JR West introduces humanoid robot for railway maintenance; wants to expand its use in Japan

West Japan Railway Co. (JR West) will introduce a humanoid robot that can perform maintenance work such as painting rail yards and cutting down fallen trees.

JR West said Thursday it plans to put the robot into service in the Kyoto-Osaka-Kobe area in July.

The railroad expects to achieve improvements in labor and safety by using the robot to perform dangerous and labor-intensive work at higher positions.

Mounted on a construction vehicle, the robot can work at heights of up to 12 meters with its two arms.

The robot can lift objects weighing up to 40 kilograms and the arms can be replaced with tools such as chainsaws and brushes.

The robot is operated from a construction vehicle by a worker who uses glasses to view images from the robot’s camera.

The weight and feel of the objects held by the robot are transmitted to the control handle, “allowing operators to move the robot as if they were doing the work themselves,” said JR West president Kazuaki Hasegawa.

With the introduction of the robot, the manpower required for the work will be reduced by about 30%, the company said. JR West will consider expanding the number of units in use and selling them to other companies while verifying the robot’s effectiveness.