Toyota
has announced a major push into robotics, showing off its latest creations
including human-sized robot that can play the violin.
The company demonstrated a 5ft robot with 17 joints in each hand and arm
performing a full rendition of Elgar's Pomp and Circumstance.
The rendition was note perfect, but was described by some as "stilted". A
video
of the robot is available on
YouTube.
"Over the next two to three years, we will put the robots to the test through
trial applications and see what kind of business possibilities they present,"
Toyota president Katsuaki Watanabe told
The
Guardian.
Robotics will become a core business for Toyota by 2020. The company will
unveil medical robots next year, and plans more advanced "partner robots" for
domestic duties, nursing, healthcare and short-distance personal transport by
2010.
Toyota also showed off Robina, a wheeled robot with a human torso which has
been working as a guide at Toyota's showroom in Tokyo for the past year,
answering questions and signing autographs.
A third design, dubbed Mobina, is a two-wheeled 4mph motorised wheelchair
that can navigate a variety of surfaces for 13 miles between charges. The
company also plans a version that acts as a porter.
Toyota is a comparative newcomer in the robotics field compared to
manufacturers such as
Honda.
Demand
for robots is strong in Japan, particularly in the domestic and medical
fields.
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