Japanese students invent hugging coat

A group of Japanese students from Tsukuba University have invented a jacket that can be the substitute for girlfriend. At least it can be a substitute for a girlfriend who likes to hug you. The students have invented a coat that can give you a hug when you need it.

The device is known as the Raiju Coat, which translates to Fulfillment Coat. The jacket uses a pair of robotic pinchers and a pre-recorded voice to go along with the hugging experience. The jacket also uses motors that are attached to the back to operate the fake arms that are controlled by computer through a USB connection.

The person using the jacket wears headphones that transmit audio from the attached computer. The prerecorded sentences that the system says as it hugs you include “I’m sorry, were you waiting?”; “Watch your back!” (in a cute way); “Guess who?”; and “Blind side!” Apparently, it hugs you from behind.

The voice used for the sentences comes from Yu Shimotsuki, who is a Japanese voiceover artist known for work in adult-themed video games. The students have no plans to release The Girlfriend Coat commercially at this time. Check out the video below to see the hugging jacket in action.

[via Japan Daily Press]