Sony released its AIBO pet dog robot in 1999. The name AIBO was drawn from "artificial intelligence robot" along with a Japanese word meaning partner. The company sold 150,000 of the virtual pets over six years before pulling the plug on production. (Koji Sasahara/Associated Press)

Lego's Mindstorms kits are equipped with sensors and motors, allowing consumers to build and program their own robots. (Mark Lennihan/Associated Press)

The promise of attentive, pampering robots — catering to our every need with a martini-shaker in one hand and a feather duster in another — has long loomed large in the imagination of consumers.

But in recent years, modern roboticists have been gently nudging consumers to reprogram their preconceptions and abandon popular culture concepts such as the cartoon miracle child Astro Boy, the terrifying Terminator, or the Jetson's smart-aleck robotic maid Rosie for less stereotypical, but equally wondrous, technology.

Rosie's still on her way, they say, she's just not how we expected her to look.

"Rosie is not going to drive in the door, but rather everything is going to gradually morph into being more and more like Rosie," said Gregory Dudek, director of the Centre for Intelligent Machines at Montreal's McGill University.

"More and more things in your house are going to listen to you, or talk to you, or respond to your needs or guess what your needs are going to be," he said.

Companion robots, for instance, that can track medications, monitor patients and engage in conversations are expected to provide a big push in consumer robotics in the immediate future. These android-type robots, being developed in Japan, are prohibitively expensive now — affordable only to novelty-seeking millionaires.

But experts say eventually, as more robots are created, prices will nudge down and more and more institutions such as hospitals and long-term care facilities will be able to afford them.

This shift will inevitably have a trickle-down effect in the market and will accordingly make robots affordable to the average consumer, says Alan Mackworth, director of the University of British Columbia's Laboratory for Computational Intelligence.

"I think within 10 years, robots in the home will be quite common," he said.

The Roomba sweeps the competition, Sony struggles with price

But until that happens, the market is somewhat limited.

The largest success story so far is the Roomba, created by Massachusetts-based iRobot. The Roomba — a self-directed vacuum — is often offered as proof that manufacturers can indeed put affordable robots in the homes of consumers. Over two million of the disc-shaped machines have been sold in North America since Roomba's release in 2002.

"These are really, really smart little devices," said Helen Greiner, iRobot's CEO and co-founder, of the self-directed vacuum cleaners. "Folks do have a little trepidation sometimes about bringing a robot into their homes, but we've made it so turnkey — you just push a button and you can check vacuuming off your to-do list."

Until iRobot made its breakthrough with the Roomba, there hadn't been any significant inroads into the home, according to Mackworth, who noted the company also tried and failed to bring robotic dolls into the marketplace.

"They worked with toy manufacturers and they just couldn't get the price down low enough," he said.

While recent technological advances have helped bring down the price of parts, cost remains a problem for some manufacturers. As a result, companies like electronics giant LG are not pursuing plans to incorporate robotics into their product line, a company spokesman said.

"It's a chicken and egg problem, of course, in order to have a mass market you have to have a cheap robot," Mackworth said. "In order to have a cheap robot you have to have a mass market, and that's been a major hurdle."

The Scooba, a robotic mop made by iRobot, was released in 2005. Other programmable devices in the company's line include the iRobot Dirt Dog Workshop robot that picks up dirt, nuts, bolts, and woodchips, as well as the Verro Pool Cleaning Robot. (Jeff Chiu/Associated Press)

Sony, for instance, stopped production on its Aibo, a robotic dog priced to sell at $2,000 US, after six years. The company sold 150,000 of the virtual pets. While the robotic companions proved popular within the robotic community and with isolated seniors in Japan, Aibo failed to catch on in other countries.

In the end, it was a matter of costs and benefits, Dudek says, noting the payoff for the Aibo just wasn't there for the average consumer.

"One might argue the Sony dog didn't deliver a lot of services and so it's only if that money doesn't matter to you — if you can blow $1,000 without worrying much about it – then you can buy the Sony dog," he said.

Toys today, sophisticated robots tomorrow

Attempts to make consumer robots more price friendly include Hasbro's newest FurReal toy line, featuring the Butterscotch Pony, priced at about $300 US. The robotic pony stands nearly one metre high, blinks its eyes and whinnies.

Young enthusiasts have also taken to Lego's Mindstorms kits that allow users to build and program robots — a market iRobot also hopes to tap with its programmable iCreate.

Other consumer robots on the market

Robosapien

WowWee Toys' Robosapien, designed by University of Waterloo graduate Mark Tilden, made many Christmas wish lists in 2004. The programmable robot walks, belches and kicks, and responds to sounds and tricks. It takes a team of 40 people to craft and fine-tune the robots over a period of at least two years, says company vice-president Art Janis. WowWee has since released newer versions of the Robosapien, along with the Robopet, Roboreptile and a Homersapien based on the cartoon character Homer Simpson. The company's Robopanda will be released this fall.

Pleo

The Pleo, set to be released in October 2007, was named best in the special innovation category at the 2007 International Toy Fair. The dinosaur, created by Caleb Chung of Furby fame, is equipped with 35 sensors and six processors to help it express emotions and respond to touch.

Paro

The creators of the Paro claim to have invented the world's most therapeutic robot. Resembling a baby seal, the Paro was created in 1993 for people who love pets but who don't live in facilities that allow animals. The Japanese creators of the seal have been used in pet therapy sessions for seniors, people with Alzheimer's disease, autism and Down syndrome.

Lawn mowers

Different companies have released self-directed lawn mowers, including LawnBott and Friendly Robotics. The mowers move in a criss-cross path, navigating their way around flower beds and garden paths until the entire yard has been trimmed.

Art Janis, vice-president of WowWee, says his company is very sensitive to making its toy robots affordable to the average consumer. He says WowWee plans to lead the pack in bringing down the price of consumer robotics, eventually expanding their toy line to household robots.

"We'll be at the front of this, as we will offer Robots that will help you around the house, for what you would pay for a computer," Janis said, in an email interview.

While children have been very eager to embrace toy robots, adults won't be far behind as prices fall and the consumer segment diversifies, he said.

"The extent of robots so far has been more in the toy area. [They] have great appeal to kids, especially since our robots can live on their own, hear, and do not need a remote control most of the time, like [some of] the so-called robots out there," Janis said.

"[But] when an item comes out that is so unique, and can help in the house, the adults will all go after it," Janis added.

Mackworth agrees, saying robotic toys may seem like mere novelties but they in fact will be profound vehicles of change, altering the way we use and interact with robots. As we come to understand how robots work and how they can be integrated into our lives, the better we'll realize the possibilities robotics offer — expanding our concept of the field beyond Rosie the maid and gadget novelties.

"The more we encourage kids to play with robots and to build robots through competitions or through kits or through LEGO robots, et cetera, the more they will understand the technology and they won't be afraid of it," Mackworth said.

"They'll be able to build it and they'll make sure that robotics is used for the purposes of humankind and for the social welfare of humankind."

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