GetRobo

Speecys' new robot is a "walking webcam"

  Speecys annnounced the new version of its robot MI・RAI-RT, which is now called SPC-101. The new robot SPC-101C, shown below, has a video camera built into its head.

   It can recognize faces and communicate wirelessly with a PC, thus work as a walking security camera inside your house. And you can communicate with your robot using your cell phone. Like the first version, SPC-101C will read out your schedules and email messages by voice command. And make it dance too while doing that, if you prefer.

  Speecys is opening up the robot's programming interface and source code so that engineers can easily come up with their original applications.

  You can find the Japanese press release here. SPC-101C will be sold from Sept. 1 at 336,000 yen, which is a little less than $3,000. The company's goal is to sell 1,000 units.

　An update on SPC-101C here.

Toyota's guide robot ROBINA makes its debut

Toyota held a press conference in Japan showing off its new service robot  TPR-ROBINA. The robot will be used as a guide at the company's exhibition facility.

According to well-known and credible journalist Kazumichi Moriyama who attended the press event, the name "ROBINA" comes from  "ROBot as INtelligent Assistant." The robot's face is supposed to portray "kindness" and "calmness" - although by reading the comments on this Engadget post, Toyota doesn't seem to have succeeded in doing this.  Besides giving a tour of Toyota's facility, ROBINA can sign an autograph too.

Moriyama has written this article on Robot Watch - a popular online publication. But what's more interesting is what he's written on his personal blog which is being read by thousands of people daily.

He says that the voice recognition system on ROBINA was "terrible" and that the crowd was not an excuse. It was difficult to tell what ROBINA was trying to do or where ROBINA was heading - lack of expressiveness - which is a detriment for a "guide."

So maybe Toyota does need help from Sony after all..........

AP followup on Toyota-Sony deal

There is a followup article on the Toyota-Sony deal sent by the Associated Press on PHYSORG.com. According to a Sony spokesperson, "Seven Sony researchers are temporarily working in Toyota's partner robot research unit to help relay the technology to Toyota."

What usually happens in these kinds of deals in Japan is that the employees "on lease" will formally switch over to the interested company in about an year. The employees have an option to stay within the original organization, but in most cases they choose to switch over so that they can continue with the research they love. The reason that they don't switch over immediately is cultural - Japanese companies/people like a more gradual change than a drastic one.

As this AP article says, "Sony Corp.'s technology for Aibo and the childlike Qrio is still being kept in-house at the Japanese electronics and entertainment company," so we can't expect that Toyota will be coming out with another pet robot anytime soon.   

Toyota-Sony article translation

  So here it is. Thanks to MK-san, I now have a copy of the Nikkei Business article from the most recent Aug. 27 issue. The news about Toyota and Sony is actually part of the cover story focusing on the new growth strategies of auto manufacturers. The main headline of the cover story is "Car Manufacturers Start Off to the New Horizon" and the subtitle is "SCOOP - Toyota buys Sony's Robotics Division." The following is a translation of the beginning of the cover story.

==Nikkei Business has discovered that Toyota Motor has purchased Sony's robotics research division.

  Toyota, which celebrates it's 70th year in business this year, will be announcing it's mid and long term corporate vision by November when it is scheduled to hold its anniversary event. The company is thinking of including in this vision an outline of its future robot development which will be utilizing the technologies that it has bought.

  Sony has led the robotics field in Japan by developing the pet robot AIBO and humanoid QRIO.  However, when the company's core electronics division tumbled down into the red, management changed. Sir Howard Stringer who became chairman in June 2005 wasted no time in restructuring the money-losing organizations and more or less decided to withdraw from the robotics market and sell the related division.

  He talked with Toyota Chairman Fujio Cho who was on the Sony board and negotiations proceeded. Toyota which aims to strengthen its robotics business "has brought in (Sony's) division including the personnel" according to one Toyota-related person familiar with the deal.   

  The origin of Toyota's robotics business is the industrial robots that it developed for use in its own factories. The Partner Robot Development Division was born out of the multijoint robots that are used in welding and coating. The fact that the Partner Robot group belongs to the Manufacturing Technology Headquarters shows how Toyota had positioned its robotics business until now.

  The Partner Robot group has been successful in developing the artificial lips (among other things) for robots. In 2005 during the Aichi Expo the robots performed instruments for a large audience.

  Toyota is currently planning on setting up a robotics research facility inside its Hirose Plant in Toyoda City of Aichi Prefecture. The company is thinking of 4 areas to which its robotics technologies can be applied  - household chores, assistance in nursing and medical care, manufacturing and personal mobility.

  Within this framework, the purchase of Sony's division is a turning point. Toyota's robots are set to spread out into areas outside of manufacturing.

