Humanoid & robot atlas
SDR-3X
Photo: Sony (Digital Creatures Laboratory) (official image), from sony.com. Image policy
RetiredSucceeded by QRIO (SDR-4X) Japan

Sony Group Corporation · entertainment humanoid

SDR-3X

Sony's first public small bipedal 'Sony Dream Robot' prototype, about half a metre tall with 24 motors; it danced, balanced on one leg and kicked a chosen ball into a goal. Speed is the reported 15 m per minute converted.

Price
—Not published
Height
50 cmTaller than 1%
Weight
—Not published
Payload
—Not published
Speed
0.9 km/hFaster than 3%
Battery
—Not published
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Why it matters

A retired humanoid from Sony (Digital Creatures Laboratory).

Real-world use

No customers or deployments reported yet.

Timeline

First shown
2000-11-21
Released
Not yet
Sony announcement; performed at the ROBODEX 2000 press preview (23 Nov), Pacifico Yokohama

Maker

Sony Group CorporationCompany · founded 1946 · Tokyo, Japan

public company (TYO: 6758; NYSE: SONY)

How it stacks up

Against other humanoids that publish the figure. Pick a measure.

  1. DB (Dynamic Brain)ATR and JST ERATO Kawato Dynamic Brain Project, hardware by SARCOS · 2000185 cm
  2. HRP-2 PrometKawada Industries and AIST (METI/NEDO Humanoid Robotics Project) · 2002154 cm
  3. Xianxingzhe (Pioneer)National University of Defense Technology (NUDT) · 2000140 cm
  4. ASIMOHonda · 2000120 cm
  5. PINOJST ERATO Kitano Symbiotic Systems Project (later licensed to ZMP) · 200071 cm
  6. QRIO (SDR-4X)Sony · 200258 cm
  7. SDR-3XSony (Digital Creatures Laboratory) · 200050 cm
  8. HOAP-1Fujitsu Automation / Fujitsu Laboratories · 200148 cm

SDR-3X is taller than 1% of the 305 other humanoids that publish a height. Bars show the 7 closest in date.

Height 50 cm 34 cm213 cm #302 of 306 · taller than 1%

Not published by the maker: weight, payload, battery, price.

Public attention

A historic robot: no longer sold or in use, so it is not ranked against current humanoids.

  • No Wikipedia article of its own yet
  • 1 news story from reputable press listed on this page

Measures how much people read and write about a robot, not how good it is. Measured 2026-10-14; same method for every robot. How it is measured

What’s inside

The parts the company has talked about publicly.

Hands
none
Movement
Walks on legs · 24 joints
Actuators & motors
Sony's ISA (Intelligent Servo Actuator) joint modules; 24 degrees of freedom (per the SDR-4X comparison in PC Watch).
AI & software
Whole Body Cooperative Dynamic Motion Control for dynamic performances such as dancing.
Other details
About 50 cm tall; performed on stage to violin music at ROBODEX 2000. The SDR project was started in 1997 by Yoshihiro Kuroki.

Lineage

Every Sony (Digital Creatures Laboratory) humanoid in order.

  1. SDR-3XSDR-3X2000Retired
  2. QRIO (SDR-4X)QRIO (SDR-4X)2002Discontinued
  3. No public photo yetWe only show photos we're allowed to useHANAMOFLOR ('Hana-chan')2023Prototype

Sony Group Corporation also makes 7 machines. See every Sony Group Corporation robot

Made, sold and where

Unit counts are usually company figures; analysts often disagree.

Price
Not published
How to get one
No official buying page found
Sold or delivered
Never sold
Where it is sold or used
Japan

News

The latest 1, newest first. Summaries are ours; tap through for the original.

  1. SDR-3X dances at ROBODEX 2000

    Sony's 50 cm biped performed at the ROBODEX 2000 press preview in Yokohama.

    PC Watch (Impress)

Side by side with its peers

Picked by the same rules for every humanoid: another maker’s robot that moves the same way, is at the same stage and does at least one of the same main jobs, first shown within two years. Closer size and price rank higher. Few robots match closely, so these are the nearest matches. How we choose

Full comparison
MeasureSDR-3XSDR-3XSony (Digital Creatures Laboratory)PINOPINOJST ERATO Kitano Symbiotic Systems Project (later licensed to ZMP)Same job: entertainment · Both walk · Both past robots · Similar sizeASIMOASIMOHondaSame job: entertainment · Both walk · Both past robotsToyota Partner Robot (walking type)Toyota Partner Robot (walking type)Toyota Motor CorporationSame job: entertainment · Both walk · Both past robots
First shown2000-11-2120002000-11-202004-03-11
StatusRetiredRetiredRetiredRetired
Height50 cm71 cm120 cm120 cm
Weight——43 kg35 kg
Joints24—26—
Speed0.9 km/h—1.6 km/h—
Payload————
Battery————
Price—$30,000——

Sources

Figures come from press coverage. Every link below backs something on this page.

Stanford University SDR-3X (Stanford Broad Area Colloquium, Kuroki) Computerworld NZ Sony unveils prototype humanoid robot PC Watch (Impress) ROBODEX 2000 report PC Watch (Impress) Sony SDR-4X announcement coverage Logo: Sony Corporation, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Photos and logos only identify each robot and its maker. Simbeing is not affiliated with, sponsored by or endorsing any company, and nothing here is advertising. Figures are for statistics only and are not advice of any kind. Terms of use