Images: Transformers comes to life, check out this Japanese robot

A man takes a picture of a giant "Kuratas" robot at an exhibition in Tokyo. The four-meter-high, limited edition, made-to-order robot is controlled through a pilot in its cockpit, or via a smartphone. The four-tonne (4,000 kg) "Kuratas" can be customised in 16 different colours, and is armed with a futuristic weapons system, including a multi-rocket launcher that fires plastic rockets filled with compressed water. Kim Kyung-Hoon/ Reuters

Journalists surround a giant "Kuratas" robot at an exhibition in Tokyo. Kim Kyung-Hoon/Reuters

Robotics expert Watanaru Yoshizaki demonstrates how to operate the arm of a giant "Kuratas" robot at an exhibition in Tokyo. Kim Kyung-Hoon/Reuters

Japanese artist Kogoro Kurata, inventor of the giant "Kuratas" robot, climbs out of its cockpit at an exhibition in Tokyo. Kim Kyung-Hoon/Reuters

A man looks at a giant "Kuratas" robot at an exhibition in Tokyo. Kim Kyung-Hoon/Reuters