  Toyota President Katsuaki Watanabe talks about his firm's robotics business in the following way.

  "Toyota's technologies should be utilized not just in manufacturing but in other areas such as nursing care. We have the best technologies when it comes to moving hands and feet. But if you want to decide (who's the best) by the (robot's) brain, it seems we are still not that good. So I've told the employees involved in this to thoroughly examine how we need to collaborate."

  In other words, Toyota wants to expand its reach into welfare and services by coming out with new mobility platforms.

  Sony has plenty of know-how in this field.

  Sony started developent of its humanoid robot in 1997 and came out with its first generation model in 2000.  The second generation robot that came out in 2002 was named QRIO and it was able to dance, recognize people's faces and have an easy conversation with people.

  The robots collect the data from the many sensors and cameras on its feet and body and autonomously make decisions. Sony - which had developed robots from an entertainment standpoint - was better at processing data.

  But Sony's robotics research subsidiary ceased operation in July of 2006 and the 13 employees that worked there were transferred to the lab of the parent company. Now some of them have moved their desks to Toyota's research division in Odaiba, Tokyo.

  There is a reason for Toyota - which is famous for its sound management practices - to rush into the roboitcs business. It needs a breakthrough for further growth. When you take a look at its financials, the firm is expecting a consolidated net profit of 1.65 trillion yen for the fiscal year ending in March 2008. A spectacular year. No better timing than now to start building up its efforts in robots and personal transporters.==       

 

  And the story goes on about how the major Japanese auto companies are strategizing on emerging markets, software development, intellectual property management and so on, but I'll stop here.

  Well, unfortunately the story didn't have much detail on the scheme of the deal, but one thing is for sure. We'll be seeing more robots coming out from Toyota and GetRobo will keep you posted.

Sony's response to the report on deal with Toyota

  So, I have yet to get hold of a hard copy of the most recent issue of Nikkei Business, and I plan to post an English translation/excerpt as soon as I do, but for the time being here is the translation of Sony's public response to yesterday's report on the deal with Toyota.

  "Sony has not transferred its robotics research and development results including AIBO and QRIO, nor the organization involved in robotics research. In the end of March 2007, Sony transferred to Toyota Motor the R&D results of a single-seated transporter that Sony had been working on as a project. Some of the Sony employees that worked on the R&D are currently on lease for a specific period of time to Toyota so that they can transfer the know-how. Sony is not disclosing the details of the R&D conducted within the company."   

Toyota to buy Sony's robotics division

  A big, yes HUGE, scoop for Nikkei Business - the leading business magazine in Japan.

  Toyota is buying Sony's robotics division, including the AIBO, QRIO and the people that work on them. The details such as timing and financial terms are not known to GetRobo at this minute because Nikkei Business has only podcasted the outline of its story, and the other Japanese media outlets have not yet reported on it.

  But according to the podcast, the deal came about from Toyota Chairman Fujio Cho who was on the board at Sony when Sony CEO Sir Howard Stringer decided to get rid of the money losing divison. Toyota has been working on robots for a while but a Toyota executive in the Nikkei Business article willingly admits that it's work in the "intelligence" does not meet its strength in mechanics. Purchasing Sony's division will fill that gap.

  As Yoshiya Sato, editor-in-chief of Nikkei Business comments in the podcast, the deal is indeed a "gorgeous combination" of companies.

  Sony's response here.

  And an update on this here.

Industrial Robot Giant Interested in Robots for Consumers

  Yaskawa Electric - one of the world's largest industrial robot manufacturers - is interested in developing and selling more robots outside of the factory floors. Recently it's MOTOMAN robots were found playing the traditional Japanese drums at a large summer festival in southern Japan (you can read about the drum beating robots on NewScientist.com) but the company has other projects under works.

  One is the Robo Porter. I had a chance to see it at Yaskawa's headquarters in Kitakyushu in the end of July and below is a video that I took then.

  Yaskawa is just about to start using the Robo Porters inside its own factory where they will carry around the circuit boards that are used to make other robots. But the sophisticated wheels provide easy turns and smooth rides and it should be fit for other mobile robots - such as wheelchairs and airport porters - says Kazuhiko Yokoyama, Manager of the RT Technology Team at Yaskawa's R&D Center.

  Another project at Yaskawa is the SmartPal. Yaskawa initially developed this robot to prove that it can manufacture a robot from interchangeable units. Yaskawa currently sells industrial robots as a "system," but it is thinking of starting to make money from selling "units" and "components" as well. This strategy is better for the consumer/service robot market because unlike industrial robots, "each robot will need to be highly customized and one company can't possibly make a product from ground up" according to Yokoyama.

