[Robotgroup] Hanson Robotics story

[Sonia Santana]

Here is the story about that robotics company in the Dallas area I 
was talking to some of your tonight.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070913/ap_on_hi_te/robot_boy

Robot maker builds artificial boy

By MATT SLAGLE, AP Technology Writer Thu Sep 13, 7:36 AM ET

RICHARDSON, Texas - David Hanson has two little Zenos to care for 
these days. There's his 18-month-old son Zeno, who prattles and 
smiles as he bounds through his father's cramped office. Then there's 
the robotic Zeno. It can't speak or walk yet, but has blinking eyes 
that can track people and a face that captivates with a range of expressions.
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At 17 inches tall and 6 pounds, the artificial Zeno is the 
culmination of five years of work by Hanson and a small group of 
engineers, designers and programmers at his company, Hanson Robotics. 
They believe there's an emerging business in the design and sale of 
lifelike robotic companions, or social robots. And they'll be showing 
off the robot boy to students in grades 3-12 at the Wired NextFest 
technology conference Thursday in Los Angeles.

Unlike clearly artificial robotic toys, Hanson says he envisions Zeno 
as an interactive learning companion, a synthetic pal who can engage 
in conversation and convey human emotion through a face made of a 
skin-like, patented material Hanson calls frubber.

more at link above