There's not much the Japanese love more than robots, so twas only a matter of time before exoskeleton suits found some useful purpose. This particular suit assists farmers on tough agricultural work.


The suit, designed by the Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, contains eight motors fitted over the shoulders, elbows, back and knees to give farmers the boost they need to pull radishes, lift haystacks and other farm work.

Though the current model is a hefty 35 kg, researchers say they can halve the weight and put it on the market in two years time. Each suit will retail for between 500,000 and 1 million yen ($5,600 to $11,200). Only in Japan, folks. [Japan Probe]