#t-53

T-53 ‘ENRYU’ Rescue Robot, Tmsuk Co, Fukuoka, Japan.

The little brother to the bigger and older T-52, this new iteration of the Enryu series was designed with the help of Japan’s National Fire Department. Tmsuk rolled out the T-53 in 2007, just in time for the mech to be put to actual work in the aftermath of the Kashiwazaki City Earthquake, giving it a chance to prove itself right out the gate.

This more compact iteration of the Enryu is 9 feet tall, with its base only taking up 5 feet in both length and width. It is also lighter and faster than its predecessor. The arms are not as powerful, but with a combined max weight-lifting capacity of 440 pounds, it’s still nothing to sneeze at. Plus, they are more dexterous than those of its big brother.

Notable in this iteration is the fact that the cockpit is located in the back, with an open-air canopy, giving it an appearance similar to that of construction equipment. It still has a ‘head’ on top which boasts the same camera systems the T-52 possesses. This is because the T-53 can also be controlled remotely from a safe location, in the event of nuclear or chemical contamination, and can operate untethered on a charge lasting 6 hours.

In addition to these features, the little red mech possesses brake lights and turn signals, making it street-legal. Combined with a lifting bulldozer-plow on its front, all-steel treads for rough terrain, interchangeable arm attachments, and heavy-duty lights mounted on both arms, the head and lower torso, and you have a compact rescue robot ready to take on almost any situation.

The mech was made with mass production in mind, and Tmsuk was looking to produce and sell additional units towards not just the rescue industry, but to the construction and waste disposal industries as well.

WHERE ARE THEY NOW?

When the Tohoku Earthquake hit the Fukushima Nuclear Plant in 2011, the T-53 was moved to the Tsukuba, Ibaraki Prefecture, north of Tokyo, following a request from the Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry. From there it was presumably moved to J-Village, a site near the disaster area for decontaminating machines exposed to radiation. The cleanup of the land is estimated to take around 30 to 40 years, so we assume that the T-53 and any additional units that Tmsuk has produced is busy, and will be kept busy, for years to come.

This article will be updated if more information becomes available.

Videos of the T-53 Enryu in action.

References:

Robotics Today, ‘Enryu Series: Enryu T-53′, circa 2011. http://www.roboticstoday.com/robots/enryu-t-53-description

C|net, ‘Enryu rescue robot gets Fukushima mission’, circa Apr 23, 2011. https://www.cnet.com/news/enryu-rescue-robot-gets-fukushima-mission/