Japanese Railway Company Tests Gundam-Like Robots To Carry Out Maintenance Work

Video screenshot via JR West

Straight out of a Transformers film, robots are carrying out manual labor along tracks operated by Japanese railway company JR West. Guided by human instruction, they pick up heavy objects, lay paths, and help their companions reach more less-accessible areas.

As reported by national news outlet My Navi News, human operators manage the Gundam-like humanoids through VR helmets and maneuver them using controllers in cargo vehicles.

Meanwhile, the machines—which are only built to the torso—are attached to cranes, allowing them to be lifted to handle power lines and reach other places at height. In essence, this makes them more like high-tech puppets than crime-busting or world-dominating figures.

The bot would collect data about the weight and size of objects, which is then sent to the human operator too.

JR West says the equipment is easy to work with—using a left control works its left hand, while a right one moves the right hand. Besides fixing railways, it can also be trained to perform various tasks, including dangerous ones.

The company is hopeful that the deployment of the Transformers-esque equipment will lower the rate of work accidents, including crashes and electric shocks.

A prototype is currently being tested, and the humanoid is being planned to work on a larger scale and could even go to market by the spring of 2024.

【News Release】
生産性・安全性向上に向けて、株式会社人機一体および日本信号株式会社と共同で、人型重機ロボットと鉄道工事用車両を融合させた多機能鉄道重機を開発しています。

詳しくはこちらをご覧ください。https://t.co/R8X32nmuJU pic.twitter.com/FBVjIe1xCC

— JR西日本ニュース【公式】 (@news_jrwest) April 15, 2022

[via Stealth Optional, My Navi News, World Stock Market, Aroged, video and cover image via JR West]