I-Fairy, a four-foot tall seated robot with flashing eyes and plastic pigtails, directs a wedding ceremony for groom TomohiroShibata 42, and bride Satoko Inouye, 36, at a Tokyo restaurant Sunday, May 16, 2010.(Agencies)

　　Almost everyone stood when the bride walked down the aisle in her white gown, but not the wedding conductor, because she was bolted to her chair.

　　The nuptials at this ceremony were led by "I-Fairy," a 4-foot (1.5-meter) tall seated robot with flashing eyes and plastic pigtails. Sunday's wedding was the first time a marriage had been led by a robot, according to manufacturer Kokoro Co.

　　"Please lift the bride's veil," the robot said in a tinny voice, waving its arms in the air as the newlyweds kissed in front of about 50 guests.

　　The wedding took place at a restaurant in Hibiya Park in central Tokyo, where the I-Fairy wore a wreath of flowers and directed a rooftop ceremony. Wires led out from beneath it to a black curtain a few feet away, where a man crouched and clicked commands into a computer.

　　Japan has one of the most advanced robotics industries in the world, with the government actively supporting the field for future growth. Industrial models in factories are now standard, but recently Japanese companies are making a push to inject robots into everyday life.

　　Honda makes a walking child-shaped robot, and other firms have developed them to entertain the elderly or play baseball. Kokoro, whose corporate goal is to "touch the hearts of the people," also makes giant dinosaur robots for exhibitions and lifelike android models that can smile and laugh. The company is a subsidiary of Sanrio Co., which owns the rights to Hello Kitty and other Japanese characters.

　　"This was a lot of fun. I think that Japanese have a strong sense that robots are our friends. Those in the robot industry mostly understand this, but people mainly want robots near them that serve some purpose," said bride Satoko Inoue, 36, who works at manufacturer Kokoro.

　　The I-Fairy sells for about 6.3 million yen ($68,000) and three are in use in Singapore, the US and Japan, according to company spokeswoman Kayako Kido.

　　当新娘身穿洁白的婚纱走过长廊，几乎所有人都站了起来，唯独婚礼司仪例外，因为“她”被固定在了她的座椅上。

　　上周日的这场婚礼由一个名叫“爱精灵”的坐式机器人主持。这个机器人身高4英尺(1.5米)、眼睛闪闪发光，梳着塑料辫子。据这款机器人的制造商Kokoro公司介绍，机器人主持婚礼在世界上还是首次。

　　在当天的婚礼上，“爱精灵”用细小的声音说：“请为新娘掀开面纱”。当新郎新娘在约50名宾客面前亲吻时，“爱精灵”还挥舞起双手。

　　这场婚礼在东京中部日比谷公园的一家餐厅的屋顶上举行。“爱精灵”头戴花环，帮助新人完成了仪式。距机器人几英尺远处有一个黑帘子，帘子后面是一台与机器人身体相连的电脑，有人在此通过电脑发布指令。

　　由于政府大力支持该领域以应对未来发展，日本的机器人产业一直处于世界领先水平。应用于工厂的工业机器人目前已经非常规范，而最近日本公司正在推进机器人在日常生活中的使用。

　　本田公司开发了一种可以行走的儿童型机器人，其它公司还开发出了帮老年人解闷和会打棒球的机器人。以“触动人心”为宗旨的Kokoro公司曾研制出供展览的大型恐龙机器人，以及会微笑和大笑的仿真机器人。Kokoro公司隶属于三丽鸥公司，该公司旗下有Hello Kitty和其它一些日本卡通人物形象等文化品牌。

　　任职于Kokoro公司的36岁的新娘井上聪子说：“让机器人来主持婚礼真的很有意思。我觉得日本人有一种把机器人看作人类朋友的强烈意识。在机器人领域工作的人都十分理解这一点，但人们主要还是想让身边的机器人为他们做些事情。”

　　据Kokoro公司女发言人木户加代子介绍，每部“爱精灵”售价约630万日元(6.8万美元)，目前有三部分别在新加坡、美国和日本供使用。