Feb 28th - Japan To Use Russia's Glonass Satellite System

The government plans to start using Russia's Glonass satellite system in fiscal 2011, in addition to the U.S. Global Positioning System, for land surveys, to expand coverage and improve accuracy, it has been learned.

The former Soviet Union began developing Glonass in the 1980s to compete with GPS. Although the system was initially set up for military use, Russia is now promoting Glonass for civilian purposes.

It is unusual for Japan to use Russia's satellite technology, although more than 20 years have passed since the end of the Cold War.

Signals from Glonass can be used free of charge, just like those from GPS.

Over the 10 years or so from fiscal 2011, the Japanese government will upgrade satellite signal receivers in about 1,200 locations nationwide for land surveys, enabling them to receive Glonass signals as well.

The government hopes using Glonass will allow satellite signals to reach more places, including behind tall buildings and in valleys. It also aims to get faster and more accurate data on movements in the earth's crust near volcanoes.

Feb 25th - Mitsubishi Corp To Join In 200 Megawatt Solar Power Project In Spain

Japanese trading house Mitsubishi Corp. said Friday it will take part in a 200-megawatt solar power generation project in Spain, making it the first Japanese company to own concentrated solar power plants under commercial operation.

The Tokyo-based company said it has acquired a 15% stake in Acciona Termosolar from Acciona Energia, a group company of Acciona S.A. of Spain.

The project's total cost is around EUR1 billion and is expected to generate about 450 million kWh.

The Spanish company is world largest independent non-utility renewable energy developer and owner. It operates four CSP plants in southern Spain, three of which are already operating commercially. The remaining plant is slated to go onstream this autumn.

Feb 24th - NEC Develops Combo Fingerprint-Finger Vein Reader

NEC Corp. has developed the industry's first contactless-type biometric authentication system that reads both fingerprints and finger veins.

When the hand is held in front of the reader, a camera captures fingerprint and finger vein images to compare with a database of registered individuals. By simultaneously checking two biometric markers, people can be authenticated with nearly 100% accuracy. The system operates connected to a PC and features robust access restrictions.

NEC plans to market the system to financial institutions and public organizations in Japan, North America and Asia.

For domestic marketing it will collaborate with the U.S. software company Novell Inc. The two partners are forming a team of 20 salespeople for the task.

The system will retail for around 25,000 yen to 30,000 yen and NEC hopes to sell 400,000 units in three years.

Dec 1st - Mitsubishi Electric to buy German firm Vincotech to expand power device business

Mitsubishi Electric Corp. said Tuesday it will acquire German electronic component maker Vincotech Holdings SARL to enhance its energy-saving power semiconductor device business.
The Tokyo-based electronics firm agreed Monday with U.S. investment fund the Gores Group LLC, the shareholder of Vincotech, to purchase all shares in the German firm in late December, the company said.
The amount to be paid for the acquisition is likely to run into the billions of yen, though Mitsubishi Electric did not disclose the sum.
Vincotech specializes in the development, manufacturing and distribution of low power devices that are used as inverters for general industrial applications and power conditioners for solar power system applications, Mitsubishi Electric said.
Vincotech is expected to chalk up sales of 57.3 million euros in the year ending in December, according to Mitsubishi Electric.
With the acquisition, Mitsubishi Electric seeks to achieve sales of 190 billion yen in the power device business in fiscal 2015 from estimated sales of 117 billion yen in fiscal 2010 ending next March, the company said.
''We aim to further enhance our power device business by taking advantage of Mitsubishi's strengths in medium and high power device technology and of the low power device technology at which Vincotech excels,'' said its Senior Vice President Kazuo Kyuma.

Nov 30th - Sumitomo To Invest In French Solar Power Project

Sumitomo Corp. plans to take a stake in photovoltaic facilities now under construction in southern France and slated to come onstream next spring.

This is the first time that a Japanese company participates in a French solar power project.

Eco Delta Developpement, a French energy resources firm based in Marseilles, is building 30,000kw of solar plant facilities for roughly 14 billion yen in Les Mees, Alpes-de-Haute-Provence.

