Nao (pronounced now) is an autonomous, programmable humanoid robot developed by Aldebaran Robotics, a French company headquartered in Paris. The robot’s development began with the launch of Project Nao in 2004. The Nao Academics Edition is available for universities and laboratories for research and education purposes, and is projected for public distribution by 2011. In October 2010, the University of Tokyo purchased 30 Nao robots for their Nakamura Lab, with hopes to develop the robots into active lab assistants.
In the summer of 2010, Nao made global headlines with a synchronized dance routine at the Shanghai Expo in China. In December 2010, a Nao robot was demonstrated doing a stand-up comedy routine, and a new version of the robot was released, featuring sculpted arms and improved motors. In December 2011, Aldebaran Robotics released the Nao Next Gen, featuring enhanced software, a more powerful CPU and HD cameras. The various versions of the Nao robotics platform feature either 14, 21 or 25 degrees of freedom (DoF). A specialised model with 21 DoF and no actuated hands was created for the Robocup competition. All Nao Academics versions feature an inertial measurement unit with accelerometer, gyrometer and four ultrasonic sensors that provide Nao with stability and positioning within space. The legged versions included eight force-sensing resistors and two bumpers. The Nao robot also features an onboard multimedia system, including four microphones (for voice recognition and sound localization), two speakers (for text-to-speech synthesis) and two HD cameras (for computer vision, including facial and shape recognition).