2015 INNO-vation Disruptive Challenger
As the performance of semiconductors (MPUs) has improved, embedded OSs have gradually become more bloated. At the same time, ultra-small MPUs, just a few millimeters in size, have been developed and ubiquitous computing has become a reality. However, despite MPUs small enough to be embedded in living bodies appearing, there has been no embedded OS with an ultra-small, lightweight implementation - a technological white space has arisen. Therefore, with INNO-vation, we aimed to develop a reliable embedded OS that can be implemented into robots & organisms alike. Unlike conventional OSs, we intend to apply the OS to an ultra-lightweight implementation and ultra-small MPU. We aim to enter a field where no similar OS has existed before. Although we were not able to obtain a third-party certification as proof of high reliability, we aimed to apply our findings to organisms. As such, we developed a system to guide living organisms like robots and named it Biological Swarm Control (R). Currently, we are aiming to commercialize this technology into aquaculture to target underwater organisms (such as fish). For example, by automatically guiding the fish the system can automate the catching process. In the future, we hope to expand this tech outside of just aquatic animals and have a method of controlling any living creature like a robot, not only underwater but also on land and in the air.
CEO, Homura Heavy Industries Corporation
Yosuke Furusawa was born in Takizawa, Iwate in 1982. He has been involved in the launch of the production design and development of the welfare and medical Robot-suit HAL since he started working for CYBERDYNE Inc, including the acquisition of ISO13482 and ISO13485 certifications. Following the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011, he retired from his company and returned to his hometown in Iwate to establish Homura Heavy Industries Corporation.