Mitsubishi unviel radiation-resistant robot aimed to fix damaged nuclear plant

Japanese-based company Mitsubishi revealed their new robot which can withstand radiation made to fix the Fukushima Nuclear Power plant that was damaged during the Earthquake and Tsunami during 2011.

Mitsubishi’s “tankbot” is about 4 feet tall with 2 arms and with a capacity to hold 15 kg each, though this is still a challenge for remotely controlled machines to completely replace humans from undergoing repairs in such deadly scenarios.

This isn’t the only company that have rolled out robots, Hitachi and Toshiba are 2 of them and Qinetiq is also another company who has a remote controlled robot to repair damaged plants. Toshiba’s robot is equipped with wireless networking that is designed to work even in a high radioactive environment, but robots require to be specifically designed for a specific job and environment. There’s also a problem of maintenance work with such robots especially if they work in radioactive areas. Still, it’s a step forward as machines like this can potentially put humans out of harms way and still get a job done by a human behind the remote control.

Source: BBC