You may remember a bug-eyed little 'bot by the name of HOAP-3, a biped designed by Fujitsu that's taken on all manner of tasks, including playing soccer. Now researcher Sylvain Calinon and company at the Learning Algorithms and Systems Laboratory in Switzerland are taking a HOAP-3 humanoid through the steps of making an omelet, and teaching it along the way.

By manipulating HOAP-3's hands, its trainers can show it how to whip eggs, cut ham and toss it in a bowl, and grate cheese. Instead of simply memorizing the movements, the 'bot generalizes the actions and is able to identify when to properly use them. It'll also speak as it learns, and let researchers know what it's doing. If HOAP-3 has any questions, the team uses a remote (or in this case, a Wii remote) to answer them.

Click Continue to see a video of how HOAP-3 did.

A short version of HOAP-3's cooking video is below. See the full 10 minute demonstration here.

Sylvain Calinon, via robots.net