Sumitomo will obtain a 49.9% stake in the management company already established to oversee the plant operations. The Japanese trading house will also shoulder half of the project's costs. The facilities will supply power to a French power utility for 20 years, ensuring stable earnings, according to Sumitomo.

The French government plans to increase its domestic solar power generation capacity from roughly 130,000kw to 5.4 million kilowatts in 2020. With France and other European countries expected to pursue solar power projects, Sumitomo aims to accelerate its investment in the region.

Nov 9th - Toppan Printing Boosting Solar Cell Protective Sheet Capacity

Toppan Printing Co. plans to raise production capacity for protective sheets used in solar cell panels to 2.5 times current levels next spring.

The company will invest some 5 billion yen to construct a new building at its plant in Fukaya, Saitama Prefecture, to increase production of protective sheets, which are attached to the back surface of solar panels to keep out dust and moisture and extend panel life. The new facility will expand the plant's floor space to 28,000 sq. meters from 8,000 sq. meters.

Once the expansion is completed in March, the plant will be able to produce enough protective sheets for 5 gigawatts of solar panels each year, compared with 2 gigawatts at present.

Toppan's Fukuya Plant is expected to be at full capacity in the spring.

The Fukaya plant currently makes enough protective sheets for just under 1 gigawatt of panels annually, but demand is climbing rapidly. The company decided to beef up capacity because existing facilities are expected to be at full production next spring.

Toppan Printing is cultivating demand from foreign manufacturers in China and Taiwan, as well as from Sharp Corp. and other domestic manufacturers. It aims to increase its overseas sales ratio for protective sheets to 60-70%, up from around 40% at present.

Nov 1st - Toppan Printing demonstrates a credit card with colour screen and keypad

Toppan Printing has demonstrated a credit card with a colour screen and keypad, claiming that you don't need a mobile phone to manage mobile commerce.

The card, which at 3.9mm thick squeezes into the definition of such, has a 2.2-inch colour screen with a 320x240 resolution, but most importantly Toppan Printing reckons it will cost under $25 when production ramps up next year. As highlighted by NFC World: a card like this makes proximity payments viable without relying on a mobile telephone.

Toppan's card, demonstrated at the Tokyo International Forum

N-Mark (the standard formerly known as NFC) combines a battery-powered tag reader with an induction-powered tag. So if the in-built battery runs out, the card will still work - you just won't able to check your balance or authorise higher-value transactions that might require the use of the keypad. Toppan's card will support FeliCa too, as a manufacturing option.

Interaction is limited to a few keys, unlike Visa's effort to put intelligence into a credit card. Visa CodeSure was demonstrated in July and while we've not used one, it would seem that wear and tear would quickly show which keys were used most regularly.

Press gently, don't want to leave any indicative marks

Toppan's card can do a lot more than take a PIN. One could use it to control the level of transaction to be authorised automatically, or control which of the multiple payment schemes that could be installed should be used by default. Toppan says it's also working on showing video on the screen, which seems excessive to us. Just as long as it can play Doom we'll be fine with that. ®

Oct 19th - Japan Smart-Grid Project May Help Spawn New Export Industry

The smart grid that Okinawa Electric Power has begun operating on the island of Miyako-jima holds tremendous value for Japanese companies because it can verify technologies they can apply to develop businesses overseas.

The government is trying to nurture smart-grid technologies as a new export industry. In fact, the pilot smart grid on Miyako-jima is a steppingstone to verification projects in the West, in which the Japanese government will help domestic companies participate.

The load-leveling control system for Miyako-jima's grid was developed by Toshiba Corp. while the sodium-sulfer storage battery complex was developed by NGK Insulators Ltd.  and the panels for the solar power system were developed by Sharp Corp.  Kyocera Corp. and Kaneka Corp.

Because nations have different standards and specifications for their power infrastructures, Japanese companies have focused their smart-grid efforts on the domestic market. But this has raised concerns that the firms may miss opportunities in what is expected to be the rapid installation of next-generation power infrastructure in Europe, which is introducing wind power and other renewable energy sources, and in the U.S. and newly emerging economies, where demand for electricity continues to expand.

