A world where humans and robots co-exist is no longer the stuff of quaint mid-20th century science fiction: already some cleaning robots people Korean homes. Now an exhibition titled Robo World 2006 held from Wednesday to Sunday at COEX in Seoul offers a glimpse of how robots will become part of our daily lives much like toasters and refrigerators. The exhibition has three parts: an exhibition titled iRIS 2006 (International Robot Industry Show), a competition, IRC (International Robot Contest), and an academic conference titled KRC or Korea Robot Conference.
On the sidelines, there will be an exhibition robot soccer game and a ¡°robofest championship¡± where elementary, middle and high school students solve various problems using robots. But the most interesting is iRIS, which is to show how far robot technology has come. A wide range of robots and related cutting-edge technologies that can be used in our daily lives will be showcased. Most of the robots to be displayed at the exhibition will go commercial soon.
Robots
iRobi Q
iRobi Q was developed by Yujin Robotics. It helps take care of household chores, downloads a variety of quotidian information and offers them to its owner and also takes care of children, the firm says. The information it can offer runs the whole gamut from weather to news and cooking tips, and it also supports many educational functions for young children including learning services from Montessori and Purunet. On top of that, it has a karaoke function. It is very convenient to use since it can locate a charger and charge itself. iRobi Q will go on sale after a test period among customers that starts in October. The price will be in the range of W1 million (US $1=W956). For more information, call (02) 2026-1430.
Ottoro
Ottoro stands apart itself from currently available cleaning robots with over 30 sensors and a high-performance camera that can sense the building structure and location. It also has a 200-watt suction motor for improved performance. The suction brush can rotate 360 degrees so it can clean every corner of the house. The developer, Hanool Robotics, will introduce the robot at Robot World before putting it on the market. The price is set at W4.29 million. For information, call 1588-9017.
Hanuri-ESSR
Hanuri-ESSR developed by Hanool Robotics is designed to help elementary school teachers with their work. It will assist with information and communication technology (ICT) education by providing pictures and video clips related to learning content. It can also be used to help clean classrooms and informing students of notices. It is expected to be released in 2009, and the price has not yet been decided. For more information, call (042) 478-9090.
Transbot
Transbot is a war game robot operated by remote control that can turn itself into a car if necessary. A group of people can team up to play the game. It walks at a speed of 5-6 m per minute and has a total of 15 joints to assume various fighting positions. Its developer, Yujin Robotics, also plans to add a dancing function. It has yet to be decided when it will be released and how much it will cost. For more information, call (02) 206-1430.
Galaxy
Yujin Robotics¡¯ Galaxy can work as waiter at restaurants. It can lead customers to their reserved seats and take orders by showing an electronic menu. It also has supersonic and bumper sensors that sense obstacles so it can safely serve food or beverages without spilling them all over customers. It is in the development stage for release in 2007. Pricing is as yet unavailable. For more information, call (02) 2026-1430.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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