Realistic Robot Designed For Dental Students 59
Zothecula writes "Tokyo's Showa University has unveiled its latest robotic dental patient. The University engaged robotics company Tmsuk to manufacture the realistic bot which is designed to simulate a number of typical patient gestures and responses, allowing dental students to experience what it's like to work with a real patient."
Re:Tmsuk? (Score:4, Funny)
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What happened to poor people (Score:2)
So did Japan finally solve the problem of poverty or are they just planning on letting poor people go without dental care?
Having dentistry done by students is a major way poor people are able to afford any dental care. This seems like it would deprive them of that, and at the same time cost the dental school a fortune to buy.
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The country I am from has such a system, but the one I live in does not. Been here too long I guess.I am no luddite, but I am able to read the summary.
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I agree completely.
On slashdot and Americans in general seem to think that those without money should be left to die, rather than the state be allowed to provide basic care for all out of taxes.
Re:What happened to poor people (Score:4, Interesting)
When I was young I had a crappy dentist who did lots of terrible work on my mouth.
When I was just out of college and unemployed all the crappy dental work started to fall apart.
A dental school gave me free dental work (I only had to pay for certain materials) fixed my teeth and I provided excellent training for several future dentists. All supervised by experienced dental professors. My current dentist tells me the work is excellent, and I paid nearly nothing for it.
So deriding the system of dental schools providing free/cheap work for the poor is really a non-starter. Even the work done by real dentists can be utter crap if they are alcoholic shitbags like my childhood dentist. But of course we "had" to go to him because he was the one dentist who went to our church. (Which may explain part of my hatred of organized religion as well.) At least the dental students are supervised.
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I was not deriding it. Only pointing out that it is how many people of low income, AKA the poor, get dental work.
I have many friends and family that had work done that way. I probably should have, but instead neglected my teeth until after college. Luckily the problems were fixable later.
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You remind me of a story with a much different ending, but very similar.
A friend of ours in college went to this Beauty School where, apparently, some smoking hot 10 that looked like she was combined with another smoking hot 10, was busy learning how to cut hair.
It was a riot. He would come back with the goooooofiest smile on his face because this chicks breasts kept getting pushed into his face during the shampoo and the haircut.
I can't describe the hair cuts. He came back bleeding one time from one of h
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Not for the wealthy. As for the poor, fuck them, right? They deserve it for being poor, right?
Schmuck.
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We certainly don't have the month's long waiting lists.
Sure we do. It always takes me at least a month to get an appointment with my dentist, and I keep my bill paid in full.
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Japan's national healthcare system (which doesn't require the poor to pay into) includes dental care...
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The robot is the patient not the doctor you nimrod.
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The poor who have rare neuropathies in their faces (like trigeminal neuralgia) do not relish the idea of being worked on by dental students. Sure, dental students working on the poor is useful, but it's not the best solution to the problem. Universal healthcare is really the best solution to that problem, although having dental students train on volunteers is still useful, though perhaps starting the training on robots would avoid some unfortunate accidents by newbies.
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I agree universal healthcare would be a far better solution. I think even such a system would allow student to train on simple cases and volunteers. Sadly, the US population and other places as well, does not believe the economically disadvantaged have enough value to pay for such a thing out of taxes. Often the folks most vocal about this will cry about the value of human life when limiting another persons rights, but never when it might cost them a penny to provide medical care to that same person.
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I have seen the sig "I like paying taxes; with them, I buy civilization." I do not think enough people have pondered that statement.
When I am next employed*, I will be more than happy to pay my taxes. After all, my fiance (who has a rare facial neuralgia) has benefitted from taxpayer money via state programs.
* = If you're in the delmarva / manhattan area, I'll work like a slave** for you to support myself and my fiance. Email me! 0.707107 at gmail.
** = Obviously, with all her health problems, she has st
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You want them to exercise on real people? I'd hope they'd use these for training until they can be trusted with a real patient.
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In Japan with mandatory national health insurance the cost of a tooth extraction is about $50 and cavaties/cleaning is about $20. You can get a cavity filled for the cost of like a six pack of tallboys.
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Hmm, A realistic mouth on a robot. (Score:2)
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Nah - They wouldn't do that next..... Would they?
Insert realdoll joke in 5 ... 4 ... 3 ... 2 ... 1 ...
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I never understood why people complained about having coffee all over their keyboard... Now I know.
Re:Hmm, A realistic mouth on a robot. (Score:4, Informative)
Re:Hmm, A realistic mouth on a robot. (Score:5, Informative)
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Nah - They wouldn't do that next..... Would they?
Insert realdoll joke in 5 ... 4 ... 3 ... 2 ... 1 ...
"Love doll" maker Orient Industry is responsible for the silicone skin (this replaces the PVC skin of the previous model) and mouth lining, which increases the realistic feel and prevents water from getting into the machinery.
Seems like if the love doll maker is already the one manufacturing the realistic face, it's pretty likely that it will make its way into their regular product lines. No jokes needed... reality is funny enough.
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Company website [orient-doll.com] (goes without saying that it's NSFW)
Wow. Check follow to the "Love Doll Separate" and click on the third tab. That's the creepiest thing I've ever seen.
Realistic? (Score:1)
Can it do the "I still feel that nerve and you hit it!" floppy chair dance?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9OTYjZHKFMQ [youtube.com]
NSFW? Starts at about 5:00
Responses? (Score:2)
Like "Aaaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrggggggggggghhhhhhhhhh!"?
I thought at first it said "stimulate a number of typical patent responses and gestures"...like trolling, perhaps?
OT: What a coincidence (Score:4, Interesting)
Wow, talk about coincidences. A couple days ago I was flying on ANA from Narita to Chicago, and the in-flight entertainment system had a video about how TMSUK came to be. They were showing the very dental simulator talked about here. TMSUK was started by a very colorful guy who had liberal arts background and wanted to be an archeologist (among other things). TMSUK was a spinoff company from what a production line machinery (conveyor etc) business IIRC.
Side note: those "inspirational" videos on ANA's in-flight entertainment are quite well done. On my way there I watched the one about the ABC Cooking School and the lady who started it. Quite ingenious of a system they have. While in Japan, I ran into one of those cooking schools in a shopping center, so I signed up for a lesson online using Google translate (ha!). Nothing beats learning cooking in Japanese, without anyone speaking more than a couple words of English (and me knowing no Japanese either). It was an experience I'd repeat in a heartbeat, though.
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Makes me wonder if the robots response is entirely realistic if the dentist starts to do serious, painful, damage to the mouth. BTW the book is much better than the film if you get a chance to read it.
(robot tears itself away from the dentists chair and runs down the street bare footed, pursued by security staff).
Been there, seen it. (Score:1)
Realistic responses? (Score:1)
Since it's a robot, the user should first ask: (Score:2)
"Is it safe? "
(A big Whoooosh to all who reply w/o knowing the source of that line)
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Its not safe.
Bang!
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have an epileptic fit,
Damn robots, putting me out of business...
What was it really designed for... (Score:1)
The Uncanny Valley (Score:1)
This is going to pinch a little. (Score:2)
[cue robot scream]