Hitachi's robot-on-wheels avoids obstacles, responds to simple voice commands and reads the weather forecast. But don't get too close just yet.
Reporters invited to a Tokyo demonstration Tuesday were instructed not to touch the two still-experimental robots for safety's sake. They also were asked not to use a camera flash at certain angles or to cross a white line on the floor.
"This robot has just been developed," explained Hitachi Ltd. official Kazuyoshi Miki. "It has barely completed first grade."