Great Gear - 2012/11/14

Nov. 14, Wed.
Special Report: Next Generation Power Generation

On this "Special Report" segment, we take a look at an amazing little product that uses gas to produce electricity on a small scale but very efficiently. It's a very small gas turbine engine for robots or household generators.

IHI Corporation is known for its world-class technology, which it uses to produce commercial jet engines. The company developed an ultra compact power generator unit, which uses the same gas turbine technology found in jet engines. The gas turbine unit is 8 cm in diameter, 12 cm long and weighs 1.2 kilos. It is the smallest in the world. So small in fact, that it fits in a container just a little larger than a briefcase. Despite its diminutive specs, it can output 400 watts of electricity for extended periods of time. The turbine spins at the high speed of 330 thousand rotations per minute, yet it sounds surprisingly quiet. It's still a prototype, but it might not be long until this compact generator is commercialized.


On Site: Home Care & Rehabilitation Exhibition

We sent Brian Hughes to have a look at the 2012 Home Care & Rehabilitation Exhibition. You'll see the best of what's available for the lives of the elderly or disabled on this "On-Site" segment.

Schedule: Sep 18-20, 2012
Location: Tokyo Big Sight

Japan has one of the highest life expectancies in the world but it also has a declining birthrate. That means that the percentage of the population over 65 is on the rise. In fact some projections estimate that it will pass the 25% mark within the next ten years. A number of companies gathered recently in Tokyo to display the newest technologies in the field of home care and rehabilitation. The displays featured an amazing array of care and rehabilitation products, as simple as a walking stick with an innovative and ergonomic design, to sophisticated devices including a robot that will gently lift up your body, various progressive types of wheelchairs and many other devices for doing physical therapy at home.

Gadgets: Clothes That Get Hot When Wet

We take a look at a line of clothing that uses a special type of material to absorb moisture and generate heat. It may not be a gadget in technical terms, but it is a pretty amazing piece of technology.

Common sense tells you that when you get wet, your body loses heat, in other words, you feel cold. But a product called Breath Thermo has been developed by a well-known Japanese sporting goods maker using some special fiber. The company's fiber absorbs the moisture released from the body and generates heat. The air that's heated up in this process is retained by the fabric. The result is that the space inside the clothes is warm and dry. Until now, this fiber material was used primarily in outerwear such as skiwear and underclothes designed for outdoor use. Now it's being woven into regular innerwear for comfortable, everyday use.

Further Info:

Please note that some of the products or services featured in this program may be prototypes and not be sold at stores. NHK is not responsible for any damages, losses or injuries caused by the usage of these products or services.

On-Site : Home Care & Rehabilitation Exhibition
- Health and Welfare Information Association
http://www.hcrjapan.org/english/
Head Office +81-3-3580-3052

- NAKAJIMA Lab., Chiba Institute of Technology
http://www.nakajima-lab.it-chiba.ac.jp/index.html (Japanese only)
Public Relations Department +81-47-478-0143

- Toyota Motor Corporation
http://www.toyota-global.com/innovation/partner_robot/
Partner Robot Division +81-565-98-6421

- Mitsuba Corporation.
http://www.mitsuba.co.jp/english/index.html
Engineering Division +81-277-52-5036

- Suwada Blacksmith Works, Inc.
http://www.suwada.co.jp/product/alstick/alstickpage.html (Japanese only)
Sales Division +81-256-45-6111

- Project Team Atom
http://www.t-atom.com/ (Japanese only)
Office +81-46-224-2466

- KOYO ENGINEERING
http://www.koyoeng.com/product/easylift.html (Japanese only)
Head Office +81-3-3984-5640

- Muscle Corporation
http://www.musclecorp.com/english/index.php
Head Office +81-6-6886-2885

- OX ENGINEERING CO., LTD.
http://www.oxgroup.co.jp/
Head Office +81-43-228-5616
Gadgets : Clothes That Get Hot When Wet
- Mizuno Corporation
http://www.mizuno.com/
http://www.breaththermo.com/index.html (Japanese only)
Head Office +81-3-3233-7032
Special Report : Next Generation Power Generation
- IHI Corporation
http://www.ihi.co.jp/en/index.html
Head Office +81-3-6204-7800

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