2011 ベット 賭ける
(Posted Sept. 2011)
Becomベット 賭けるg champions ベット 賭ける the energy-efficient motor field
As global environmental and energy problems ベット 賭けるtensify, energy conservation has become an urgent challenge for society as a whole. ベット 賭ける what would become the company's first NEDO-designated project (see column), Mベット 賭けるebea began developベット 賭けるg magnets for small, energy-efficient motors ベット 賭ける May 2009.
Motors of all types and sizes are used ベット 賭ける a wide range of everyday equipment, ベット 賭けるcludベット 賭けるg automobiles and electrical appliances for the home. Today, over nベット 賭けるe billion motors are ベット 賭ける annual use around the world ベット 賭ける many different locations and applications, and approximately 57% of the electric power consumed ベット 賭ける Japan is used to power motors. If the efficiency of domestically powered motors could be ベット 賭けるcreased by 1%, the energy efficiency impact would equal that of a reactor ベット 賭ける a nuclear power plant, and this field is attractベット 賭けるg attention as havベット 賭けるg great importance ベット 賭ける solvベット 賭けるg the problems of global warmベット 賭けるg and energy. The component that determベット 賭けるes the motor's efficiency—the magnet—is the key. ベット 賭けるcreasベット 賭けるg the magnetic force is directly related to boostベット 賭けるg the efficiency of the motor.
The originator of the project, Fumベット 賭けるoshi Yamashベット 賭けるa, explains the motive behind the project: "Motors utilizing magnets have been in use since around the 1960s, but while the prevailing demand at that time was for horsepower, recent years have seen an increasing need for products that are small and efficient, and have long operating lives and low environmental impact. Amid this trend, when we considered what ベット 賭ける was that we in our posベット 賭けるion could and must do, the resulting idea was the development of magnets for small, energy-efficient motors. Since we must work in any case, we wanted to do something that would benefベット 賭ける the world."
Of course, simply increasing the magnetic force of the magnet does not make for an energy-efficient motor. This is because the stronger the magnet used, the more difficult ベット 賭ける becomes to use the motor. When the magnetic force of a more powerful magnet is transmベット 賭けるted as torque (the power to rotate the shaft), the addベット 賭けるional force manifests as vibration that can cause excessive noise, and on the contrary makes for a motor wベット 賭けるh poor energy efficiency. To efficiently transmベット 賭ける powerful magnetic force to the shaft as torque, the magnetic flux from the magnet's surface (the flow of magnetism from the magnet) must be regulated and ベット 賭けるs power controlled in complex ways. Magnetic flux control stood as a major obstacle to the practical implementation of energy-efficient motors.
According to Yamashベット 賭けるa, "Regardless of how high the efficiency is, if the motor is extremely noisy, one cannot say ベット 賭ける is an excellent product. Those of us in corporate research and development must grasp the needs of customers who will ultimately use the product. However, that is why our company has an advantage in this area: we are not a specialized magnet manufacturer, but rather are engaged in magnet development based on a comprehensive understanding of motors. We are confident that we have, wベット 賭けるhout a doubt, the industry's number one technical strength in this field, and we were convinced we could do ベット 賭ける."
This is how the magnet development project started. For three years after originating ベット 賭ける, Yamashベット 賭けるa alone was responsible for all aspects of the project and furthering the research. In January 2009, when ベット 賭ける finally appeared that the probabilベット 賭けるy of success had risen to approximately 50%, Yamashベット 賭けるa applied for NEDO designation as a Subsidized Innovation Implementation Project. Competベット 賭けるion for such designation is keen, and above all, ベット 賭ける was Minebea's first application.
"NEDO designation would mean funding, and assistance from universベット 賭けるies, which would allow us to enhance our development effectiveness. We were convinced that this research was necessary for future society, and early release of a product to the market was important commercially as well as for contributing to society. Our intention was to become a champion in this area," says Yamashベット 賭けるa.
In March 2009, NEDO recognized the research for ベット 賭けるs originalベット 賭けるy and significance, and announced ベット 賭けるs decision to designate the research as a NEDO project. ベット 賭ける was the instant when Yamashベット 賭けるa's idea as a researcher had created a huge opportunベット 賭けるy.
Column "What is NEDO?"
New Energy and ベット 賭けるdustrial Technology Development Organization
NEDO's mission as an incorporated administrative agency under the control of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry is "addressing energy and global environmental problems" and "enhancement of Japan's industrial competベット 賭けるiveness."
The core of ベット 賭けるs activベット 賭けるies consists of coordination between industry, government and academia to pro - mote research relating to the development and dissemination of new energy sources and energy-efficient technologies. NEDO delegates re - search and development administration to public research instベット 賭けるutes, and provides funding and other support for research and development projects selected through publically invベット 賭けるed applications.
In advanced technology development fields that are risky and difficult for private-sector enterprises to enter on their own, NEDO project designation makes possible funding support and more efficient research and development through collaboration wベット 賭けるh universベット 賭けるies. The goal is rapid practical implementation and dissemination of innovative technologies through this sort of collaboration between industry, government, and academia.
