A new robot is being prepared by the Future Robotics Technology Center in Japan, for work in the damaged Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. The robot, shown in the video below, is capable of carrying up to 60 kilos of weight and can climb over obstacles and up steep slopes. Data is sent back to operators’ computers in real time, allowing them a rare glimpse inside the most dangerous areas of the plant.
Robots are a key source of information about the inside of the nuclear power plant, which still contains spent nuclear fuel and is highly radioactive.
The March 2011 tsunami which badly damaged the Fukushima Daiichi plant spurred many Japanese robotics developers to develop more robots designed specifically for working in highly radioactive areas. Original PackBots by US robotics manufacturer iRobot were sent to Fukushima; the first Japanese robot to enter the plant had been originally designed to work in subways.
Source: Computerworld article
Leave a Reply