April 22 2003

This article introduces 'wakamaru', a human-size robot that can function as a house sitter and watch over or provide companionship to individuals. The USA-based MontaVista Software, Inc. displayed and demonstrated the robot, which is powered by its Linux® Professional Edition, at the Embedded Systems Conference in San Francisco, California in April 2003. Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. developed the robot.

Able to service a household in human-like ways 24 hours per day, the 3.3-foot tall, 60-pound 'wakamaru' is a battery-operated robot that moves around on wheels. It features continuous access to the Internet and is equipped with voice and face recognition capabilities that allow the robot to search for and follow voices, faces, and movements. A built-in dictionary and voice recognition enable 'wakamaru' to comprehend and interact with humans; for instance, it can discuss daily news it obtains via the Internet. In addition, the robot can be programmed to call or email a designated person, a hospital, or a security firm if it notices a problem. When connecting remotely to 'wakamaru' via its built-in camera-equipped mobile phone, users can see images of the house the robot serves and communicate with family members at home.

Developers envision that 'wakamaru' could serve as a help-mate for elderly people, the disabled, or others living independently. It will be available in the Japanese market first, beginning in 2004, for about 1 million Yen (approximately US$14,250).

Click here for full article on the MontaVista Sofware website.

Article forwarded to the bytesforall_readers list server on November 29 2003 (click here to access the archives).