OMRON Establishes OMRON SINIC X Corporation in Quest of "Near-future Designs": OMRON's Challenge for Future

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KYOTO, Japan, May 9, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- OMRON Corporation, based in Kyoto, announced the establishment of OMRON SINIC X Corporation, a research company that designs the near future, in Hongo, Tokyo, which began its full-scale operation on April 26, 2018. OMRON SINIC X will conduct research to help the OMRON Group achieve JPY1 trillion in sales, JPY100 billion in operating income, and other fiscal 2020 goals as defined under the company's VG2.0 medium-term management plan, as well as to accelerate the creation of technologies and new business activities that spur growth after 2020.

The research company is a strategic foothold that creates what OMRON sees as "near-future designs." It has employed prominent human capital in the fields of various leading-edge technologies, including artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, Internet of things (IoT), manufacturing and finance. Each researcher will create "near-future designs" by integrating a business model, technology strategy and intellectual property strategy, and breaking it down into concrete business architecture based on technological innovation in order to solve social issues in each field with a focus on four key domains: factory automation (FA), healthcare, mobility and energy management. The company will also pursue open innovation in collaboration with universities and external research institutions to expedite the creation of "near-future designs."

Since its foundation, OMRON has contributed to the development of the world by anticipating social changes and introducing automation to society through technological development and business creation. In recent years, technologies represented by AI, IoT and robotics have rapidly advanced, and these technological advances have triggered changes of the social environment in a discontinued way.

Under these circumstances, in an effort to further contribute to the development of society through technological development and business creation, OMRON has, since the establishment of the chief technology officer (CTO) in 2015, focused on enhancing OMRON's unique "management of technology" that concretely designs the near future based on technological innovation, clearly backcasts strategies necessary to realize the design, and implements them. As part of the enhancement of the "management of technology," OMRON established the Innovation Exploring Initiative Headquarters in March 2018. The Innovation Exploring Initiative Headquarters, which is positioned as a platform to improve the corporate capability to create innovation, assumes responsibilities comprehensively from "near-future designs" to strategy development and business verification. To support these activities, the Edge-type AI Development Center (in Shinagawa, Tokyo) and the Robotics Development Center (on the west coast of the United States) were established. In collaboration with the existing organizations such as the Keihanna Technology Innovation Center as well as each business basis, OMRON will make group-wide efforts to pursue strategy development, business verification, technological development and product development on the basis of "near-future designs," thereby further improving the capability to create innovation.

OMRON will continue to strengthen the "management of technology" to accelerate innovation, solving social issues through the group's business activities.

Outline of OMRON SINIC X Corporation

• Company Name: OMRON SINIC X Corporation
• Representative: Masaki Suwa, President & CEO, Director
• Address: 3rd floor, Kadokawa Hongo Building, 5-24-5, Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo
• Number of employees: 12
• Establishment: Registered on February 1, 2018, and started full-scale operation on April 26, 2018
• Capital: JPY130 million (capital: JPY65 million, capital reserve: JPY65 million)

Mission of OMRON SINIC X

To develop "near-future designs" by drawing up plans for the target future that reflect technological innovation and social changes, overlooking them from the perspectives of business, technology and intellectual property, and formulating hypotheses about innovative customer values at a socially viable level, and to create new core technologies by quickly understanding trends in technological innovation necessary to realize the near-future designs.

Origin of the name of OMRON SINIC X

"SINIC" is the name of a future prediction theory that OMRON Corporation founder Kazuma Tateisi published in 1970 from the idea that in order to manage a business by anticipating social needs, it is necessary to predict a future society. The name of the new company represents a combination of "SINIC," a symbol of the near future, and "X," unknown technology.

Profiles of OMRON SINIC X researchers

- Masaki Suwa
President & CEO, Director, OMRON SINIC X Corporation
Worked for OMRON Corporation before assuming the present post.
Engages in studies on 3D image measurement principles and algorithms related to signal processing and machine learning.

- Satoshi Kurihara
Technical consultant, OMRON SINIC X Corporation
Professor, Graduate School of Information Systems, the University of Electro-Communications
Visiting researcher, Dwango Artificial Intelligence Laboratory
As a technical consultant, provides advice on technological architecture design based on near-future designs and relevant technologies, and develops plans to embody open innovation.

- Yoshitaka Ushiku
Technical advisor, OMRON SINIC X Corporation
Harada-Ushiku Laboratory, Graduate School of Information Science and Technology, the University of Tokyo
Research subject is the interaction in a harmony between humans and machines.

- Atsushi Hashimoto
Researcher, OMRON SINIC X Corporation
Was an assistant professor at Graduate School of Education, Kyoto University, before assuming the present post.
Specializes in perceptual information processing/intellectual robotics, and a major research subject is the relationship between humans and machines in near-future manufacturing.

- Felix von Drigalski
Researcher, OMRON SINIC X Corporation
Completed a doctoral program of Nara Institute of Science and Technology. Research subject is the near-future design of robotics in manufacturing.

- Yoshihisa Ijiri
Researcher, OMRON SINIC X Corporation
Temporarily transferred from OMRON Corporation. Research subject is the near-future design of robotics in manufacturing.

- Mitsuharu Konishi
Researcher, OMRON SINIC X Corporation
Temporarily transferred from OMRON Corporation. Utilizes his work experience in the financial industry to develop near-future designs from a broad perspective.

About OMRON Corporation

OMRON Corporation is a global leader in the field of automation based on its core technology of "Sensing & Control + Think." Established in 1933, OMRON has about 36,000 employees worldwide, working to provide products and services in 117 countries. The company's business fields cover a broad spectrum, ranging from industrial automation and electronic components to automotive electronics, social infrastructure systems, healthcare and environmental solutions. For more information, visit OMRON's website: http://www.omron.com/.

SOURCE OMRON Corporation

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