satisfied.// He thought,/“I wish/OriHime could help more people.”// So he started/to develop OriHime-D.// It basically has the same functions/as OriHime.// However,/it can move around/and carry things,/and it is about 120 centimeters tall.//
　In 2018,/OriHime-D was used/in a robot café in Tokyo/for the first time.// The robots were controlled by people/with physical disabilities/in remote places.// Through OriHime-D,/they carried drinks/and communicated with the customers.//
　Using the robots,/people with physical disabilities/felt the joy of working.// In other words,/they were able to feel/that they participated in society.//

　OriHime is useful/not only for people/with physical disabilities.// It is also helpful for those/who have other difficulties.//
　For example,/some workers need to stay home.// They have to take care of young children/or elderly family members.// Using OriHime,/the workers can talk with their coworkers/as if they were in the same workplace.// Also,/OriHime helps some students/who cannot attend school/for a variety of reasons.// Using the robot,/they can spend time with their friends/as if they were together.// This is exactly what Yoshifuji wanted/when he was young.//
　Thanks to OriHime,/people can “be” in places/where they could not be before.// Yoshifuji’s robots are changing many people’s lives/and giving them hopes for the future.//