By TAKUYA TANABE/ Staff Writer
March 22, 2025 at 08:00 JST
The “SPD1” robot being controlled by Yoichi Takamoto, tmsuk Co.’s chairman, in Kyoto’s Kamigyo Ward on Feb. 6. (Takuya Tanabe)
While nowhere near as lethal or prone to philosophizing as their fictional cousins from “Ghost in the Shell,” the SPD series developed by robotics manufacturer tmsuk Co. is doing humanity’s dirty work in a more literal sense.
Based in Kyoto’s Kamigyo Ward, the company has already created several compact robots that can fit themselves into sewage pipes up to 20 centimeters in diameter; each can transmit images to help workers remotely assess if any repairs are needed.
“SPD1” is the first iteration of the series and resembles a blocky spider. Its eight legs enhance its stability, even when clomping through obstacles such as sediment and slime that wheeled robots have trouble with, according to tmsuk.
In the two years since the SPD1 was announced, the company received more than a hundred inquiries about its robot from entities at home and abroad. It said electric, gas and communications companies have taken note of the robot’s monitoring abilities.
In response to the incident in Yashio, Saitama Prefecture, where a huge sinkhole appeared after an underground sewage pipe burst, municipalities across the country have been conducting emergency inspections of their waste infrastructure.
“Checking sewage pipes is tough and dangerous,” said Yoichi Takamoto, tmsuk’s chairman. “There have been chronic labor shortages and inspections are not keeping up.”
Alongside a company that checks and maintains sewage pipes, tmsuk has repeatedly conducted real-world tests and sent the robot into the fray in order to improve it.
It has developed the prototype of the “SPD-X,” the fourth version of the SPD series, in January. This robot is currently in the testing phase, but tmsuk aims to commercialize and mass-produce it in the future.
“Robots can help address labor shortage issues and enable people to avoid dangerous tasks. I want to reduce accidents by taking advantage of the SPD series to check sewage pipes and other infrastructure,” Takamoto said.
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