Incredible moment robot saves little girl from being crushed

This is the incredible moment a robot appears to show initiative and saves a little girl from being crushed by a toppling shelf in a horror accident.

Footage shows a child climbing on a metal shelf and a robot zooming forward to stop it from falling on top of the girl.

The moment was caught on camera in the lobby of the Perm Polytechnic University in the central Russian city of Perm, in the Perm Krai region.

Footage shows the youngster playing around in the lobby while visitors milled around on the busy day of the student graduation ceremony.

The university, which was also hosting an open day, had hordes of visitors but it is the apparently quick-thinking robot which bizarrely stepped in to stop a catastrophe.

The robot, named Promobot, is seen moving on wheels towards the metal shelves as the youngster starts to climb.

It reached the shelves at the perfect time and is then seen holding out a hand to stop it from falling on top of her and crushing her as it starts to topple under her weight.

Surprised, she hops down and skips off as though nothing has happened.

Oleg Kivokurtsev, manager of robotics company "Promobot" said: "We were preparing to the graduation ceremony which should have been opened by our robot. We planed he would congratulate the graduate students and remind them that future is for robots."

The robot's owner said the girl's saviour was a "pure coincidence" as it is equipped with a "mirror mode" which enables it to emulate human action. The mode apparently turned on and caused the robot to raise its arm and approach the girl in the nick of time.

Although Mr Kivokurtsev added: "The little girl was playing around and pulled the metal shelve, the robot prevented her from getting hurt. The robot is not programmed that way."

It is unclear what prompted the mirror mode to switch itself on. The girl was not identified.

- Australscope