TOKYO/HONG KONG -- Shintaro Kobara paid a different sort of visit to a Japanese aquarium last month. Amazed by rare "sea cows" as well as blue and yellow fish, the 12-year-old took a tour of the New Yashima Aquarium on the island of Shikoku -- all while staying at home, thanks to an avatar robot.
Kobara used his computer to control the robot, developed by Avatarin, a spinoff from airline ANA Holdings, and guide it through the aquarium on a tour led by a member of the staff. He viewed the tanks full of brightly colored fish through a camera on the robot while his own face was displayed on the robot's screen.
