慶應義塾大学 - 電気自動車研究室
When we asked at a seminar for high school students whether they thought society would improve in the future, 70% replied that global warming and depletion of oil resources would cause deterioration. We asked the same question an hour later when we had finished telling them about future energy forms and electric vehicles, and many had changed their minds, with 90% of the students saying they thought society would improve.
Twentieth-century inventions such as solar cells, lithium-ion batteries, and neodymium magnets have been put to practical use in the 21st century. Thanks to such developments, everyone on earth will be able to live in greater prosperity in the future.
Japan is a world leader in developing such technologies.
The key aim of our research is to facilitate the global adoption of these technologies, particularly to enable the swift spread of electric vehicles and associated automated driving systems. If we can achieve this, Japan will be able to help revitalize global industry and drive even greater developments.
As well as developing technologies to make this happen, it is important to create structures enabling as many people as possible to use these technologies. First, we need to convince people that a bright future awaits us in the 21st century. We will continue to accumulate technical know-how, disseminate information, and develop new ways of facilitating the widespread adoption of new technologies.