Artist’s depiction of a service prototype at CEATEC JAPAN 2017
Toyota and Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation launched joint research to drive the development and use of consumer robots, the companies announced today.
The work will focus on using NTT’s AI technology, corevo, and Toyota’s Human Support Robot, which is currently under development, together with the goal of creating robots and other devices that can support and anticipate human activities.
NTT’s corevo technology allows for nonverbal human-robot interaction, but the company will also contribute technology that supports voice recognition, dialogue control and other interactive capabilities in natural language. Toyota will provide its robot that can pick up objects, retrieve objects and communicate.
To drive advancement, the companies plan to create service prototypes, installed at events and commercial facilities, where end users can engage with the technology to determine how it is received. “The ultimate goal is to promote the application and widespread use of partner robots that can coexist harmoniously with humans,” the press release reads.
The companies will initially exhibit their service prototypes during CEATEC JAPAN 2017 in October. Afterwards the companies will conduct demonstration tests at robotic events and showrooms, and Toyota will also continue experimenting with its HSR to improve its technology..
Lastly, by allowing other third parties — like manufacturers, universities and research institutes — to access corevo, NTT and Toyota hope there will be further capability development in the consumer robot industry.
“The two companies aim to realize a world in which partner robots are not only intelligent, but also gentle, and increasingly able to get closer to humans and encourage humans, their activities, and their growth,” the statement reads.
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