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He looks like a malevolent robot from 1980s sci-fi, but the new humanoid employee at the West Japan Railway has nothing more sinister on his mind than a little painting and gardening.
Starting this month, the machine will be used for maintenance work on the company's network.
The robot, mounted on a truck that can drive on rails, has a crude head and bottle-shaped eyes.
Its operator, sitting in the truck's cockpit, can “see” through the robot's eyes using cameras and operate its powerful limbs and hands remotely.
Able to reach a height of 12 metres, the machine can use various attachments to carry objects weighing up to 40 kilograms, hold a paintbrush or use a saw.
The company said the robot's main job at the moment is to cut branches along the tracks and paint the metal frames that hold the cables above the trains.
The technology will help fill a labor shortage in Japan's aging population and reduce accidents such as worker falls or electric shocks.
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