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Please note that certain information may have changed since the date of release.
September 5, 2001
Orders accepted by Internet and telephone, as well as through regular retail channels
(Tokyo, Japan) - Sony Marketing (Japan) Inc. (SMOJ; president: Kei Kodera; headquarters: Minato-Ku, Tokyo) today announced a new line of Entertainment Robots affectionately called LATTE [ERS-311] and MACARON [ERS-312]. LATTE and MACARON have different personalities (LATTE to be "adorable" and MACARON to be "mischievous"). In addition to the established method of AIBO order taking by Internet and telephone, the new LATTE and MACARON "AIBO" in addition to the 2nd generation AIBO [ERS-210] will be available at regular SMOJ appliance dealers.
| Product name | Sale begin | Suggested retail price |
|---|---|---|
| "AIBO" Entertainment Robot LATTE [ERS-311] and MACARON [ERS-312] |
September 22, 2001 | 98,000 yen (tax excluded) |
The "AIBO" LATTE and MACARON are autonomous robots specifically designed to be cute and loveable. The new models are equipped with 15 degrees of freedom, enabling smooth movement of the head and four legs for friendly interaction. LATTE and MACARON introduce several new features such as touch sensors on the head, bottom of feet and tail that respond to stimuli as well as sound, voice and image recognition from embedded microphones and camera capture. The new "AIBO" models blink a horn-shaped lamp on the top of their heads, emit sounds and perform movements to express a variety of emotions such as happiness, sadness and anger for intimate interaction with people.
There are two kinds of AIBO-ware Software available, Memory Stick media-based software sold separately, that give different personality, features and ways of interacting with the new models; "AIBO Friend" [ERF-310AW06J] that allows owners to enjoy a fully matured AIBO with a varied personality and "AIBO Life" [ERF-310AW01J] that allows owners to enjoy the growing and maturing process of their "AIBO".
The basic personalities of adorable LATTE and mischievous MACARON are set by the AIBO-ware software "AIBO Friend" [ERF-310AW06J]. The aforementioned personalities are pre-programmed on the Memory Stick containing the AIBO-ware Software. By inserting the Memory Stick into the body, LATTE and MACARON download their respective personality and interact with people. Human communication and the surrounding environment may alter the basic personalities of LATTE and MACARON.
Memory Stick-based AIBO-ware Software (sold separately)
By inserting "AIBO Friend" AIBO-ware software [ERF-310AW06J] into the body, LATTE (ivory) and MACARON (gray) can express different basic personalities. With "AIBO-Friend", LATTE acts "adorable", and MACARON acts "mischievously".
"AIBO Life" [ERF-310AW01J] features eight growing stages from infant to adult. In the course of this growing process, the basic personality of LATTE or MACARON will change in accordance with the environment they "grow up in".
The [ERS-311/312] responds to certain sounds from a television or radio and the Internet; it expresses different emotions, depending on the sounds it captures.
The [ERS-311/312] blinks a horn-shaped lamp on its head to express emotions.
Responding to the verbal instruction "Take a picture", the [ERS-311/312] takes up to 7 pictures with the CMOS image sensor embedded in its mouth. The JPEG pictures are stored on the "AIBO-ware" Memory Stick inserted in its body.
| CPU | 64bit RISC Processor |
|---|---|
| Main memory | 32MB |
| Program supplying media | Memory Stick for AIBO |
| Degree of freedom | Neck x 3 joints, legs x 3 joints x 4 (total 15 degree of freedom) |
| Input socket | Battery charge connector |
| Input Switch | Volume adjustment switch |
| Image input | 100,000 pixels CMOS image sensor |
| Sound input | Stereo microphone |
| Sound output | Sound output |
| Embedded sensor | Infrared distance sensor, acceleration sensor, switch (inside of head, tail, pads), vibration sensor, inclination sensor |
| Power consumption | Approximately 5W (regular mode) |
| Temperature in operation | 5 deg C ~ 35 deg C, 10% ~ 80% |
| Operation duration | Approx. 2.5 hours(with the use of fully charged [ERA-301B1] in the regular mode) |
| Battery charging time | Approx. 1.5 to 2 hours |
| Volume | Approx. 177mm (width) x 280mm (height) x 240mm (depth) |
| Weight | Approximately 1.5kg (including battery and Memory Stick) |
| Included accessories | AC adapter, conversion plug, lithium ion battery pack, stand, pink ball |
| Peripherals (sold separately) | - Energy station core [ERA-301P2] (for [ERS-311/312]) Suggested retail price: 9,000 yen (tax excluded) - AIBO carrying bag [ERA-210C1/P, L, B, BX] (pink, blue, black; artificial leather) Suggested retail price: 15,000 yen (tax excluded) - Lithium ion battery pack [ERA-301B1] (same as the accessory battery pack above) Suggested retail price: 9,000 yen (tax excluded) - AC adapter [ERA-201P1] (same as the accessory AC adapter above) Suggested retail price: 10,000 yen (tax excluded) - Portable battery charger [ERA-301P4] (for [ERS-311/312]) Suggested retail price: 8,000 yen (tax excluded) |
