On June 1, researchers from Osaka University's Graduate School of Engineering unveiled a robot that acts like a human infant, which they hope may one day help scientists better understand the child development process.
The researchers have named the baby robot "CB2," and for now, it is designed to function as a 1- to 2-year-old child, gazing intently at its surroundings, squirming about on the floor and lighting up the room with child-like charm.
The 130 cm long, 33 kg robot features 56 air cylinders that serve as muscles. With cameras for eyes and microphones for ears, and with 197 tactile sensors embedded in the layer of soft silicone skin covering its entire body, CB2 is well-equipped to take in environmental stimuli. When CB2's shoulders are tapped, it blinks as if surprised, stops moving, and turns its gaze toward the person who touched it, and when a toy is dangled in front of its eyes, it appears to devote all its energy to trying to reach for it. CB2 also has a set of artificial vocal chords that it uses to speak baby talk.
The researchers say that once CB2 is equipped with software that gives it the ability to learn, they will be very interested in undertaking the long-term challenge of teaching it how to walk and talk.
[Source: Asahi]
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UPDATE: Check out videos of little CB2 -- whose full name is "Child-robot with Biomimetic Body." Fans of Actroid and Geminoid might recognize one of the faces in the videos -- that of robot designer Dr. Ishiguro.
Video 1: Toward the end of this report, the announcer says that within the next four years, researchers at the Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST) -- who worked with Osaka University to develop CB2 -- hope to create a slightly more advanced version of the robot that has the vocabulary and cognitive skills of a 3-year-old child. At the end of the report, the Osaka University project leader says this type of "soft" robot technology will facilitate communication between humans and robots, which will prove useful for research purposes and for developing robots that can better assist and entertain us in our day-to-day lives.
Video 2: This report also mentions that the research team hopes to eventually create a robot that children can play with.
Jessy Jamesin
next step - incorporating this into REAL DOLLS
[]chaz
Yeah, but your REAL DOLL might eventually get pregnant...and give birth to a bionic baby.
[]Rick Taylor
Michael Jackson has two of these on pre-order.
[]Vicious Delicious
Am I the only one who thinks its cute?
[]I wanna play with him! :D
UFO
It almost looks like a real one. I will keep looking at this project to see how the process of teaching will work.
[]Howard Plumley
Does anybody else remember the short story "The Education of Tigress McCardle"? In an over populated world, the people with the most need to limit their fecundity, are the least able to pay for such options (or understand).
[]caito
I think this is one of the greatest technology we are seeing lately. This kind of technology gives us students one of the most important lessons we have to learn and the dificult and hard work we have to encounter at our future. I congratulate to those who made this prototype of humanoid robot. I am also a big fan of those great engineers who have in mind that anything in this world is possible.
[]Terminatrix
This is quite interesting. I actually found out about CB2 on the News Channel on my Nintendo Wii console (another Japanese breathrough!). We should make a robot to observe the minds of the Japanese so WE can make highly advanced robots (e.g. Transformers!).
[]Kooky McKookerson
it would be cheaper to hook a large wire into the back of a real child.. thats an american money saving technique.
u've got to think outside the box peeps.
[]Pearl Wall
I hope to see this is infant size with natural flesh colored skin and acting like a real baby. I have felt for many years that there is a robot baby in a lab somewhere. If you need someone to play with one of these for test purposes , I would love to have one .
[]I think that it would be much more acceptable to the general public in the form of a baby and sized between newborn and 3 months. I hope to see one like that one day. I want one for my baby doll collection. Keep up the good work and I look forward to seeing [ my baby] one day.
haba baby
I love the article very much and would love to get in touch. Keep up the great work! Your writing is very inspirational for someone who is new to this type of stuff.
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