The Miyako-jima project is a way for Japanese companies to test their smart-grid technologies domestically. But the Japanese government is also supporting their efforts to expand the business abroad.

For example, it will support the construction of a test facility in the U.S. state of New Mexico, where 19 Japanese firms will participate starting in fiscal 2011. And it will back the participation of Japanese firms in verification experiments to be conducted in Spain and France.

Oct 19th - Smart Grid Goes Live On Okinawa Island (Toshiba)

-In a significant first for Japan, Okinawa Electric Power Co. has begun operating a smart grid to control the supply of renewable-energy-derived electricity for the 55,000-strong population of the remote Okinawa Prefecture island Miyako-jima.

Okinawa Electric operates a large solar power facility.

The launch on the island is important because it marks the nation's first autonomous system of smart-grid infrastructure that uses massive storage batteries to stably supply electricity by offsetting wild fluctuations in the production of solar and wind power.

The infrastructure Okinawa Electric is operating links the existing power grid to a 4mw solar power plant and a sodium sulfur (NaS) battery complex capable of storing 4mw of power. Some lithium ion batteries have also been installed.

The utility spent 6.15 billion yen on the infrastructure, two-thirds of which was subsidized by the central government.

Toshiba Corp.  manufactured the load-leveling control system and other major components of the grid. The storage batteries were supplied by NGK Insulators Ltd.

In addition to controlling the supply of power to the grid from the new solar power plant, the system also controls power from existing 4.2mw wind farms situated on Miyako-jima.

Up until now, Okinawa Electric has leveled the load to the grid from the wind farms by increasing and decreasing the fuel burned in a thermal power plant. By switching to the use of storage batteries and other smart-grid technologies, the company will be able to increase its use of renewable energy resources on the island without increased dependence on the thermal power plant.

The government plans to subsidize the installation of solar power systems in Japan and achieve a more than 10-fold increase in generation capacity to 28,000mw in 2020. Smart-grid technologies are essential if this renewable-energy-derived electricity is to be supplied in a stable way to the national power grid.

18th Oct - New Electric Vehicle sharing service from Orix Auto and Nihon Unisys

Coat-tailing on the twin trends of shared rental cars and  electric vehicles (EV) going mainstream, Orix Auto and Nihon Unisys have formed a group to start an EV car sharing service in Osaka. The new service will start with 12 Nissan Leaf cars this year, and expand to at least 50 units by 2013. Rental rates have not yet been decided, but in other areas where car-sharing is popular, the rates typically run around JPY6,000/month.

7th Oct - Softbank Wins Subscriber Crown For 6th Month In Row

Softbank Mobile Corp. said Thursday it gained 332,600 new subscribers on a net basis in September, taking the top spot among mobile carriers for the sixth straight month.

The Softbank Corp. group firm continued to see strong sales of Apple Inc.'s iPhone 4 smartphone. Softbank Mobile is the exclusive mobile service provider for the iPhone.

Softbank Mobile's subscriber base grew at a record monthly pace, excluding the month of March, which is the busiest month for sales.

For the April-September half, the company gained a total 1.598 million new subscribers on a net basis, a record high for a fiscal half.

NTT DoCoMo Inc. came second with 109,400 new subscribers. Its net gain was smaller than a month earlier, because more and more DoCoMo subscribers shifted to rival carriers, due partly to the popular iPhone, according to the company.

KDDI Corp. placed third, gaining a net 91,400 new subscribers.

Coming in fourth was eAccess Ltd. an affiliate Emobile Ltd. with 68,500.

6th Oct - CEATEC Japan features smart grid power network, 3-D technology

The CEATEC Japan 2010 information technology and electronics fair opened Tuesday in Chiba, featuring displays of a next-generation smart grid power transmission network and a wide lineup of products using 3-D technologies.

