Gentle cycle, no bleach.

• Author: Harmon, Amy
• Position: Japan - Washing machines - Brief Article

With Japan's population aging, the gadget-obsessed nation is finding new ways to care for the elderly. Take the new $50,000 human washing machine by Sanyo shown above: With the user comfortably nestled on a rolling chair inside, and her head sticking out, the machine releases a dollop of "peach body shampoo." Then, the cleansing bubble action kicks in. "The bubbles are really comfortable," says Toshiko Shibahara, 89, who settled back to enjoy the wash and soak cycle at her nursing home in Machida...