Two-legged robots that can walk, dance, or kick a soccer ball created a sensation at a recent exhibition of "personal robots" in Yokohoma, southwest of Tokyo. Robot Dream Exposition, or ROBODEX 2000, was held from November 24 to 26 to showcase robots that could one day be used to look after people's daily needs.

Japanese companies have recently been working on all kinds of robots--developing machines that will help people in the future, but also creating new entertainment products that are ready for sale today. One of these is AIBO, an autonomous entertainment robot (first sold by Sony Corp. in June 1999) that was a crowd favorite in Yokohama.

The crowds at the event were also drawn to the two-leggedASIMO unveiled by Honda Motor Co. and Sony's SDR-3X, which can recognize and respond to some 20 verbal instructions and colors.

ASIMO, which stands for Advanced Step in Innovative Mobility, is 120 centimeters tall and weighs 43 kilograms. It's much smaller than Honda's first two-legged robot, the P3, unveiled in 1997, which was 160 centimeters tall and weighed 130 kilograms. ASIMO can walk and change directions smoothly and may be operated from either a workstation or a portable remote controller. It can also perform such tasks as turning lights on and off and opening doors thanks to its expanded range of arm movements.

Sony's SDR, an acronym for Sony Dream Robot, is a humanoid robot far smaller than ASIMO, measuring 50 centimeters in height and weighing 5 kilograms. With 24 joints, it can perform the para para, a dance popular in Japanese discos, and walk 15 meters per minute with a stride measuring 6 centimeters. In a demonstration, the SDR chose a yellow soccer ball, as instructed, out of three differently colored balls and scored a goal, finishing the feat off with an "I did it!" pose.

The event's organizers emphasized that the world's first exposition of personal robots showed that human-like mechanical companions could become a reality much sooner than had been anticipated.

"I came in a wheelchair," said a four-year-old boy, "and I got to shake hands with a robot. It was exciting but also really scary. I couldn't help crying." This boy expressed his hopes that robots in the future would be able to help people like him live a little easier.

"I thought AIBO was really cute," noted eight-year-old Kota Dobashi, "but we didn't get one since we already have a real dog. The humanoid robots were out of sight. I never thought people could make such things."

Photo: Sony's SDR-3X dancing the para para. (PANA)