Tokyo police have released security camera images of a man suspected of attacking a university professor last month.

Tokyo Metropolitan University Professor Miyadai Shinji was assaulted with a cutting instrument and seriously injured at the university's Minami-Osawa campus in the city of Hachioji on November 29.

Police released two images and video footage of the man on Monday, and are appealing for information from the public.

The man is wanted on suspicion of attempted murder, based on the accounts of Miyadai and witnesses.

Police say the pictures were taken around 10 minutes after the attack. They were recorded on security cameras near a university gate about 100 meters from the scene, and in a residential area north of the gate.

The man is about 180 to 190 centimeters tall. He was wearing an orange knit cap, a dark jumper and trousers, and was carrying a gray and dark-colored backpack.

They say his age is hard to estimate because he was wearing a mask.

The man was last sighted running on a sidewalk near a convenience store about 500 meters from the gate.

Police say they have received about 20 reports about the incident, but have yet to identify the attacker. The professor has reportedly told investigators that he does not know the man.

Anyone with information should call the police at 042-653-0110.