The world’s lightest and smallest robot helicopter has been unveiled at a Tokyo exhibition by the Seiko Epson company.

The designers say the 70-mm-tall device could be used as a “flying camera” to enter earthquake-shattered buildings.

The prototype four-legged robot weighs 10 grammes and although it flies by remote control, it has to be linked to an external power source via a cable.

“The robot has a camera and can fly into dangerous areas or areas hit by disasters in place of human beings. In a word, it functions as an eye,” said the manager of Seiko Epson’s strategic business development division.

It has taken the company three years to get the vehicle to its current stage of development.

Source: BBC News