Yes, it's a real robot in disguise! All hail the working Transformer from Japan
Japan's not just the Land of the Rising Sun. It's also the Land of giant robots.
Just a few months after announcing plans to make an 18m-tall Gundam that moves, Japan is giving the world another piece of mecha-awesomeness: A fully-functional transforming robot.
Yes folks, Transformers is getting real!
Officially backed by Takara Tomy (the company originally behind the Transformers) Project J-deite has unveiled a working prototype.
The 1.5m-tall bipedal robot can change into a futuristic-looking blue car and back.
Developed by Brave Robotics' Kenji Ishida and Wataru Yoshizaki,the robot mode features fully-articulated arms and hands and a 1kmh top walking speed.
While the dude's no Optimus Prime look-wise, hardcore Transformers fans will definitely recognise the similarities between J-deite and Smokescreen from the Binaltech/Alternators splinter line that came about in the early 2000s.
Smokescreen from Transformers: Alternators and J-deite. PHOTOS: Wikimedia / Icefox and J-deite official website
As a twin-seater sports car, it can hit speeds of up to 10kmh.
The robot in its current state isn't exactly capable of taking a human driver on board: It is only a quarter-sized prototype.
Creators Ishida and Yoshizaki have a 2.5m-tall half-sized prototype in the works for 2016, before they move on to a full-sized 5m-tall robot that can "transform, walk and run" by 2020.
While it's not clear what else the project aims to achieve, J-deite does come with a fictional back story involving green meteorite crystals. Hmmm.
You can see more of J-deite in action in Engadget Japanese's video here:
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