Robot builders, robotics software and engineering businesses documented in Japan.
Technology and company development
The company date and the first robot date are not the same
FANUC provides a useful example of Japan’s long connection between machine control and robotics. Its official history records numerical-control research at Fujitsu in 1955, working control and servo systems in 1956, and the creation of an independent FUJITSU FANUC company in 1972.
Robots followed a different timeline. FANUC records robots installed in its own factories in 1974 and commercial robot shipments beginning in 1977. These dates explain the progression from control technology to physical automation. They should not be compressed into one founding year for every activity.
Questions worth asking
For established industrial suppliers, compare service availability and support for existing installations as well as new features. Record the controller generation and programming environment. A historical humanoid programme listed below should not be mistaken for a product that can still be ordered.
This page contains 25 directory records connected to Japan. It is a selection, not a ranking or a count of the country’s entire robotics industry. Founders and financial research are still incomplete for some profiles. Existing source dates are preserved.
Revenue measures sales over a reporting period. Funding is capital raised. A valuation belongs to a dated transaction or market measurement. Contract values, acquisition prices and production targets are labelled separately. Parent-company results are not attributed to a robotics subsidiary.
Company sources document what a supplier says or reports. They do not turn product claims into independent tests. The project questions are editorial evaluation criteria rather than reported results.
Robotics company profiles in Japan
11 sourced profiles covering robot hardware, software and related engineering work.
CYBERDYNE develops HAL wearable robots. The devices assist body movement using signals and sensors associated with the wearer, with configurations for rehabilitation and physical support.
Location
Japan
Founded
Not confirmed
Products and activities
HAL
Project evaluation and source details
Founder, revenue and valuation research has not yet been completed for this record. No figures have been estimated to fill these gaps.
DENSO WAVE makes industrial robots for handling and assembly. Its range includes SCARA, articulated and collaborative configurations, with controllers and programming tools for production equipment.
Location
Japan
Founded
Not confirmed
Products and activities
Industrial robot arms, Collaborative robot arms
Project evaluation and source details
Founder, revenue and valuation research has not yet been completed for this record. No figures have been estimated to fill these gaps.
FANUC manufactures industrial robots, collaborative robots, factory automation systems and CNC equipment.
Location
Yamanashi, Japan
Founded
1972
Products and activities
FANUC industrial robots, CRX collaborative robots
History, technology and financial information
Origins and founders
Founding year
1972
Founder information
Not yet confirmed for this profile
Independent company established in 1972. Earlier numerical-control research began inside Fujitsu.
FANUC’s official history separates numerical-control research from company formation and the later commercial shipment of robots.
Technology and practical role
Control systems and servo technology formed part of the path toward factory robots. Existing installations also depend on the controller and programming generation, not only the mechanical arm.
Financial information
No revenue or valuation figure has been verified for this profile. This is a gap in this directory, not a statement that the company has never published the information.
What to check before a project
Record the controller version, tool interface and support horizon. Compare the complete production cycle and service arrangement for the intended application.
Kawada Robotics develops NEXTAGE, a dual-arm robot with an upper-body layout suited to workstations. Its systems target handling and assembly tasks that require two arms and visual guidance.
Location
Japan
Founded
Not confirmed
Products and activities
NEXTAGE
Project evaluation and source details
Founder, revenue and valuation research has not yet been completed for this record. No figures have been estimated to fill these gaps.
Kawasaki Robotics supplies industrial robot arms and automation systems for manufacturing, handling, welding, painting and other production tasks.
Location
Tokyo, Japan
Founded
Not confirmed
Products and activities
BX series, RS series, duAro
Project evaluation and source details
Match BX, RS or duAro to the actual task and required tool poses. Check whether both arms are needed, and time coordinated handling with the proposed fixtures. Product families in this record represent different mechanisms and should not inherit each other's specifications.
Founder, revenue and valuation research has not yet been completed for this record. No figures have been estimated to fill these gaps.
Mitsubishi Electric develops MELFA industrial robots and supporting controllers. The range covers handling and assembly tasks, with RT ToolBox3 software for programming and checking robot operations.
Location
Japan
Founded
Not confirmed
Products and activities
MELFA, FR PLUS, RT ToolBox3
Project evaluation and source details
Founder, revenue and valuation research has not yet been completed for this record. No figures have been estimated to fill these gaps.
Mujin develops intelligent robot-control systems and logistics automation for depalletizing, picking and truck unloading workflows.
Location
Tokyo, Japan
Founded
2011
Products and activities
MujinController, TruckBot
Project evaluation and source details
For MujinController or TruckBot, count accepted transfers from the actual mix of cartons and pallets. Include damaged packages, unreachable items and the operator's recovery time. A picking controller and a truck-unloading installation have different interfaces and acceptance tests.
Founder, revenue and valuation research has not yet been completed for this record. No figures have been estimated to fill these gaps.
OMRON supplies robot arms, collaborative robots and mobile robots as part of its factory-automation business. Its systems connect robot motion with machine control, sensing and production workflows.
Location
Japan
Founded
Not confirmed
Products and activities
Industrial robot arms, Collaborative robots, Mobile robots
Project evaluation and source details
Founder, revenue and valuation research has not yet been completed for this record. No figures have been estimated to fill these gaps.
Epson develops industrial robot systems for production automation. Its robot arms work with vision and force-control options to carry out handling and assembly tasks around machines and fixtures.
Location
Japan
Founded
Not confirmed
Products and activities
Industrial robot arms, Robot vision systems, Force-control systems
Project evaluation and source details
Founder, revenue and valuation research has not yet been completed for this record. No figures have been estimated to fill these gaps.
Yamaha Motor’s robotics business supplies SCARA, Cartesian and other industrial robots. Its product range includes robot controllers and motion hardware for integrating handling and assembly into production machines.
Yaskawa Electric develops industrial robot arms, motion-control products and factory automation systems under the MOTOMAN brand.
Location
Kitakyushu, Japan
Founded
1915
Products and activities
MOTOMAN robots, HC collaborative robots
Project evaluation and source details
Compare the MOTOMAN model and controller with the required welding or handling process. Include torch cables or gripper mass in the load case. Review the HC application's contact conditions rather than assuming every MOTOMAN model can share a workspace with people.
Founder, revenue and valuation research has not yet been completed for this record. No figures have been estimated to fill these gaps.
Founded by robot creator Tomotaka Takahashi. The company’s humanoid work includes ROPID and participation in projects such as KIROBO and Sharp RoBoHoN. Kyoto University is used as the primary institutional source.
Sharp developed RoBoHoN with Robo Garage founder Tomotaka Takahashi. The 19.5 cm mobile robot phone is a small biped humanoid communication product rather than an industrial humanoid.
Founded as Mira Robotics in 2018 and later renamed ugo Inc. Its ugo platforms use a mobile base with an articulated humanoid-style upper body for inspection, guidance and service work.
Vstone maintains a long-running line of small biped humanoids and full-size communication research robots. Robovie-R4 is the current full-size communication research platform listed by the company.
