Photos: The friendly faces of Japanese robots
Summary: If the new generation of household robots has puppy-dog eyes, blame a classic cartoon character named Astro Boy.
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Ifbot, Hello Kitty Robot
For Paro, actions--and puppy-dog eyes--speak louder than words. That's not the case for these two robots. Japan's Business Design Laboratory bills the bubble-headed Ifbot as "the Extremely Expressive Communication Robot!" and designed it to be a chatty companion for lonely seniors living in remote rural areas; it says the Ifbot can communicate at the level of a 5-year-old child. The company's Hello Kitty Robo is also programmed to talk and talk.
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