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Panasonic has a long history of supplying high-tech medical devices to institutions throughout its home country of Japan. Combine that expertise with its emerging robotics know-how and this is what you get – the world’s first robot bed that lifts the occupant up when needed and transforms itself into a wheelchair that can move off on its own.

Remember the delightful bipedal ‘bot from Masanao Koeda that we saw 18 months ago? The research platform was all about teaching robots to move more like humans and turn around on the spot easily.

Personally, I think Panasonic‘s DSM-Hand is cool not because it can grab a glass without either dropping it or breaking it (I can do that sometimes), but because it uses gears instead of motors to drive its joints.

Robots are good for plenty of things, but having a meaningless chat generally isn’t one of them – something that has to change if a group of Japanese researchers are to be believed.

If you happen to stop over at Kita Kyushu airport in the southwest of Japan this month, don’t be surprised if the porter offering to carry your bags is a four-foot green chap with an oddly metallic voice.

We’ve heard a only little before about the three-dimensional computer processors that promise to be the way ahead to an even faster future, so it’s encouraging to see that Honda has succeeded in creating a working 3D chip.

Although small robots like Aibo and its ilk and flashy bipedal ‘droids such as Asimo tend to hog most of the robotic limelight in the non-specialist press, it’s generally well known among researchers that machines that boost the ability of humans to do tasks they find difficult are most likely to change our lives in the near future.

It’s been a month since Stuff magazine teased us with that mock-up of what a next-generation Aibo might look like, but we’ve still heard nothing official on the possibility of a return for the robot pet and its new PlayStation interface.

The latest breakthrough in robotic walking is a bipedal robot that can turn on the spot to change direction - typical two-legged machines require the turning circle of an oil tanker to change course.

Without human intervention, most robots these days can do absolutely nothing – they rely on us entirely for guidance, whether that’s real time or in the form of being programmed in advance. Naturally, a day will come when machines can learn and teach themselves what to do…

Aside from the long-scrapped Aibo, one of the most fun personal robots we’ve ever spent time with is a little Japanese chap by the name of Gogic Five who has been available there since last year in kit form for just ¥34,650 ($290).

Next time your curiosity is piqued by one of those street-corner calls of ‘Fancy a massage?’ just remember to bring along a can of WD-40, lest your would-be manipulator turn out to be more machine than masseuse.

Remember that leppin’, frittin’, jumping robot from Tokyo Uni we saw last week? Well, even if you don’t here’s Mowgli redux, this time on video in glorious YouTube-ovision.

Robots are capable of many things these days, but jumping like a frog generally isn’t one of the first that comes to mind, however a machine in development [Subscription link] in Japan is the first bipedal ‘bot capable of doing just that.

With Tokyo in an intense heat wave, there’s nothing like a dancing robot to lift one’s spirits from the humid doldrums. The great video after the jump from Wired and my roboticist pal Marek Michalowski features the ‘creature-like’ robot Keepon developed at Japan’s National Institute of Information and Communications Technology’s (NICT) Kyoto research center.

What happens when androids get old? Well, it ain’t pretty. Basically, they melt. Of course, ‘old’ comes pretty fast in robotics. Your gorgeous synthetic Actroid companion may be the stuff of your dreams today - but her skin will start to liquefy in about a year.

Robotics fans who are also entomologists should get a kick out of the latest high-tech machine from Japan – a shiny multi-legged robot that can walk like an insect.

Japanese robotics specialist Tmsuk has more than just a name to conjure with - it also produces one of the largest robots known to man; the all-conquering Enryu T-53 [PDF].

If you’re still mourning the demise of Sony’s Aibo robot pet early last year, then perhaps your ears will perk up and your tail wag a little at the news that Sega Toys in Japan is releasing its own robot dog this autumn.

DWT friend and all-round good-egg Roland Kelts has a new book out about the bizarre and intriguing bonds between the cultures of Japan and the US. Japanamerica touches on everything from manga to maniacs, so get your click on and hear what Roland has to say for himself after the jump. PS If you’re in Tokyo, don’t miss the chance to get it straight from the horse’s mouth tomorrow night - details at the end.

That fine-looking android you see in the photo above may look a little rough and ready but don’t be fooled by appearances – it’s actually the world’s first fully symptomatic medical-condition simulator.

As expected, Samsung today announced that it will join LG in releasing a dual-format high-definition video player that supports both Blu-ray and HD DVD.

SK Pang’s foot-tall kit robot, Gogic Five, rocks so hard he has trouble staying upright. What, with karate kicks, fist-of-fury punches and a little hula dancing this metal kid has the world at his feet.