AI robot to get trial run patrolling Tokyo train station

A newly developed security robot called Perseusbot shows its ability to detect suspicious movements by people during a demonstration in Koto Ward, Tokyo, on Thursday. (Credit: The Yomiuri Shimbun)

A robot endowed with artificial intelligence (AI) to detect suspicious persons and objects will operate on a trial basis at a Tokyo train station next month.

Dubbed the Perseusbot -- a combination of "Perseus," the legendary hero of Greek mythology who defeated monsters, and "robot" -- it uses AI and a security camera while moving around the premises of a station to detect unfamiliar objects or people who are exhibiting unusual behaviors. Perseusbot sends information to devices in the possession of station staff.

A verification test will be conducted at Seibu Shinjuku Station in Tokyo from Nov. 26 through 30 to check the robot's movement and the accuracy of its security camera.

Jointly developed by the Tokyo Metropolitan Industrial Technology Research Institute, Seibu Railway Co. and other firms, Perseusbot was unveiled Thursday at the institute in Koto Ward, Tokyo. It is about 170 centimeters tall, weighs 172 kilograms and usually travels on its own initiative at a speed of about 30 centimeters per second.

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