ABSTRACT
Makoto Iida thought that the establishment of a substantive research and development foundation was essential in order to lay the groundwork for new business opportunities. In order to accommodate research aimed at expanding the company’s frontier, Iida established the Engineering and Development Centre in 1979. The Systems Planning section incorporates activities such as the conceptualization of prospective systems as merchandise to be marketed; the preparation of basic product/system specifications; and the coordination of research and related activities towards the production of marketable merchandise. The Office of Technology Investigation identifies new areas for technological research and development, cultivates concrete applications for this technology, and analyses and evaluates its commercial potential. Shinichiro Hashimoto then takes the visiting students to Nippon Telegraph and Telephone’s research institute and encourages them to visit other research institutes on their own so they can objectively evaluate the Intelligent Systems Laboratory.
