Hello, this is Yuri Makada from the Hakusanroku Office. This time, I would like to write about the Engineering Design IIB final presentation held on Tuesday, January 28th, 2025.

 The Engineering Design IIB class, worked on problem-solving projects on the social, natural, and industrial environments of the HAKUSANROKU (Foothills of Mt. Hakusan) region. Students were divided into two teams, the Agribusiness Team and the Tech Team. I will introduce the activities that both teams have been working on.

Activities of the Agribusiness Team

 The Agribusiness Team has been working on regional revitalization activities in HAKUSANROKU, including the Asagimadara (Chestnut Tiger Butterfly) marking event, roasted Kosen Beniharuka sweet potato sales, and traditional Ningyo Joruri (Puppet Theater).

Asagimadara (Chestnut Tiger Butterfly) Marking Event

 In a fallow field in front of the Hakusanroku campus, Fujibakama flowers (boneset) are being cultivated to attract Asagimadara. The Agribusiness Team is working on a project to revitalize the community by making the migrating Asagimadara a valuable local resource.
 This year, the Asagimadara Marking Event, organized by the Oguchi Community Development Council, the Hakusanroku Satoyama Revitalization Council, and the Asagimadara Fan Club, was held again. The Agribusiness Team participated in the event in a supporting role. The marking experience was limited to 30 participants by advance reservation, and in addition to assisting with the marking activity, the students planned events to ensure that the 30 participants could have a fuller experience. Their goal was to promote the charm of HAKUSANROKU while creating an opportunity for interaction between local residents and visitors.
 To attract participants to the event, the students created promotional posters for the Asagimadara Marking Event and displayed them at Hakusan Himenoyu Onsen, Oguchi Community Center and Sena Roadside Station. 
 Additionally, they set up photo spots, observation areas, and rest areas, in order to promote the event on social media. They also organized various activities such as selling Asagimadara-themed merchandise, hosting a keychain-making experience using a laser cutter, and setting up a capsule toy machine. The capsule toy machine, in particular, was more popular than expected and made many visitors happy.
 For more details, Arihiro Kodaka sensei, who is in charge of Engineering Design, has written about the Asagimadara Marking Event

Kosen Beniharuka Sweet Potatoes Sales

 The Agribusiness Team, with the cooperation of the Hakusanroku Satoyama Revitalization Council, has been cultivating Kosen Beniharuka sweet potatoes since first semester, utilizing a fallow field in front of the Hakusanroku campus. The students collaborated with the Kijitora Coffee Laboratory and Sena Road Station, aimed at revitalizing the local community by selling Kosen Beniharuka sweet potatoes that the students grew by themselves.

 This year, as part of a collaboration with ICT, Kijitora Coffee Laboratory sold "Chips Benya Soft" and "Benya Soft" made with Kosen Beniharuka sweet potatoes, while Sena Road Station offered "Beniharuka Sundae" and fresh Kosen Beniharuka sweet potatoes for sale. 

 Additionally, on Sunday, November 3rd and Monday, November 4th, 2024, the Agribusiness Team sold roasted Kosen Beniharuka sweet potatoes at the Sena Road Station store. Last year, with the aim of promoting the Kosen Beniharuka brand and building a fan base, original merchandise such as keychains and magnets featuring four mascot characters of Kosen Beniharuka were created. These were distributed for free as capsule toys to customers who purchased roasted Kosen Beniharuka sweet potatoes of a certain amount. This year, while inheriting the character goods created by last year's students, new acrylic standing figures were added to the collection.
 This year, the Kosen Beniharuka sweet potato harvest was excellent, with the harvest volume approximately 1.6 times greater than last year. As a result, more Kosen Beniharuka sweet potatoes had to be sold. To promote the brand more widely and boost sales at both the Kijitora Coffee Laboratory and Sena Road Station, a campaign was implemented. Customers who purchased a certain amount of Kosen Beniharuka related products at each store were given a free exchange voucher for a capsule toy.

 Last year, about 30 capsule toys were distributed, but this year, thanks to the many customers who visited the roasted Kosen Beniharuka sweet potato stand from the Kijitora Coffee Laboratory and Sena Road Station, 100 capsule toys were given out. Some customers even returned to buy other products just to get another capsule toy. Others, continuing from last year, mentioned, "We came to enjoy Kosen Beniharuka roasted sweet potatoes again this year." Ultimately, the sales were approximately 1.4 times higher than last year, and the students were able to achieve their goal of surpassing last year's sales.

