HRP-4C Human-Like

The HRP-4C, nicknamed Miim, is a feminine-looking humanoid robot created by the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), a Japanese research facility.

Miim measures 158 centimetres (5 feet, 2 inches) tall and weighs 43 kilos (95 pounds) including a battery pack. She has a realistic head and face, and the figure of an average young Japanese female (based on the 1997–1998 Japanese body dimension database). She can move like a human, utilizing 30 body motors and another eight dedicated to facial expressions. Miim can also respond to speech using speech recognition software, and is capable of recognizing ambient sounds.[1] Miim can also sing, using the vocal synthesizer Vocaloid.[2]

The software that operates the robot is developed on the basis of Open Robotics Platform (OpenRTP), including OpenRTM-aist and OpenHRP3.[3]

An initial public demonstration was held on March 16, 2009,[4] with another held at Tokyo's Digital Content Expo in 2010 to showcase recent upgrades that allow HRP-4C to mimic human facial and head movements, as well as execute dance steps.[5][6] 2011 upgrades to Miim's human-like walking ability were shown in a video released by AIST, and have been called “super-realistic”.[7]

Applications for the HRP-4C may include the entertainment industry, and a human simulator for evaluation of devices.
[source: Wikipedia]