The ASIMO was shown for the first time at the event in St. Louis, pretty much in the same shape, size and with the same capabilities it presented the very first time when it became public. A testimony that robots can be part of our future, but at the same time a testimony of the fact that the development of new robots takes more, much more than it would take a car maker to engineer a new vehicle.
Nevertheless, the ASIMO keeps turning heads at the shows it attends, and as long as people enjoy it waving, or walking, Honda seems to be ok with it. Perhaps, we hope, the Honda engineers are already at work at the second generation of the robot, one that would finally fulfill the goal Honda set for ASIMO: assist people in their homes.
The ASIMO was brought to the FIRST event as part of the car maker's sponsorship of the competition. FIRST will be the place where all those interested can see the ASIMO in action, before the robot ships off to its next destination.
"Honda and FIRST share many of the same values, including inspiring students to pursue opportunities in science, technology and engineering," said Erik Wedin, ASIMO North American project leader. "We think a student robotics competition is the perfect setting to share and showcase ASIMO's capabilities."
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