E r M./WS sPera, Presents Women's American ORT Holiday Shopping NOVEMBER 14th-19th Featuring Collections By: * Head Fila * Prince * Ellesse * Tail Sergio Tacchini * Le Coq Sportif Make checks payable to Womens American ORT 357-7744 Applegate Square Hours: Mon.-Sat. 10:00-5:30 Thurs. 10:00-8:00 Northwestern Hwy. and Inkster SPONSORED BY ORCHARD HILLS CHAPTER QAciftfor eternity Eternity Bracelet Eternity Necklace Diamond Studs A gift she will treasure for- ever and ever ...A gift for Eternity The Finest Expressions of Love comes from .. . "Er GEM/DIAMOND SPECIALIST Established 1919 AWARDED CERTIFICATE BY CIA IN GRADING & EVALUATION 30400 TELEGRAPH RD., BIRMINGHAM, MI 48010, SUITE 134 94 FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 1988 Vhtvtetteygan Daily 10:00 5:30 Thurs. 10:00-7:00 Sat. 10:00-4:00 - A.41 642 - 5575 FINE JEWELERS Yoram Koren displays his robot Carmel. The device could be an aid for sufferers of Alzheimers disease. New Robot To Assist Bedridden People JUDITH L. ABRAMS Special to The Jewish News W hat moves at a rate of one meter per second, avoids obstacles in its path, can see in the dark, and makes its home at the University of Michigan's College of Engineering? Carmel, the latest advance in robotics technology. The pathfinder robot was developed by Yoram Koren, professor of mechanical engineering and applied mechanics, to aid bedridden people. "The nursing robot helds people by bringing them medicine, opening doors, and operating simple switches like those on a television," Koren said. Unlike other robots, Carmel — which stands for Computer- Aided Robotics for Maintenance, Emergency and Life Support — can sense and avoid objects in its way without stopping. Carmel's technology allows it to survey conditions that might be harmful to humans. "It can work in hostile condi- tions such as those associated with nuclear power plants," Koren said. The robot can replace radioactive filters, for exam- ple, an activity that requires many safety precautions on the part of technicians. Scien- tists must spend about two hours putting on protective clothing to investigate dangerous areas: Carmel, however, can safely operate in hazardous environments such as those obscured by steam, smoke and foreign chemicals. The robot can eliminate the delays and risks common to nuclear power plants. A native of Israel, Koren was educated at the Technion, Israel's institute of technology. His background explains the name of the robot. "I wanted a name that could be pronounced in both Hebrew and English," the scientist said. The Technion is located on Mount Carmel in Haifa and hence the robot's name. Only later did Koren change the name to an acronym to explain the robot's function to those out- side the scientific community. Koren's interest in robotics was sparked at the Technion. In 1980, he began his work at the University of Michigan. He returned to the Technion two years later to further his research with Ph.D. student Johann Borenstein. Upon the insistence of U-M's dean of engineering and a grant from the United States Depart- ment of Energy, Koren returned to Michigan, bring- ing Borenstein with him. The two are working to im- prove the health-related capabilities of the robot in conjunction with a hospital grant at the university. Spon- sored by the Veteran's Ad- ministration, they are developing a rehabilitation robot devoted to the needs of brain-injured patients. According to Koren, Carmel could help patients with Alzheimers disease ac-