A pair of robots will be sent into the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant as early as mid-February to measure radioactive materials and survey 3-D structures inside the buildings.
A pair of robots will be sent into the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant as early as mid-February to measure radioactive materials and survey 3-D structures inside the buildings.
The Chiba Institute of Technology’s Future Robotics Technology Center unveiled the latest version of Quince on Jan. 30.
The first-generation model was lost inside the Fukushima No. 1 plant when it was sent on a solo mission last year.
The new robots are operated either wirelessly or via cable. When one of them loses contact, its partner will come to the rescue and restart it, communicating wirelessly.
The new robots are also equipped with a function that rewinds their 400-meter-long cables, which can obstruct their movements.
“We want to produce more detailed radiation maps of inside the buildings and contribute to reducing workers’ radiation exposure,” said Eiji Koyanagi, deputy director of the Future Robotics Technology Center.