Honda's ASIMO has a new friend on the block now – Fujitsu Automation's HOAP-3 humanoid robot. Short in stature at 60cm and weighing in at 8.8kg, image recognition and various sensors have been added. With a 1.1GHz Pentium M processor that runs on RT-Linux inside, HOAP-3 would be a prime target for homebrew application developers. Fujitsu Automation has announced that the internal interface information of the hardware/software for the unit will be released. Simulation software for pre-confirmation of control programs is included for those who are into self-programming.

With no price tag attached to it at the moment, Fujitsu Automation are currently accepting orders for HOAP-3. HOAP-3 has gone through 2 previous iterations since 2001, aptly named HOAP-1 and HOAP-2. With progress in movement capabilities, external recognition and communication functionality, HOAP-3 is the culmination of 4 years' worth of intense research and development work [co-published with UberGizmo check their site out for full story.]