The ongoing crisis at Japan's Fukushima nuclear plant has exposed a few flaws in the nation's tech approach to disaster, which is why the Quince nuclear disaster robot is right on time.

The robot was eveloped by a consortium including Tohoku University, Japan's National Institute of Information and Communications Technology, and Chiba Institute of Technology among others. Featuring a radiation counter, 3D scanner, an on-board camera and housed in a waterproof body, the robot is designed to allow teams to explore radiation-impacted areas remotely from a distance of about a mile and a half. Able to operate for up to two hours, the team hopes to have the robot deployed soon to the Fukushima site.

Via Nikkei