A female patrol guard guides the robot while other two watch. [Photo/People's Daily Online]

A cemetery in central China's Henan province has deployed a humanoid robot in October 2016 to accompany the female patrol guards and escort their work at night, local media reports.

The cemetery said that the deployment was to boost the female guards' courage especially during their night shifts.

It is also said to provide some company to the guards, so alleviate their sense of loneliness when walking around in cemetery at night.

However, many netizens raised doubts on its effectiveness after seeing the robot's appearance; many were sceptical that whether its creepy feature would make it even more frightening for the female guards.

The robot reportedly cost the cemetery over 10,000 RMB and can also pull carts when it moves with its hands up and bizarre facial expression forward.