A total of 616 companies and groups, of which 196 are from overseas, have registered to exhibit their products and technologies in 2,255 booths, organizers said. The five-day fair is being held at Chiba's Makuhari Messe convention center.

The organizers said they expect the fair to draw some 200,000 visitors, compared with last year's 150,000.

One of the highlights this year is a 3-D theater where the audience can experience a simulation of a near-future city. The city features an IT-driven smart grid that optimizes the balance between demand and supply of electricity to achieve a low-carbon society.

Smart grids are efficient power transmission networks that are also expected to encourage the use of renewable energy because they provide stability even if fluctuating natural power sources such as solar and wind are used.

"Smart grids are the ultimate way of monitoring and providing services to customers," said Mitsuhiko Yamashita, executive vice president of Nissan Motor Co., which developed the smart grid presentation jointly with Namco Bandai Games Inc.

By finding out how people are using their utilities, it becomes possible to provide electricity, water and gas more effectively, Yamashita said in a speech.

Among the presentations of products using 3-D technologies, Toshiba Corp. is showcasing 3-D televisions that can be watched without special glasses. Toshiba plans to become the world's first company to release such a product when it markets the TVs in late December in Japan.

Toshiba unveiled 12- and 20-inch liquid crystal display 3-D Regza TVs, while a 56-inch model is also on display.

Among other high-profile exhibits, Hitachi Displays Ltd. is demonstrating a new type of energy-saving compact display it has developed jointly with Pixtronix Inc. of the United States.

The display, intended for portable devices such as smart phones and tablets, consumes only about half the electricity of an LCD, allowing people to read electronic books longer without having to recharge their device, the Hitachi group company said. Hitachi Displays plans to begin mass-producing the display possibly in late 2011.

The organizers of the trade show will also open a space for business-to-business communications from Wednesday through Friday aimed at increasing business opportunities for vendors and users.

CEATEC, which stands for Combined Exhibition of Advanced Technologies, has been held every year since 2000 as a venue where business professionals and consumers can view the latest developments in the electronics industry ahead of the yearend shopping season.

Sony To Farm Out Image Sensor Production To Fujitsu

Sony Corp. will subcontract the manufacture of CMOS image sensors to Fujitsu Ltd. in an arrangement aimed at lowering production costs without revealing proprietary technologies to overseas foundries.

CMOS (complementary metal-oxide semiconductor) sensors are used widely in digital cameras and camera phones. With the market growing rapidly, price competition with foreign rivals is heating up.

Sony ranks sixth in the world in terms of CMOS sensor shipments, with its current output capacity standing at the equivalent of 16,000 silicon wafers a month.

CMOS sensors are used in cell phones and digital cameras, including Sony's NEX-5 camera.

The subcontracting will begin as early as this fiscal year at a pace of several thousand silicon wafer equivalents a month. Sony will monitor the savings generated and consider boosting the scale of the deal depending on the results.

Fujitsu will handle orders from Sony at Fujitsu Semiconductor Ltd.'s flagship plant for system chips in Mie Prefecture. Because CMOS sensors and system chips share many manufacturing processes, the factory should be able to lower production costs through economies of scale.

Sony will farm out the highly generic portion of the production process, which accounts for 80-90% of the work. The remaining steps will be handled internally at Sony, which will turn semi-finished CMOS sensors into finished products while guarding its proprietary technologies.

The electronics giant spent about 60 billion yen over the three years since fiscal 2007 to beef up CMOS sensor production at Sony Semiconductor Kyushu Corp.'s Kumamoto Technology Center.

It plans to invest an additional 40 billion yen to lift its CMOS sensor output capacity 40% by the end of fiscal 2011.

By leveraging the capacity hike resulting from the subcontracting deal, Sony aims to maintain its price competitiveness against chip foundries in Taiwan, China and the U.S. Teaming up with a domestic nonrival will also enable the firm to prevent its cutting-edge technologies from falling into the hands of foreign competitors.

Mitsui, Jianlong To Form Car Battery Tie-Up

Mitsui & Co. will form a car battery partnership with Jianlong Group, spending some 4 billion yen (47.8 million dollars) to acquire an over 20% stake in the Chinese company's lithium-ion battery subsidiary.

