Pictured: The 'humanoid robot' that can dance and do the household chores



Action man: Mahru has been designed so he can move his body in a similar way to a human



Scientists have created a 'humanoid robot' that can dance and do the household chores.



'Mahru' has been developed to mimic humans and can move its lips, eyebrows and pupils. The machine can also move its upper and lower body freely and automatically stop itself when walking.



In addition, it has been programmed to emit two kinds of fragrances to match its emotions.



The 1.5m tall robot was produced by researchers at the Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST) and is the first South Korean-developed machine of its kind.



'Mahru will open the way for the commercial use of humanoid robots doing housework,' You Bum-Jae, leader of the development research team, said.



'Mahru can dance while walking on its legs and is capable of working in place of a human.'

Through an advanced motion capture system, Mahru can follow a variety of human movements and is able to move its hands freely enough to cope with any interference or obstacles that may get in his way when walking.

State-funded KIST unveiled the robot during a presentation at its headquarters in Seoul.

In the groove: The robot showed off some slick dance moves at a demonstration



Onlookers were treated to an entertaining demonstration which saw the humanoid show off the full range of its skills, most notably a series of animated dance moves.

The research team added that they had designed another Mahru, this time with sensors allowing it to differentiate between faces and objects.

View video of Mahru here...







The unveiling of Mahru comes a week after researchers in Japan revealed they had created the 'most human-like' robot in the world.

A team at Osaka University's robotics department claim that 'robogirl', Repliee R-1, looks, moves and interacts like a human, and has silicone skin that feels almost human to the touch.

Settling in: The humanoid robot looks at home with a cuppa

