You can think of a genius, weird, creative, or non-sense invention and there is a very high chance that Japan would have it. When it comes to bringing robots to our lives, Japan is clearly way ahead of the rest of the world. This love for technology may be turning into an overkill because they are now making high-tech robotic wolfs just for the simple task of scaring crows.
The good old scarecrows were made of an inverted pot, some rags, all supported with a stick structure. A few little bells and chimes added a little more effect, and things worked pretty well. That is until the Japanese robot scarecrow came into existence. The Super Robot Wolf is scary enough to scare away any form of life, crows, bears, deer, you name it. From the look of it, even humans would wish not to get near either.
The Super Robot Wolf has been developed by Ofta Seiki, and an agricultural cooperative association, JA Kisarazu-shi, tested the robot’s effectiveness in doing the said tasks. The scarecrow looks like a vampire hell hound, with bloodshot eyes, all prepared to bite into any form of flesh it sets its eyes upon. That is just the appearance of it; the insides are jam-packed with technology.
An infrared ray sensor embedded in the robot allows it to detect any approaching animals and as soon as it gets near, the hound’s eyes begin to glow red and its head begins to move from one side to another. It can play up to 40 different sounds including wolf howling, human voices, and gunshots. The infrared sensor keeps its eyes open for intruders, but you can also set a timer to activate it at intervals, keeping any kind of trespassers away.
The testing for the Super Robot Wolf began at the Sapporo botanical garden Kaiyuen where wild animals like deer would commonly walk in looking for food, thus damaging the crops. Ever since the Robot wolf was installed last year, such incidents have gone down by 90 percent. The same was installed at JA Kisarazu-shi in July, and the farmers are happy as there have been no wild animals or birds near their crops after the robot was installed.
The Super Robot Wolf is still in its trial phase, but Ohta Seiki has announced that it will get to the market by September with a price tag of ¥200,000 ($1,800). If that is affordable, the high-tech scarecrow may just be worth it. Would you dare walk near one of those?