If you are growing tired of the dreary, impersonal, 'please hold for the next available representative' tone of your voice-enabled navi, feel free to ask this cuddly bear for directions instead.

The robot teddy bear, developed by engineers at the iXs Research Corporation, is a working prototype of a talking vehicle navigation system that vocalizes route data and even gestures as it speaks. Pet the bear on the head and it will point you to local sights and landmarks. But don't be fooled - your fluffy little tour guide has zero tolerance for drunk or reckless driving. According to Pink Tentacle, the robot bear comes with an alcohol detection sensor. "If it smells booze, the robot confronts the driver, saying, 'You haven't been drinking, have you?'" Slam on the gas or breaks too hard and you will hear, "Watch out!"

If all goes as planned, the robot bear will become available in 2009. "We want to make it more compact," said iXs CEO Fuminori Yamasaki, "And we'd like to offer a variety of shapes, including other characters and a plain mechanical version."