Japanese firm makes real-life Transformer
Optimus Prime, eat your heart out – the J-deite RIDE is an incredible half-car, half-robot with no CGI involved
Japanese company Asratec has unveiled a working prototype of something many small boys have been waiting their whole life for – a real Transformer.
The robot, named the J-deite RIDE, is a four-metre high behemoth capable of folding itself down into a fully-functioning car.
At the flick of a switch, the ‘robot control system’ performs the transformation, and it folds down in seconds into an electric car. In this form, it’s capable of speeds of up to 40mph courtesy of a lithium-ion battery pack.
Asratec will show the Transformer off at the wackily-titled DokiDoki Japanese Festival in Manchester, as well as the trade show IAAPA Attractions Expo in Florida in November.
Creator Kunio Okawara says he intends to sell the car to amusement parks, where he hopes it will inspire a whole array of robotic rides and attractions. The company suggests transforming go-karts or transforming demonstrations at parades.
For now, J-deite RIDE is a concept, but the firm is on the hunt for companies looking to get their name on the side of real-life Transformers.