Established in 1999, Jianlong Group -- officially Beijing Jianlong Heavy Industry Group Co. -- is China's biggest player in the shipbuilding and steel industries. It generated about 38 billion yuan (5.7 billion dollars) in sales in 2009.

Mitsui and Jianlong representatives are expected to sign the deal in China Thursday. It will be the first case of a Japanese company investing in a Chinese car battery manufacturer.

The deal will involve Mitsui helping Tianjin EV Energies Co. sell its batteries to Japanese automakers. The trading house will consider linking the firm with Japanese companies -- battery makers, for instance -- for a technological tie-up.

Tianjin EV Energies, set up in 2009, is building a factory that will be able to produce batteries for tens of thousands of vehicles per year.

China, the world's largest automobile market, is likely to become one of the world's biggest electric vehicle markets as well. This is because Beijing is considering spending 100 billion yuan by 2020 to boost the number of vehicles powered by new sources of energy -- chiefly, electric vehicles -- to 5 million to better protect the environment and nurture related businesses.

Panasonic Develops Hair-Washing Robot For Hospitals

Panasonic Corp. said Friday that it has developed a hair-washing robot for hospitals and nursing-care facilities.

The machine, which was designed to make life easier for both caregivers and patients, consists of a main unit and a reclining chair.

Washing hair with 16 fingers.

The main unit's wash sink is equipped with a pressure sensor for scanning the shape of the head in 3-D. Once the scan data is recorded, the machine sprays shampoo and warm water, washing the hair with 16 fingers while also giving a head massage. Washing times can be adjusted to between three and eight minutes.

Panasonic aims to commercialize the product around 2012. The price has yet to be decided.

The company sees welfare and nursing-care robots as a pillar of its new businesses. It aims to earn 100 billion yen in annual sales from such robots by fiscal 2015.

Dentsu, Nihon Unisys To Develop Japanese AI With MIT

-Dentsu Inc. and Nihon Unisys Ltd, in partnership with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the U.S., will develop artificial intelligence (AI) centering on the Japanese language.

Commonsense knowledge of words unique to Japanese will be programmed into a database to create conversation interfaces that appear natural. The database will make such inferences as "summer equals hot" and "a summer night equals muggy so it is hard to sleep."

The database will hold more than 1 million combinations. The partners will complete the database in two years. It will then be incorporated into AI technology.

Using the database, the technology will help supplement the machine's "understanding" of the intentions behind people's words. It is expected to be used for many applications, such as telephone answering systems.

MIT Media Laboratory, which develops cutting-edge information technology, will undertake the project.

New Japanese Coca-Cola Vending Machines Come With Green Roofs

Coca-Cola (Japan) Co. has unveiled a new vending machine topped with a mixture of artificial turf and moss to help the machine stay cool.

A sheet of artificial turf with sunagoke, which can tolerate a dry environment and is easy to maintain, is fixed onto the top of the machine. This mechanism works in the same way that a garden rooftop keeps a building cooler during hot spells.

An internal test has shown that the green roof improves the cooling efficiency of the machine, with the cooling device that refrigerates beverages inside using less electricity than a conventional machine. The new machine's higher cost can be recovered in five years in the form of lower electricity bills, says the company.

Two machines have been installed in Tokyo's Jiyugaoka area. A portion of proceeds will be donated to a local environmental foundation.

MHI invest in wind power

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd will join a large scale offshore wind generation project in the UK.

Japan Wind Development Co Ltd - Smart Grid

Japan Wind Development Co. Ltd will work together with a British electric power company to create the next generation smart grid in the Orkney Isalnds

News from the Tokyo Motor Show

Sanyo Denki considers assembling a battery system for hybrid cars outside Japan.

Sanyo Denki announced a plan to increase production of lithium-ion batteries for hybrid cars.

Fuji Heavy Industries plans to launch a hybrid car in 2012 and market it not only in Japan but also in major countries in the world.