A total of 10 people with a variety of conditions that restrict their movement have helped control robots at the Dawn Ver Cafe in Tokyo, Japan. The robots' controllers earn ¥1,203 ($8.01) an hour, the standard pay for servers in Japan. The purpose of the project is to provide more independence to people with disabilities. The OriHime-D robots used at the cafe were originally designed to be used in the homes of people with disabilities. The robots can be told to move, observe, talk to customers, and carry objects, even if their operator can only move their eyes. These abilities have been adapted for use specifically in the cafe. The pilot aims to test the connections between disabled people and the robots, helping people who might otherwise be housebound earn a wage and interact with other people more easily.
