'Human robot' ready for work
2005-12-13 10:56
Tokyo - Japan's celebrity robot, Asimo, shifted from curiosity value to practical use on Tuesday with the world's first walking humanoid set to make its office debut next year as a receptionist.
The latest Asimo prototype unveiled in Tokyo can guide guests to a meeting room, serve coffee on a tray and push a cart with a load of up to 10kg, its creator Honda Motor said.
The cutting-edge robot, which resembles a child in a white astronaut suit, has doubled its running speed to 6km per hour and can now run in a circle and zigzag.
"The level of Asimo's capability was just good enough to entertain people on the stage in the past, but the new Asimo can work at places closer to us," said Satoshi Shigemi, a Honda official in charge of the robot's development.
"The new ASIMO can perform the task of a receptionist or information guide automatically," Shigemi said.
During the news conference, the new Asimo, which stands 130cm tall and weighs 54kg, ran at top speed on a stage and then carried four cups on a tray to a coffee table.
The original Asimo, born in 2000, has danced and dined with dignitaries and business leaders at home and overseas, serving as a symbol of Japanese technological wizardry. Asimohas made guest appearances in concerts and at the Tokyo Stock Exchange.
But the robot will get down to real life starting in April next year as it will work as a receptionist at a Honda office in Wako in Saitama prefecture north of Tokyo, guiding guests at the entrance and serving them coffee.
Asimo, however, has to catch up with other practical robots already on duty in Japan.
A number of security robots joined police and guards during the six-month World Expo, which ended in September after drawing 22 million visitors to the venue built in a forest park in central Aichi prefecture.
Entertainment versus practical use
Ligurio, one of prototype security robots working there, can move at 7km per hour on its wheels and recognise a stranger 50m away even at night. It can grab explosives or containers of lethal chemicals and remove them to safe places.
"Robot makers are likely to further focus on their own strong points from now on," said Shigeaki Yanai, an official of Japan Robot Association.
"Some companies will focus on entertainment and others will concentrate on practical use," Yanai said. "While ways to use robots are different, their goals are the same - how they can earn profit in the long run."
During the Expo, Honda's rival Toyota Motor showcased robot musicians performing everything from brass big-band numbers to rap music.
Sony, which has developed its popular robot entertainment dog Aibo and the world's first running robot QRIO, will "stick to the entertainment factor in the company's robot projects even in the future", a company spokesperson said.