• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

After forcing workers back to the office, Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase are now letting their staff work remotely—but only for the World Cup

2

The Pentagon said Iran War costs $29 billion, but the real cost is closer to $200 billion—and counting

3

Markets tumble worldwide as Fed resets expectations: $400 billion wiped off SpaceX stock

1

After forcing workers back to the office, Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase are now letting their staff work remotely—but only for the World Cup

2

The Pentagon said Iran War costs $29 billion, but the real cost is closer to $200 billion—and counting

3

Markets tumble worldwide as Fed resets expectations: $400 billion wiped off SpaceX stock
TechToyota

Toyota Just Tested Its New Robot With a Disabled War Veteran

By
Jonathan Vanian
Jonathan Vanian
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Jonathan Vanian
Jonathan Vanian
Down Arrow Button Icon
July 6, 2017, 6:56 PM ET
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Toyota may be known for making cars, but it’s also working on robots—and not just the factory droids that help build its vehicles.

The auto giant said last week that it successfully completed an initial test in which one of the company’s experimental robots helped disabled war veteran Romulo Camargo in Florida with basic tasks in his home for two days.

Romulo Camargo, who became paralyzed from the neck down after surviving a gunshot to the back of his neck in Afghanistan, used Toyota’s so-called human-support robot in a two-day trial last November, said Doug Moore, Toyota’s senior manager of future mobility business, technology for human support.

Get Data Sheet, Fortune’s technology newsletter.

The goal of the trial was to learn how best to use robots as helpers to the disabled and act as care-takers. It’s part of a Toyota research initiative exploring robotics and the related potential business opportunities, Moore explained.

Toyota debuted its human-support robot in 2012 and has been testing it in Japan. The white robot, which can weigh up to 80 pounds, resembles an oversized microscope outfitted with an arm that can grip onto objects.

The car company had a pre-existing relationship with Camargo and first discussed with him and his family what roles a robot could play in the household. The parties outlined about 20 different tasks that the robot could help with, but ended up choosing just three.

The first task the robot was able to help with involved helping Camargo get into his house in case he accidentally locked himself outside.

Camargo’s home contains a special button installed inside near the front door that he can press to let him out of the house. However, if Camargo leaves the house and the door accidentally shuts behind, he can’t go back inside because there is no button on the outside of the house that he can press to re-open the door.

To rectify the dilemma, Moore explained how Toyota was able to connect the robot to an outside wireless security camera. Because the robot was programmed to recognize Camargo’s face, the robot could tell that Camargo was stuck outside the home via the wireless security camera. The robot was then able to move itself to the button near the doorway, and used its arm to press the button that opened the door, which let Camargo back inside.

The other two tasks involved programming the robot to bring Camargo both snacks on a food tray, and water in a bottle. Similar to the way warehouse robots can roam through facilities on their own, Toyota’s robot was able to move autonomously without bumping into objects in Camargo’s home using an internal map of the house, Moore explained.

Toyota decorated objects in the house, like the water bottle or chairs, with QR codes so it could locate the respective objects. Although advances in computer vision technology has made it possible for computers to recognize objects better than they have been in the past, it’s still not economically viable for Toyota to use all the various vision technologies, like Google’s (GOOG) cloud vision APIs, in its robots, Moore explained.

Eventually, Toyota hopes to incorporate into its robots specialized chips that can aid with specific computer-vision tasks in addition to computer vision software sold via cloud computing services to make more powerful robots that can “see” the world.

The challenge is making a powerful robot that’s relatively affordable, which as Moore explained, is not yet ready in today’s market. Using Toyota’s human-assisted robot to care for the disabled is still very much a research project, but the hope is that one day, it can become commonplace.

 

About the Author
By Jonathan Vanian
LinkedIn iconTwitter icon

Jonathan Vanian is a former Fortune reporter. He covered business technology, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, data privacy, and other topics.

See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Latest in Tech

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Tech

How Home Depot is rebuilding retailing with AI
NewslettersCIO Intelligence
How Home Depot is rebuilding retailing with AI
By John KellJune 24, 2026
20 minutes ago
bob
AIbooks
Robert Wright sees an ‘earthquake’ coming from AI that goes far beyond jobs: ‘cultural, political, personal, family, psychological’
By Nick LichtenbergJune 24, 2026
51 minutes ago
A man wearing a red and black jacket and a red hat walks down a hallway lined with servers.
InnovationChina
For the first time since 2017, it’s China, not the U.S., that has the world’s most powerful supercomputer
By The Associated PressJune 24, 2026
2 hours ago
Jack Schlossberg, Kennedy scion and sardonic social media star, loses in bid for New York state assembly
PoliticsPolitics
Jack Schlossberg, Kennedy scion and sardonic social media star, loses in bid for New York state assembly
By The Associated Press, Danny Peltz and Anthony IzaguirreJune 24, 2026
2 hours ago
Matt Garman
Successthe future of work
Amazon exec says AI won’t wipe out white-collar jobs—and is hiring 11,000 grads and interns, and has more developers than 2 years ago to prove it
By Preston ForeJune 24, 2026
2 hours ago
NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani 3 for 3 on his ‘better Democrats’ endorsements: ‘Put working people back at the heart of politics’
PoliticsNew York City
NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani 3 for 3 on his ‘better Democrats’ endorsements: ‘Put working people back at the heart of politics’
By The Associated Press, Jesse Bedayn, Thomas Beaumont and HUMERA LODHIJune 24, 2026
2 hours ago

Most Popular

After forcing workers back to the office, Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase are now letting their staff work remotely—but only for the World Cup
Success
After forcing workers back to the office, Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase are now letting their staff work remotely—but only for the World Cup
By Orianna Rosa RoyleJune 23, 2026
1 day ago
The Pentagon said Iran War costs $29 billion, but the real cost is closer to $200 billion—and counting
Economy
The Pentagon said Iran War costs $29 billion, but the real cost is closer to $200 billion—and counting
By Jacqueline MunisJune 24, 2026
10 hours ago
Markets tumble worldwide as Fed resets expectations: $400 billion wiped off SpaceX stock
Banking
Markets tumble worldwide as Fed resets expectations: $400 billion wiped off SpaceX stock
By Jim EdwardsJune 23, 2026
1 day ago
Current price of oil as of June 23, 2026
Personal Finance
Current price of oil as of June 23, 2026
By Joseph HostetlerJune 23, 2026
1 day ago
Current price of gold as of June 23, 2026
Personal Finance
Current price of gold as of June 23, 2026
By Danny BakstJune 23, 2026
1 day ago
Texas and Charlotte used to build huge McMansions—now they're copying the California design tricks they once mocked
Real Estate
Texas and Charlotte used to build huge McMansions—now they're copying the California design tricks they once mocked
By Sydney LakeJune 22, 2026
2 days ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.