5 robots that want to lend a hand

From cleaning gutters to serving cocktails, these robots are built to help you.

Heavy lifter

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TRE14 robot 1

This soft-to-the-touch robot could eliminate a lot of back problems for health care workers. The robot, called the RIBA 2, was developed by Japanese researchers to safely lift and move a person up to 134 pounds to a wheelchair and bed and back again -- ideal for hospitals and nursing homes. So you're not being lifted by metal arms, the robot uses human-like arms equipped with tactile sensors and a body encased in a soft exterior of urethane foam. The RIKEN-TRI Collaborative Center for Human- Interactive Robot Research (RTC) expects this first robot to be the start of more like it to come.

This story is from the January 14, 2013 issue of Fortune.
By Jennifer Alsever, reporter   @CNNTech - Last updated January 14 2013 05:53 AM ET
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