Fitness Via the Feet

In cooperation with the University of Tsukuba (Japan), Yasukawa Electric Corp. (Japan) – best known as a leading manufacturer of industrial robots, has devised a machine to measure the fitness levels of elderly people based on how they move their feet.  The machine looks like a treadmill, but is equipped with 3,600 sensors over a 60-square-centimeter portion of its floor.  A user completes five types of movements, and the machine rates their sense of balance and muscle strength on a five-grade scale. The company intends to develop a rating of users “physical health age,” as opposed to their chronological age.  Kiyoji Tanaka, a participating researcher from the University of Tsukuba, comments that: “Muscle strength and sense of balance are to maintain a wide range of activity. This should help prevent lifestyle diseases and dementia.”