Aibo (1999)

A robotic dog on a white background.
Aibo's first generation cost US $2,100. Photo: Hulton Archive/Getty Images

Aibo is a robotic dog designed to be an "intelligent and trainable robot companion." It walks, barks, whines, growls, wags its tail, and plays with a ball while never requiring owners to clean up after it.

Creator

Sony

Year
1999
Country
Japan 🇯🇵
Categories
Features
Aibo teams play soccer. Video: Gota

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Appearance

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Did you know?

In Japan, the first production series (3,000 units) sold out in 20 minutes.

Two colorful robotic dogs look at a small orange ball that looks like a miniature soccer ball.
Aibos learning to play soccer. Photo: Charles Pertwee/Bloomberg/Getty Images

History

Sony unveiled Aibo on 11 May 1999 with a retail price of $2,500 (250,000 yen in Japan). According to the company, Aibo was "quite an expressive pet, thanks to eighteen types of joints in the legs, neck, tail, and upper jaw." The first generation (models ERS-110 and ERS-111) sold about 65,000 units. Second-generation models were released in 2001, 2002, and 2003. Third generation models arrived in late 2003 (model ERS-7), and the ERS-7M3 model, released in 2005, was the latest. From 1999 to 2008, Aibo was used as a platform in the robot soccer competition RoboCup, in the Four-Legged Robot Soccer League. The first International Aibo Convention took place in Tokyo in 1999 and continued for several years. Sony would eventually sell more than 150,000 units until it decided to discontinue the robot in 2006 amid protests from Aibo fans. Many online communities for Aibo enthusiasts are still active today, and some versions of the robot now sell on eBay for thousands of dollars. In 2017, Sony announced it was launching a brand-new version of Aibo, Model ERS-1000, completely redesigned with more advanced mechatronics and AI.

Two robotic dogs raising their paw in unison.
A pack of Aibos during a performance in Tokyo. Photo: Toru Yamanaka/AFP/Getty Images
A white robotic dog with a pink and white bone toy.
Aibo model ERS-7 gets a treat. Photo: Toshiyuki Aizawa/Reuters

Specs

Overview

Adaptive behavior based on interactions with humans. Programmable with Sony OPEN-R software development kit.

Status

Discontinued

Year

1999

Website
Width
18 cm
Height
27.7 cm (ERS7 model)
Length
31.7 cm
Weight
1.6 kg
Sensors

CCD color camera, two microphones, infrared sensor, accelerometer, temperature sensor, touch sensors (head, chin, back, and legs).

Actuators

20 motors

Degrees of Freedom (DoF)
20 (Head: 3 DoF; Mouth: 1 DoF; Leg: 3 DoF x 4; Ear: 1 DoF x 2; Tail: 2 DoF)
Compute

64-bit RISC processor, 64 MB RAM, wireless network, speaker, Memory Stick slot.

Software

Sony Aperios real-time OS. AIBOware (Aibo's AI software).

Power

Lithium-ion battery, 1.5 hour of operation

Cost
$1,600 (ERS7 model, 2003 retail price)