National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology

36°03′37″N 140°07′59″E / 36.06024°N 140.13310°E / 36.06024; 140.13310Employees2,949Research institute executive

Ishimura Kazuhiko, President

Parent departmentMinistry of Economy, Trade and IndustryWebsiteaist.go.jp

The National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (産業技術総合研究所, Sangyō Gijutsu Sōgō Kenkyū-sho), or AIST, is a Japanese research facility headquartered in Tokyo, and most of the workforce is located in Tsukuba Science City, Ibaraki, and in several cities throughout Japan. The institute is managed to integrate scientific and engineering knowledge to address socio-economic needs. It became a newly designed legal body of Independent Administrative Institution in 2001, remaining under the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry.

History

In its present form AIST was established in 2001. However, its predecessor institutes have been operating since 1882. In 2015, it is running more than 40 researching institutes and several branches over Japan including International Metrology Cooperation Office.^[1]

Three missions of AIST

Advanced Research by exploring broad spectra of research fields and integrating multidisciplinary subjects to promote innovation in versatile fields that strengthen the competitiveness of Japanese industries in the world market and create new industries.
Interdisciplinary and Cross-Disciplinary Research that enables planning long-range governmental policies by exploiting the current and future needs of society.
Basic Research that maintains and strengthens competitiveness of national science and technology by developing and maintaining high standards of scientific and engineering research under the sole responsibility of AIST.

Type-I and Type-II basic research

The institute attempts to use and integrate scientific and engineering knowledge that is fragmented into various disciplines to address versatile and highly complex socio-economic needs that change rapidly with time.

AIST defines such research as Type-II Basic Research, which integrates multiple disciplines and creates methods for the use of integrated knowledge; traditional basic research is defined as Type-I Basic Research, which is the pursuit and discovery of novel rules, laws and principles that govern natural phenomena.

AIST places its highest priority on the pursuit of complete research, "Full Research", ranging from Type-I Basic Research to the development of products by conducting intensive Type-II Basic Research.

Each Unit of AIST places its highest priorities on establishing an integrated research system that enables researchers with different scientific backgrounds to participate in scenario-oriented research projects to address the needs of society.

Employees

The institute employs researchers of various backgrounds and levels of expertise who carry out research with respect to the three main mission of the institute. The number of employees are as follows:

Researchers: 2,288

Tenured researchers: 2,046
Fixed-term researchers: 242

Administrative staffs: 661
Total number of employees: 2,949 (as of April 1, 2012)

Geological Survey of Japan

The Geological Survey of Japan (GSJ) was created from geoscientific research units within AIST in 2001 to replace the old GSJ created in 1882.^[2]

Notable scientists

Hiroyuki Yoshikawa, former President of AIST, University of Tokyo (1993–1997), Science Council of Japan (1997–2003) and International Council for Science (ICSU) (1999–2002)
Jun Kondo, a famous researcher for the Kondo effect
Sumio Iijima, the discoverer of the Carbon nanotube
Yoshinori Tokura, famous for nanotechnology experiments
Hiromichi Kataura, well known for his research in carbon nanotubes and for the Kataura plot
Satoshi Hirano, author of HORB middleware

Products

HRP-2 Promet, a domestic general helper robot (under development) in joint Humanoid Robotics Project with Kawada Industries.
HRP-4C, a female humanoid robot.
Paro, a baby harp seal robot for therapeutic use.
DeleGate, a multi-purpose application-level gateway / proxy server.
Spectral Database for Organic Compounds (SDBS), a free online searchable database containing Raman, EPR, FT-IR, EI-MS, ¹H-NMR and ¹³C-NMR spectra of ca 34,000 organic compounds.
Structure atlas of human genome

References

^ Organization chart at official website of AIST and International Cooperation Office
^ "About GSJ｜Geological Survey of Japan, AIST｜産総研地質調査総合センター / Geological Survey of Japan, AIST".

External links

AIST Web site
Humanoid Robotics Group: Humanoid robot HRP-2 Promet and Theage.com, "Robotic helper coming soon"

Incorporated Administrative Agencies in Japan

There are 102 institutions as of April 1, 2012. Bold institutions employ national public servants.

Cabinet Office

National Archives of Japan
ja:Northern Territories Issue Association
ja:National Consumer Affairs Center of Japan

Ministry of
Internal Affairs
and
Communications

National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT)
ja:National Statistics Center
ja:Public Foundation for Peace and Consolation
ja:Management Organization for Postal Savings and Postal Life Insurance

Ministry of
Foreign Affairs

Ministry of
Finance

ja:National Research Institute of Brewing
Japan Mint
National Printing Bureau
Commemorative Organization for the Japan World Exposition '70

Ministry of
Education,
Culture,
Sports,
Science and
Technology

ja:National Institute of Special Education
National Center for University Entrance Examinations
ja:National Institution For Youth Education
ja:National Women's Education Center
National Museum of Nature and Science
National Institute for Materials Science
ja:National Research Institute for Earth Science and Disaster Prevention
ja:National Institutes for Quantum and Radiological Science and Technology
National Institutes for Cultural Heritage
ja:National Institute of Radiological Sciences
ja:National Center for Teachers' Development
Japan Science and Technology Agency
Japan Society for the Promotion of Science
RIKEN
Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency
ja:National Agency for the Advancement of Sports and Health
Japan Arts Council
ja:Japan Student Services Organization
Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology
ja:Institute of National Colleges of Technology
National Institution for Academic Degrees and University Evaluation
Japan Atomic Energy Agency

Ministry of
Health,
Labour, and
Welfare

ja:National Institute of Health and Nutrition
ja:National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health
ja:Organization for Workers Retirement Allowance Mutual Aid
ja:Japan Organization for Employment of the Elderly, Persons with Disabilities and Job
Seekers
ja:Welfare And Medical Service Agency
ja:National Center for Persons with Severe Intellectual Disabilities, Nozominosono
Japan Institute for Labour Policy and Training
ja:Japan Labour Health and Welfare Organization
ja:National Hospital Organization
ja:Pharmaceutical and Medical Devices Agency
ja:National Institute of Biomedical Innovation
ja:Readjustment of Facilities for Insured Persons and Beneficiaries Organization
Government Pension Investment Fund
ja:National Cancer Center
ja:National Cerebral and Cardiovascular Center Hospital
ja:National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry
ja:National Center for Global Health and Medicine
ja:National Center for Child Health and Development
ja:National Center for Geriatrics and Gerontrogy