Working on each of these issues are two car manufacturers – Honda and Toyota.

Honda’s robot is ASIMO (I am going to assume this is a nod to the great robot sci-fi writer, Issac Asimov). ASIMO is able to make decision all on his own. He can choose when to step back or forward, choose how to carry and deliver objects and more. Honda has even developed ways for multiple ASIMOs to work together as a team, give people the right-of-way when walking and travel to the nearest charging station to charge itself when needed.

You can watch videos of ASIMO doing these things and more much more, like the one below of it conducting the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, at their site here.

Speaking of music, Toyota seems to really enjoy creating musical robots. Here is one that can play the violin.

As you can see, it isn’t exactly awesome at it. It plays like someone just learning. But even that level of manipulation is amazing. It has to not only have a light touch with its mechanical fingers, but it must move them in a coordinated fashion, with each hand performing a very different task.

But Toyota has kicked it up several notches by having a group of robots playing different horns and other instruments. What makes this performance particularly amazing is that they not only must manipulate the keys, but the level of airflow through the horns. Another robot plays the drums, having to carefully select which drum to strike and how hard and with the correct rhythm. That each of these robots does these things individually is incredible, that they do them as a band is mind-blowing.

Note in the video that not only does the trumpeter play, he walks around and even moves his feet to the rhythm of the music!

According to Toyota they are expressing a Japanese concept of “Wa” – which deals with harmony and hospitality.

What both Toyota and Honda have accomplished over the past several years with these robots is to put a lot of robotic theory into action. While perhaps these are not super-practical applications, they do show what robots can do. Fine-motor control is now a reality for robots. To say, “Well, a robot can’t do that, they can’t manipulate something that small” is untrue.

It is only a matter of time before these robots and others like them are created not just to entertain but for more practical purposes.

Update: I have posted another story – American auto company robots. Let’s just say they are … different … than their Japanese counter-parts.