Japanese develop robot dog that sniffs out smelly feet

Do your feet smell bad? Just a little or absolutely awful?

If you don't dare to ask a friend, one Japanese start-up might have the answer with a new robot dog that will sniff your feet and give you a pitilessly honest verdict - even fainting if the stink is especially strong, reported the Daily Mail.

Malodorous feet can be socially awkward in Japan where shoes are removed at the entrance to every home.

Hana-chan - a play on the Japanese word for "nose" and a common girl's nickname - is a helpful little robot mutt who will bark if she detects moderately whiffy toes, but will keel over if the pong is particularly pungent.

The 15-centimeter (6-inch) dog, equipped with an odor detection sensor for a nose, also sprays air freshener to resolve the situation if the aroma is unbearable.

Manufacturers Next Technology created the robot in response to a request from a man who was desperate to know if he had a problem.

"He told us his daughter had said his feet were smelly," employee Kimika Tsuji said.

"But he didn't want to know how bad the odor was because he would feel hurt.

"That's why we developed this cute robot."

Tsuji said smells are becoming more of an issue in Japan, a place where subjecting others to your honking body can even be considered harassment.

Next Technology plans to start selling the robot dog early next year, with a price tag of more than 100,000 yen (NZ$1276).

But this isn't the only device designed to detect body odor.

In July, Konica Minolta, a Japanese tech company, began pre-sales of a pocket-sized device that allows people to self-test three categories of smell on a scale from 0 to 100.

It can recognise perspiration odor, aging odor and middle fat odor.

The device is currently only available in Japan, with no plans to sell it outside of Japan, and costs 30,000 yen (NZ$383).