  Consumer robot manufacturers will have to buy units to build a product for a ceratin need and that's where Yaskawa would like to do its business. In other words, Yaskawa would like to sell the units that it developed to make SmartPal so that its customers can use it in their products.

  Yokoyama (shown below with SmartPal) predicts that his company's unit/component business will eventually exceed its system business.

    

Rescue robot after the quake - Interview with tmsuk CEO

  Robot manufacturer tmsuk Co. announced its newest rescue robot T-53 Enryu on July 17, a day after a major earthquake hit Niigata Prefecture of central Japan.

  Three weeks later, the company dispatched the robot to the devastated area so that it can help with cleaning up the debris. You can read a recent post on Engadget about T-53 Enryu – which name means the “helping dragon” in Japanese.

  The voluntary mission is important to tmsuk which wants to prove to the local governments that Enryu indeed is helpful so that they would decide to buy the robots.   

I got to talk with Yoichi Takamoto, founder and CEO of tmsuk, at his company in southern Japan in the end of July. Takamoto started tmsuk back in year 2000 thinking he wanted to develop robots that were not just fun and entertaining - which he thought too many Japanese companies were already focusing on - but that were useful. He thought robots foremost should be able to replace humans working on life-threatening tasks and since he wasn’t interested in working on military robots, he decided to develop robots that can be used in relief efforts.

Thus Enryu. T-53 Enryu can be operated both onboard and remotely and it’s two arms can pick up 100 kg each.

The Japanese government is trying to nurture and promote the country’s robot industry and has been increasing its funding into the research and development of related technologies.

But interestingly enough, Takamoto says the main obstacle right now is the fact that the Japanese government is reluctant to buy Enryu because “there is no precedent.” “No on has ever bought a rescue robot before and nobody wants to take the responsibility of being the first to do so,” explains Takamoto.

So now Takamoto is thinking of first selling his robot abroad. He has received inquiries from several Asian countries which are interested in either purchasing T-53 Enryu or teaming up with tmsuk to develop their own rescue robots. But ironically, says Takamoto, he is hearing rumors that the Japanese government is a bit demurred about his company spilling out the technology to countries abroad.

Takamoto is perplexed. “I need a precedent to be able to sell within Japan and now the government is trying to prevent me from making that precedent.”  Figuring out a way to break out of this dilemma is of course his primary occupation.

  Meanwhile, tmsuk’s robot will make its first landing in the U.S.in September. The biped samurai robot Kiyomori can be seen at the WIRED NextFest in Los Angeles.

(Photo: Takamoto with Kiyomori being prepared to be shipped to the U.S.)

Kitakyushu City to Find Out Robot Killer Applications

  So what kind of robots do people want anyway? This is the question that the city of Kitakyushu in southern Japan would like to be answered in the next year.  

　A handful of Japanese municipalities are seriously working on becoming “Robot City” – meaning fostering a strong robotics industry to boost their local economies – and Kitakyushu is one of them. Kitakyushu prides itself in being the home to Yaskawa Electric, one of the world’s largest industrial robot manufacturers.

  Starting this fall, public servants of the city will be visiting local hospitals and senior homes to find out what kinds of jobs the workers there would like to replace with robots.

　Says Takehiko Ishimatsu, a manager at the city’s New Industry Promotion Division who will be leading the effort, “We’d like to find out what the needs are and forward that information to the companies and universities so that they can come up with new robots.” The initial focus will be on elderly and medical care but eventually he would like to visit banks and retail stores as well to research on what their needs are.

 

(PHOTO: The robot team of Kitakyushu City.From left, Mayumi Oda, Takehiko Ishimatsu, Jin Nakano)

  “Sure, one day we may be able to have humanoid robots helping us at home. But that’s not going to happen anytime soon and we’d rather give the companies a near term goal,” says Jin Nakano, also of the city government who will be helping Ishimatsu with this effort.

   “So far most of the robots have been productized from the manufacturer’s viewpoint, and in some cases the robots are too difficult to use or have unnecessary functions. It’s extremely important for the manufacturers to understand the actual needs of potential users,” explains Mayumi Oda, Director of the Robotics Development Support Office at FAIS, an organization that focuses on government, industry and academia cooperation.

  Will Kitakyushu share the results of its research? The needs of elderly care workers may be universal and the information could be useful worldwide. But Ishimatsu says that is “undecided.” GetRobo will have to catch up with them sometime next year.

Keepon at WIRED NextFest

The yellow snowman robot Keepon will be on stage with Spoon at the WIRED NextFest concert and WIRED has made a great video. The "mad scientist" in the video is Hideki Kozima - the man that developed the robot - himself. The cute creation was born out of a cooperation between Kozima-san and Marek Michalowski who programmed Keepon to dance.  More on the robot on this website, Robots Dreams and Loving the Machine.