Toy maker Bandai Co. has brought popular Doraemon a little closer to life by producing a robot version of the cartoon character that can converse with humans.

The robot, which is 26.5 cm tall and weighs 1.3 kg, uses voice-recognition technology and sensors to make its interaction with humans possible.
It can use about 750 words spoken with the voice of the animated version of Doraemon, and can recognize nine human words including "Doraemon," "Let's play," and "Mouse." When someone says, "Doraemon, let's play," for example, the robot responds by asking, "What shall we do?"
The robot contains 10 types of light and inclination sensors, it can tell when someone has hit it on the head, and says, "Hey, that hurts." When it is stroked, it says, "If you're going to stroke me I wouldn't mind a bean-jam pancake as well."
More Details at Mainichi and Akibalive.