The IEEE Tokyo Section Life Member Affinity Group (LMAG), co-sponsored by the Technical Program Committee (TPC), hosted a tour and lecture at the NTT Musashino Research and Development Center on this past June. A total of 34 participants attended, including 30 IEEE members. The tour covered the history of telegraph and telephone services, groundbreaking technologies and services in telecommunications since the launch of Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Public Corporation (NTT), IEEE milestones, and the vision of IOWN (Innovative Optical and Wireless Network) for the future.
At the NTT History Center of Technologies, which exhibits a collection of historical assets of the NTT Group, participants experienced operating a magnetic telephone and a manual switchboard used in the early days of telephone services. They also learned about the progression of technologies, including switching equipment, transmission lines, above/underground facilities, and the latest internet and mobile advancements. It is evident that a continuous stream of technical innovation has supported this history for around 100 years.
NTT History Center of Technologies
IOWN is a concept for a network and information processing infrastructure, including terminals, that can provide high-speed, large-capacity communications and enormous computing resources through innovative technologies, primarily optics. Participants learned about the IOWN vision through exhibits of an all-optical network, photonics-electronics convergence devices/Silicon photonics devices, and NTT’s version of the LLM “tsuzumi.”
Additionally, Dr. Akira Okada, the NTT Senior Vice President of R&D and Head of the Science and Core Technology Laboratory Group, delivered a talk on “Device Technology for Realizing the IOWN Concept.” He discussed IOWN technologies, focusing on low power consumption, natural photonics technologies, and prospects, aiming to achieve both economic growth and sustainability. It was also announced that the IOWN Global Forum has been established to realize this vision. The tour provided valuable opportunities to learn about the history and vision of telecommunications technology.
After the tour, the first social gathering and exchange of opinions since the end of the pandemic took place, fostering deeper friendships among participants.
