The Micro Flying Robot was shown off at the biennial 2003 International Robot Exhibition in Tokyo.

"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 Junji Ajioka, manager of Seiko Epson's strategic business development division.

"For example, the robot can enter a house flattened by an earthquake and check if anybody is trapped inside," he said.

The prototype four-legged robot weighs just 10 grams (0.35 ounces) and measures 70 millimeters (2.8 inches) in height. It can be operated by remote control but at present it must be powered via a 1.5-meter-long (5.0-feet) cable connected to an electric generator.

It took Seiko Epson three years to develop the Micro Flying Robot, Ajioka said while declining to give financial details

The company hopes the robot will eventually fly independently using an onboard battery but so far has been unable to find a suitably lightweight power source.

"That's why we showed this robot at the exhibition. We want to attract battery makers who can manufacture a very light battery for us," Ajioka said, adding the company had yet to set a date for marketing the robot.

The Tokyo exhibition is held every two years and runs four days from Wednesday with a record 117 corporate participants and 27 organizations.

Most of robots shown at the exhibition are for industrial use but some companies displayed toy robots, including one capable of expressing about 40 emotions.

A small, Tokyo-based company also exhibited Actroid, a sort of robotic mannequin, which is supposed to look like a real-life young woman. Clad in a white shirt and black pants, the 'female' robot can bow and move her hands and eyelashes.

The previous exhibition attracted nearly 100,000 visitors, according to the organisers.

SPACE.WIRE