Laboratory for New Media 21st Exhibition
“Personalized, just for you”

Laboratory for New Media Permanent Exhibition periodically updates contents of exhibitions to introduce the various possibilities of expression provided by information science and technology.

This exhibition focuses on creating items that are “personalized” to suit people. We use items that are mass produced every day. Items made in a standard way can be difficult to use, and may not suit your preferences. Thus, recently we have been linking computers and machines such as 3D printers and laser cutters, and digital fabrication, a method that creates items one at a time based on individual digital data, is becoming more common. Using this technology, we are now able to create items that are personalized to suit each person's body and circumstances. Efforts are being made to digitize people's individual tastes, such as appearance and touch, and we also expect that this will yield high levels of satisfaction if it is reflected in the manufacturing of the future.
This exhibition will introduce outcomes from two research and development areas: “digital fabrication,” which creates “personalization,” and “technology that quantifies kansei,” which measures individual kansei (“sensibility” or “affective”) to in order to explore “personalization.”
Imagine a creative future in which creating “personalized” items for each person is the norm through combining these technologies.


Interview for Exhibitors

Manufacturing that resolves issues

Digital fabrication technology shows development that not to enjoyment as a personal hobby, by being used as a method to resolve issues. For example, occupational therapists, have begun to use digital fabrication technology to create items personalized to each person with an issue to resolve. The creation methods are also taught to the person facing a challenge how to use 3D printers and make something, and that creative act engages and enriches that person’s life.

Technology that creates personalization

In order to create items that satisfy individuals, it is necessary to have technology development that enables manufacturing with diverse materials. Here, there will be introductions of materials and 3D printers under development, including technology for outputting edible materials and technology for gel material that contains many liquids and technology for adjusting the hardness and softness through changing the internal structure of items. The right photo is complex type of 3D printer named “FABRICATOR”.

Explore for personalization

We would like you to participate in the research of “Visualizing kansei”. Let us also introduce the examples reflecting the research results and it is an experimental research for visualizing kansei through three evaluation axes. Please try evaluating what you feel about the item shown on the monitor. This advances generalization of kansei, and leads to support for people who want to create personalized items but don’t know what to create.

Technology seeking personalization

Tools used by hands, and clothes that touch our skin are judged for use for a long period of time, whether it’s an ease of use or if we have a feeling attachment to items. It is necessary to quantitatively research the sense of touch in order to create well-loved items. If we can freely create texture data and reproduce it, we can easily manufacture texture matching people’s emotions and offer it to them.


Term May 16(Thu), 2019 - September 1(Sun), 2019
Exhibitors
  • Hiroya TANAKA (Professor, Keio University)

    Born in Sapporo City, Hokkaido Prefecture. His motto is “research from the two aspects of technology and society.” He took graduate and doctoral level courses on engineering at the University of Tokyo, and conducted research and development on wide area 3D scan systems through images. He finally received his doctorate in engineering in the field of social engineering.

  • Noriko NAGATA (Professor, Kwansei Gakuin University/ Director of the Researcher Center for Kansei Value Creation)

    She became employed at Mitsubishi Electric in 1983. She worked on research regarding application of measuring systems for color data processing and sensitivity information processing at the applied equipment laboratory and the industrial systems laboratory. She completed a PhD program at the Graduate School of Engineering Science at Osaka University in 1996. Her specialties include Kansei engineering and media engineering.