Robots in Japan

At the 2007 International Robot Exhibition, Japan's largest robotics convention, several revolutionary robots were on display, showing why Japan is a world leader in service and industrial robotics. One robot, called Simroid for "simulator humanoid," is a human-like robot that dentistry students can practice procedures on. Simroid has realistic skin, eyes, a mouth fitted with replica teeth, and sensors where nerve endings would be to alert the student when he or she is drilling too close to the nerve. Simroid designers are still ironing out several bugs, including a function that allows students to inject anesthetic into the robot's gums. Another robot, called Mr. Cube, uses color sensors and a pair of dexterous hands to solve a Rubik's Cube puzzle. Although Mr. Cube is significantly slower than humans at solving the puzzle, the ability to quickly detect and differentiate between colors is a breakthrough in industrial robotics. Meanwhile, a panda-shaped robot developed by Waseda University uses a Web camera and software to scan a person's face for smiles to help relieve stress by making people laugh. When a hint of a smile is detected the robot joins in the celebration by giggling and wiggling its arms and legs. Japan had more than 370,000 robots in use in 2005, about 40 percent of the global total, or about 32 robots for every 1,000 Japanese manufacturing employees.