The EF81 class of electric locomotives are Bo-Bo-Bo

Bo-Bo-Bo

thumb|Italian articulated Bo-Bo-Bo [[FS Class E656|E656]] locomotive, [[Rome]], June 2, 2006.A Bo-Bo-Bo in UIC classification is a locomotive with three independent two-axle bogies with all axles powered...

 wheel arrangement

Wheel arrangement

In rail transport, a wheel arrangement is a system of classifying the way in which wheels are distributed beneath a locomotive.. Several notations exist to describe the wheel assemblies of a locomotive by type, position, and connections, with the adopted notations varying by country...

 multi-voltage AC

Alternating current

In alternating current the movement of electric charge periodically reverses direction. In direct current , the flow of electric charge is only in one direction....

/DC

Direct current

Direct current is the unidirectional flow of electric charge. Direct current is produced by such sources as batteries, thermocouples, solar cells, and commutator-type electric machines of the dynamo type. Direct current may flow in a conductor such as a wire, but can also flow through...

 electric locomotives operated on passenger and freight services in Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

.

EF81-300

Four locomotives were built in 1975 with corrugated stainless steel bodies for use on services through the Kanmon Tunnel

Kanmon Tunnel

The Kanmon Railway Tunnel, Kanmon Roadway Tunnel, and Shin-Kanmon Tunnel are undersea tunnels crossing the Kanmon Straits between Shimonoseki, Yamaguchi and Kitakyūshū, Fukuoka in western Japan...

 to Kyushu

Kyushu

is the third largest island of Japan and most southwesterly of its four main islands. Its alternate ancient names include , , and . The historical regional name is referred to Kyushu and its surrounding islands....

.

EF81-400

14 locomotives built in 1986 and 1987 and mostly operated along the Kanmon Tunnel, although some locomotives operating on a few "Blue Train

Blue Train (Japan)

' in Japan are long-distance sleeper trains, nicknamed as such for the color of the train cars. They consist of 20-, 14- or 24-series sleeper cars, and currently run on six routes connecting major destinations within Japan across long distances, other routes being served by a fleet of newer...

" services served some railway lines in Kyushu, in particular sections of the Kagoshima Main Line

Kagoshima Main Line

The is a major railway line operated by the Kyushu Railway Company between Mojikō in Kitakyūshū, and Kagoshima Station in Kagoshima City, at the southern end of Kyushu...

 and the Nippō Main Line

Nippo Main Line

frame|Nippō Main LineThe is a railway line in Kyūshū, in southern Japan. Part of the Kyushu Railway Company system, it follows the east coast of the island. The line originates at Kokura Station in Kokura, Kitakyushu, Fukuoka...

 as well as the entire Nagasaki Main Line.

EF81-450

Five locomotives built in 1991 and 1992 for use hauling freight services through the Kanmon Tunnel. Locomotives EF81 451 and 452 have modern-style headlight clusters.