TOKYO-In the future, humanoid robots may be a common sight in assembly plants.

Toyota Motor Corp. (Tokyo) recently unveiled a prototype humanoid robot that it hopes to mass-produce. The company demonstrated a biped humanoid and a mobile humanoid. The biped has 29 joints, and its wheeled cousin has 17 joints. Each has three joints in its right hand.

During a brief demonstration, one robot played "When You Wish Upon a Star" on a trumpet, while the other played "Trumpeter's Holiday."

In addition to industrial applications, Toyota claims the 4-foot-tall robots could be used as personal assistants and caregivers for the elderly.