A Hatena blogger id:rti7743 reported that he made his new 10.6 square meters bedroom with futuristic functions [J].

He set up the following gears;

- replaced curtain with 100-inch projector screen
- NEC NP-U310WJD short focus projector

- 2 microphones
- self-programmed voice recognition system
- iRemocon, (remocon = remote controller) network-connected remote controller which can learn other ultra-red controller commands
- regular PC (though it has 512GB SSD) with two LCDs
- Ubuntu server with 18TB hard drives
- Japanese kotatsu (heating low-table)
- Another LCD hanged on a bed
- an extra speaker in pillow

In the small room, he can control many things only by speaking. For example, you may turn off lights by "Barusu", the spell of destruction.

Video shows what his casting "Hikari Are"(Let there be light) caused,

Another command, "Turn off the lights, computer"

"Sakura (girl's name, probably from anime), turn on the air-conditioner!"

Lights, air-conditioner, kotatsu, projector, music and many more can be controlled just by talking.

via Hatena Bookmark

Tags: Japan, Technology by Akky Akimoto
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Tokyo-based Juki Corporation is going to sell an anti-sleep system "Sleep Buster" for driver in 157,500 yen (US$2,000) in February 2012.

The product keeps collecting a biological signals in the driver's heartbeat rate and pulse wave sensor, which are built into the driver's seat, shows seven levels (concentration, relaxation, distraction, fatigue, drowsiness, physical deconditioning, etc.) of driver's status, alert the driver to stop driving both by sound and display. It detects the transition of the driver's mode from "awake" to "sleep" about 10 minutes before the driver really starts sleeping, which is expected to stop accidents.

With the management software "Human Tachometer", planned to be released in April 2012, automobile carriers will be able to track their drivers' health conditions, and other status changes such like drunk driving during their work.

"Sleep Buster" is developed by Delta Tooling Co., University of Tokyo, Oita University and Shimane Institute of Health Science.

See Also:

release [J]

Tags: Japan, Technology by Akky Akimoto
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Kanagawa Engineering College Kosaka Laboratory exhibited their serious game which simulates the experience of pregnancy, “Mommy Tummy,” at the Tokyo Game Show 2011.

“Mommy Tummy” is a serious game which allows you to have personal experience of the roughly 10 month period of pregnancy in two minutes.  The condition of pregnancy is emulated by wearing a suit into which special stomach and chest sensor devices are inserted.

A water bag is fitted into the suit, and by injecting hot water into the bag, it simulates the experience of the belly getting bigger as the developing foetus grows little by little.  Also a “fetal movement belt” is placed at the back of the stomach; this gives users a body vibration and the sensation of “being kicked” from inside the stomach.  On the monitor, the present condition of the foetus, how big it is and how it’s moving are displayed, bringing a real sense of the actual feeling of pregnancy.  All of the CG of the foetus are coordinated with the sensor of the suit, so for instance if you move violently its mood gets bad, if you pat your stomach its mood gets better, and it changes depending on the user’s movements.  A touch sensor is included on the front of the stomach to perceive patting motions.  This seems to present the message of “restful pregnancy,” as too much violent movement results in “miscarriage,” a bad ending also included in the game.

Translation authorized by VSMedia

Tags: Japan, Technology by Chiho Komoriya
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Some days ago we reported KDDI may distribute the next iteration of the iPhone. Now the reactions are coming: Goldman Sachs predicts hard times may come for Softbank [J], Softbank falls a 5% at Tokyo Stocks Exchange.

Softbank, with a 21% share of the market, is the third leading mobile service provider in Japan, trailing NTT DoCoMo (48%) and KDDI (27%). Although the company won a major advantage by being the country's exclusive iPhone distributor, its relatively poor coverage area and services have come into question lately, leading many to state that if another carrier stepped up to ship the iPhone, they would switch without hesitation.

KDDI, under its new CEO Takashi Tanaka, has recovered some of its lost fighting spirit. They introduced Skype preinstalled in all their phones; and in August they were the first to introduce Windows Phone in Japan. Now, with the iPhone 5, probably a lot of the young people who moved to Softbank will come back to their old provider.

Meanwhile, Masayoshi Son (Softbank CEO) announced in the next 2 years they are planning to invest 2,000 billion yen in order to improve their infrastructures. DoCoMo is pushing hard with their new technology LTE (also known as "Super 3G" or "3.9G") under the Xi brand, which allows smartphone users to enjoy a a bigger volume of data and more speed. For the time being it's only available at the center of Tokyo, Nagano and Osaka. Probably the social games devices (Sony Xperia PLAY, PS Vita and others) will help to the development of this new system.

Sources: Mainichi Shimbun [J], NTT DoCoMo

Tags: Cellular Phone, Japan, Technology by Daniel Alías
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Tsukuba Academic New Town, 60km North East of Tokyo, is known by universities and enterprise research centres.

There, prototype robots are walking around,

Tags: Japan, Technology by Akky Akimoto
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