Have your robot do your shopping

[Markus Waibel]

Japanese researchers have developed the first shop-bot (translated). The remote controlled "TMSUK-4" will soon allow you to wander around shopping malls in New York, London or Singapore from the comfort of your home.

In last week's demo at the Izutuya deparment store in Kitakyushu, Japan, a sick grandmother went shopping with her granddaughter. Using the robot and a video-capable cellphone, granny controlled her robot double and took her granddaughter for a shopping spree.