New Fields (WaaS Co-creation Consortium)

• Solving Social Issues Through Open Innovation

• Enhancing the Value of Mobility

• Enhancing the Value of Space

• Making Lifestyles in the Local Community More Prosperous

We formed the Mobility Innovations Consortium in 2017 as a forum for reforming mobility through open innovation. Over the past five years, we have conducted various demonstration experiments and initiatives with the participation of more than 160 companies and organizations. Leveraging this knowledge and expertise, we established a new Well-being as a Service (WaaS) Co-creation Consortium in April 2023 as a forum for enhancing the value of mobility and space. Through open innovation with various companies, local governments, universities, and other entities, we will work to solve social issues in a wider range of areas than we could address on our own and achieve well-being in society. In FY2025.3, we conducted demonstration experiments on 15 different topics. The following are the results of several of these.

WCC logo

Realizing a well-being society

Real-time Visualization of Taxi Stand Status

With the recent increase in travel demand from inbound visitors, taxi stands at Shinkansen stations have become increasingly congested. Through this initiative, the number of people waiting at taxi stands and the estimated wait times were delivered in real-time to customers wanting to use taxis at train stations. Our aim was to create an environment that enables customers to use this information to adjust their behavior and travel more smoothly, for example, by choosing a less crowded taxi stand or opting for another mode of transportation.
Demonstration testing was implemented from November to December 2024 at taxi stands outside Tokyo Station Yaesu Exit and Marunouchi North Exit, Shimbashi Station Shiodome Exit, and Shinagawa Station Konan Exit. The status of the taxi stands was delivered to customers via the NAVITIME app. Over 10,000 customers viewed this status information.
We will use the results of this demonstration testing to consider introducing this service to help railway customers travel more comfortably.

Improving the User Experience and Purchase Motivation by Recreating a Remote Sensory Experience

We explored how a new virtual technology, the Immersion System, which allows people to experience sensations from a remote location as part of a remote tourism experience, impacts the user experience and their perceptions. This system projects 4K 360° video onto four displays and releases scents for a deeper immersive experience while combining real-time live projection of local audio and video as well as the synchronized recreation of local scents linked with the camera location data.
This particular demonstration test focused on Togakushi soba, a traditional dish of the Togakushi area of Nagano City, and served as a remote tourist event for the general public. The Immersion System allowed participants to virtually experience the climate and natural features of the buckwheat growing area, as well as soba noodle making. A live feed from the site enabled real-time, immersive communication between remote locations.
The verification results showed high user satisfaction, increased motivation to purchase products related to the experienced content, and greater interest in visiting the site. The results also confirmed that this new spatial experience—offering a sense of realism and immersion beyond physical distance—is effective in promoting a region’s appeal and stimulating interest. We will use these findings to implement the Immersion System going forward.

Consortium implementation case study:Augmented Reality Traincar

We are working to implement in society augmented reality (AR) technology that has been verified through demonstration testing by the Mobility Innovations Consortium. As part of this initiative, we conducted trial demonstrations recreating retired railcars with AR, and it was widely promoted at an event in 2022 celebrating 150 years of the railway business.
Thereafter, the technology was used at a Company sponsored event, and in recent years it has been used in a railway museum. Going forward, we will employ cuttingedge technologies such as AR to revitalize the local community and pass on culture.

An Overall Initiative for Regional Co-creation Through Restorative Gastronomy

To realize regional co-creation through a wide-area collaboration between industry, government, and academia, several demonstration tests were conducted with the aim of social implementation in the Shin’etsu Shizenkyou Nature Park region, which comprises nine cities, towns, and villages centered on Hokuriku Shinkansen Iiyama Station.
By proposing new solutions that address common challenges such as population decline and local mobility on a wide scale, and by examining and verifying these together with the local community, we are promoting regional co-creation through the WaaS Co-creation Consortium.

Initiative Case Study

Wellness Mobility

Through the Wellness Mobility program, based on the concept of wellness, we explored the health and wellness value of mobility by using new technologies and services, such as wearable devices, to visualize fatigue from cycling and recovery through sightseeing activities, while incorporating cycling tourism as secondary transportation from train stations. Specifically, we distributed regional currency tickets to participants to connect mobility with local sightseeing activities, and provided a list of activities to link cycling tourism with sightseeing spots, hot springs, and retail stores. The aim was to examine the health and wellness value while increasing participants’ desire to return to the area and increase the number of people engaging with the region.

Restorative Gastronomy

Through the Restorative Gastronomy program, we explored ways to increase new engagement with the region by planning food-focused tours where participants experienced the unique characteristics of the area through menus prepared by local students and chefs who highlighted the region’s food culture.
In addition, by actively involving local students in creating menus with local ingredients and serving them to participants, we explored the potential for job creation by fostering greater motivation among young people to pursue work in the region.

Agri-Sports

Through the Agri-Sports Program, we explored integrating agricultural experiences into a health management support initiative, treating farming as a sport and combining elements of agriculture, sports, mobility, and digital technology. Specifically, we developed a health management support initiative targeting workers in the Tokyo metropolitan area, designed to promote rejuvenation for desk-bound business people, while fostering co-creation with the local community. Through these activities, the program aimed to increase opportunities for travel between the Tokyo metropolitan area and regional areas and expand the possibilities for regional revitalization projects.

Using local mobility (e-bike) for secondary transportation from the train station

Agricultural work through agri-sports