Chip technologies for Entertainment Robots - present and future

The historical background, current status and future prospect of Entertainment Robots will be reviewed, and the critical roles played by chip technologies - including processor performance, sensing capability and actuator elements - discussed. Entertainment Robots were developed and introduced to the market in the late 1990s. Sony's AIBO, a dog-like Entertainment Robot, was the first of this kind and was sold through Internet channels beginning in 1999. Biped humanoid robots have also been developed and will be introduced to the market in the not too distant future. Examples of the latest developments in this field will be demonstrated, including Sony's SDR-4X, which was developed in 2002. Entertainment Robots will continue providing never-ending challenges for chip engineers and will become a new "technology driver" in the coming decades.