Trumpet-Playing Robot Entertains SAE Crowds

A trumpet-playing robot at the Toyota Motor Corp. booth is turning out to be the hit of this week’s SAE 2008 World Congress.

Toyota brought the child-sized robot to the show here as part of an effort it is making to enhance robotic dexterity. A spokeswoman for the automaker said Toyota engineers plan to transfer some of that robotic dexterity into robotic tools for use in building cars and trucks.

The robot, measuring 4 ft, 11 inches and weighing 88 lbs, puts on shows at two-hour intervals at the Toyota booth. During the show, the robot walks across a stage, plays songs and then backs up to exit the stage when it is finished.

To keep its balance while walking, the robot employs the same technology used in automotive stability control systems, the spokeswoman said. Although the company did not talk specifically about the robot’s technology, show attendees assumed the robot uses three-axis accelerometers or gyroscopes to maintain its balance while moving.

During its show, the machine played up to 13 pre-programmed songs, including “Love of the Heart,” “Wish Upon a Star,” “Bippity-Boppity-Boo,” the “Mickey Mouse Club Theme” and several Japanese favorites.

The robot plays its trumpet solos by using a compressor to inflate an artificial lung. The lung then delivers pressurized air to the machine’s lips through an “artificial trachea.” The pressurized air creates a seal between the “lips” and the trumpet, which enables the robot to play music.

A battery of unknown chemistry powers the unit. Using battery power, the robot is capable of waving to the audience, lifting the trumpet to its lips, nodding its head in response to questions, saluting and bowing after its performance has ended.

“Toyota plans to have this unit on the Japanese market for consumers to buy sometime during the next decade,” the spokeswoman said. “Based on how well that goes, we’ll later make a decision about marketing in the U.S. and the rest of the world.”