$1.35 mil giant robot KURATAS draws more than 3,000 orders

Japan came up with Gandam, a huge robot that, along with his driver, protects the world from all sorts of evil, so it is likely that they would come up with KURATAS, a true to life robot that can be manipulated from a cockpit inside.

KURATAS is the creation of a blacksmith iron and steel artist Kogoro Kurata. It was opened to orders in October after two and a half years of tinkering around in the workshop.

So just how has demand for KURATAS, which carries a hefty $1.35 million price tag, been?

Kurata said that he first believed KURATAS would actually sell when he received a message from a wealthy Middle Eastern prince on how wonderful Japan is for making this robot. He believed that if he had a product cool enough for a prince to want, there had to be others out there willing to drop a small fortune on the world’s first purchasable mobile suit.

And he was right: regardless of the ridiculously high price, more than 3,000 orders have been placed only a month after they announced the robot was on the market.

While we don’t have specific figures on where those orders are coming from, overall reaction from abroad has been impressive. Here are some comments from foreigners:

-- “This robot is filled with my dreams” (Brazil) -- “Thank you Japan!” (Turkey) -- “You can’t beat Japanese toys!” (America) -- “I’ll try asking for KURATAS for Christmas!” (America)

The response continues to build from people all over the world, with requests for interviews pouring in as fast as the orders.

Part of the appeal is that you can even customize your KURATAS by choosing weapons and parts from Suidobashi Heavy Industry’s homepage. A handgun for your KURATAS costs $70,000, and a carbon shield costs $75,000. A drink holder for your cockpit costs $100.

The basic specs include an iron made body with two arms and four "feet," with wheels which it stands on. It has a height of 4 meters and a width of 3 meters, and weighs in at 4.5 tons.

The body includes a cockpit area which allows one person to sit and control KURATAS. The robot can be manipulated by a transformer operation peripheral equipment device in the shape of the robot. It is also possible to control the robot with a touch panel device.

The head of the robot is equipped with a camera, giving the person in the cockpit a robot’s eye view from a monitor. The robot moves are powered by a hydraulically operated diesel engine.

The super specs of KURATAS without customization reached a cost of $1.35 million.

This video shows how to operate Kuratas. Protective headgear should be worn. You open the cockpit with a push of a button. The inside is a touch panel control system using V-sido’s master slave control system. It can also be operated by a 3G circuit system from outside the cockpit. The KURATAS moves at a speed of 10 km/hr and the wheels can lower or raise the body to adjust its size.

KURATAS includes a weapon system which has two factors, the Lohas launcher which fires water, and the Twin Gatlin Gun which shoots BBs by detecting your smile. If you laugh too hard you will bombard your target with BBs. In disembarking, it is advised to use a step-ladder rather than jumping from the cockpit. The precautions are that no smoking is allowed in the cockpit although cell phones can be used safely there. In case KURATAS falls over, cover your head, and if there is any sign of smoke or fire make sure you run from the robot as fast as you can.

If there is to be a robot like this, Japan should be the one to make it, that’s for sure.

Source: Su-gomori.com

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