an open framework for research in embodied cognition

This paper presents a research initiative on embodied cognition called RobotCub. RobotCub is an EU- funded project that aims at developing an open humanoid robotic platform and, simultaneously, following an original research path in synthetic cognition. We report on the motivations behind the realization of our humanoid robotic platform and the current status of the design just before the construction of the first full prototype.