Trend: Robo Pets

Robo Pets are becoming more cuddly and less robotic.

Trend Description:
They are soft, cuddly and cute: Unlike the first robotic toys, the new pets avoid the typical robot look and even react more like – well – real pets. A variety of sensors and well-designed joints give the robo pets the feel of being alive. The manufacturers are even marketing them as an alternative to real pets. Some are even used for therapy in children’s hospitals and nursing homes.

Cases:

Pleo
Pleo is a dinosaur baby. His creator, When Chung, took his inspiration from the fossils of a one-week-old camarasaurus to create this autonomous pet robot. Pleo is equipped with 38 sensors for sight, sound and touch, which allow him to express feelings like joy, sorrow, anger and annoyance. He may cry when he is frightened or stomp his foot when he is hungry. He will be cautious when he walks to the edge of a table and stretch when he first wakes up. By interacting with Pleo the owner can teach him a certain behavior, therefore every Pleo will develop its own personality. Although Pleo is a “designer species” his life-like motions make him look real. Two or more Pleos will recognize each other, and can even transmit colds to each other. When Pleo grows tired, owners are advised to lay him down and attach his ‘dream chord’ so he can sleep, dream, and gather energy for more exploration. Chung’s company Ugobe will begin taking preorders for Pleo on February 3rd.

Paro
Paro is a cute, fuzzy pet robot, used mainly for animal therapy in hospitals and nursing homes where real pets are not allowed. Called “Mental Commitment Robots” these cuddly pet-bots help sick children and elderly people to improve psychologically, emotionally and physiologically. Paro is modeled after a baby harp seal, mainly because baby seals look cute but won’t trigger comparisons to the real animal, like a puppy or cat would. Equipped with five kinds of sensors (tactile, light, audition, temperature and posture sensors), Paro can almost act like a real pet, learn to behave in a way the user prefers, and respond to its new name. As an autonomous robot, Paro can “express” its feelings, such as surprise and happiness, voluntarily by blinking its eyes and moving its head and legs. Since Paro is hand-made, each Paro has its own individual facial expression.

Yume Neko Smile
Yume Neko Smile (Dream Cat Smile) by Sega Toys is a soft and lifelike robo-pet. Five tactile sensors let the cat respond to being touched. If the user pets her head she will start to purr; if the user strokes her back she starts to get sleepy. Yume Neko also enjoys being flipped over on her back, but when her tail gets touched she’ll get mad. According to the manufacturer, Yume Neko is a good alternative to anyone who can’t keep a real cat.

Trend Impact:
Robots will become more and more a part of our lives. Along with Pleo and Paro, there are now robots on the market which are way more than just toys or amazing machines. These new robot toys are more like real companions. They are the cutting edge of a human-created artificial life form. Already used in therapy, the new robo pets may soon be able to teach us something about our own reactions and emotions.

Links:
Pleo

Paro

Yume Neko Smile

Buy Yume Neko Smile from CScout Japan

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