AIST (National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology) have developed a humanoid robot (a cybernetic human called "HRP-4C") which has the appearance and shape of a human being, can walk and move like one, and interacts with humans using speech recognition and so forth.
Standing 158 cm tall and weighing 43 kg (including the battery), with the joints and dimensions set to average values for young Japanese females, HRP-4C looks very human-like. Its walking motion and general movements were developed by motion-capturing those of humans and then mimicking them by applying the walking control technology developed in the Humanoid Robotics Project (HRP.) Interactions with humans have been enabled through speech recognition and so forth.
HRP-4C was developed as part of the User Centered Robot Open Architecture (UCROA), one of the projects under the AIST Industrial Transformation Research Initiative ("AIST Initiative"), a 3-year industry-academia joint project implemented by AIST since fiscal 2006 with intended applications in the entertainment industry including use at fashion shows.
HRP-4C is expected to be useful in the entertainment industry, for device evaluation for humans working as human simulators, and mechanical products to assist human movements by incorporating the following new functions and features:
(2) To closely mimic the movements of humans, there are 3 degrees of freedom in the hip, 3 in the neck and 8 in the face.
(3) By adopting the walking control technology developed in HRP and motion-captured human movements for reference, the robot walks and moves very much like a human being.
(4) The speech recognition component of RT middleware, which is installed in the computer in the head section, recognizes human speech and the robot can respond in varisous ways.
Furthermore, HRP-4C inherits the technologies of HRP-2 and utilizes patented technology of Honda Motor Co., Ltd.
Although current motion patterns (including walking) of HRP-4C are limited, they are quite similar to humans. It is expected to be used in the entertainment industry such as for exhibitions and fashion shows. Since its appearance and shape are human-like, it can be also used as a human simulator to evaluate devices for humans. Furthermore, the whole-body control technology used in this robot might be applied in devices that assist human life (power-assisted suits, etc.).
HRP-4C is expected to pave the way for the early practical application of humanoid robots by utilizing the key characteristic of humanoid robots, namely a human appearance.
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