Ningyo Joruri (Puppet Theater)

 The Higashi Futakuchi Bunya Ningyo Joruri is a traditional form of puppet theater that draws from the Joruri and Bunyabushi, which were popular before the emergence of Bunraku (puppetry). Currently, there are only four places in Japan where Bunyabushi is still being preserved, one of which exists in the Higashi futakuchi area of Hakusan City, Ishikawa Prefecture. 350 years ago, local residents went to Kyoto, studied Ningyo Joruri and brought it back to HAKUSANROKU. Even today, it remains much the same as it was back then.
 With the goal of introducing this unique cultural heritage to more people and providing an opportunity for them to enjoy it, the Agribusiness Team visited the Higashi futakuchi Local History Museum, the venue for the Ningyo Joruri performances. Through interviews with them, they gathered impressions and identified challenges, using these insights to further their activities.

 

Ningyo Joruri paper crafts

 The students planned two events to help promote and revitalize the Ningyo Joruri tradition.
 The first aimed to show the appeal of Ningyo Joruri through the use of paper crafts. Students proposed offering papercraft models as souvenirs for visitors attending performances and making them available for download on a website, allowing people to enjoy them at home.
 The second initiative involved expanding the distribution of promotional flyers beyond public facilities in Hakusan City and promoting the event through posters. As a result, flyers could also be distributed at Sena Road Station and the Ichirino area, which attract many tourists during the winter season for winter sports. Additionally, based on discussions with members of the preservation society, the students created a Current Status Analysis Map, summarizing the ongoing efforts to preserve and promote the tradition.

 In this activity, students explored new experience possibilities with paper crafts and visualized the current state of Higashi Futakuchi Bunya Ningyo Joruri, and I believe that students were able to create opportunities for themselves to become aware of issues from a variety of perspectives. Although it was difficult to secure sufficient time for this activity at the end of the semester, students felt it was important to work together with the preservation society to think about the future of the project.

Activities of the Tech Team

 The Tech Team is engaged in technological development focused on utilizing AI and IoT for wildlife monitoring and notification systems, as well as controlling drones to deter harmful animals as part of pest control measures.
 In HAKUSANROKU, damage to crops by monkeys has become increasingly severe each year. To address this issue, the Tech Team has improved the accuracy of an AI-powered monkey surveillance system to over 90%, developed a function that sends notifications to farmers via LINE when monkeys are detected, and tested the effectiveness of drones in deterring them.
 This year, the team was divided into three groups to explore new ways to protect farmland: the Rover Team, which developed a patrol robot capable of navigating rough terrain; the Drone Team, which tested the precision of automatic takeoff and landing for drones; and the IoT Team, which developed a system to monitor rainfall and wind speed for drone operation.

Rover Team

 Newly active this year, the Rover Team worked to develop a rover that could patrol the farmland in bad weather and intimidate monkeys when drones are unable to fly because of weather conditions. The final goal is to have a rover move around the farmland automatically, but the first step is to develop a rover that can move around the uneven terrain of the farmland. The students proceeded with a detailed design based on their ideas of “what kind of rover” they wanted, such as how fast they wanted the rover to move around the field and how big and heavy they wanted it to be.
 The completed rover was to be tested on farmland, but the farmland was covered with snow, so the test was conducted on campus over concrete, asphalt, and grass with a light dusting of snow on campus.
 How to intimidate monkeys and how to automate the rover to travel over farmland are the next challenges.

Drone Team

 The goals of the Drone Team this year were to investigate the accuracy of a drone’s GPS takeoff and landing and confirmation of system operation. Furthermore, the drone storage box was made and installed on the farmland to enable takeoff, landing, and storage of the drone.

The operation of the developed system is as follows.
1. When the AI monkey detection system recognizes the monkeys, a notification is sent to the user via LINE.
2. The user remotely opens the door of the drone storage box.
3. Under user remote control, the drone automatically takes off and circles the farmland to intimidate the monkeys.
4. After the drone circles the farmland, the drone lands on the storage box.
5. The user remotely closes the door of the storage box.

 The confirmation tests were conducted on campus and confirmed the drone’s takeoff and landing accuracy. The drone storage box was controlled remotely from the cafeteria.

IoT Team

 The IoT Team is the bridge link between the user, the AI monkey detection system, and the drone or rover. When the system detects the monkeys in the farmland, the system sends information such as rainfall, windspeed, and images of the monkey to the user, and the user decides if the drone or rover is ready to operate in the farmland. These enhancements help robots avoid making decisions too quickly. Additionally, for quick maintenance, the software has also been improved to check if the system is offline, whether the internet is connected, and which camera is offline.

Yuri Makada

Hello, this is Michihiro Hayashi, and I am in charge of the Engineering Design I course. Throughout the year, 1st year students have been working in this course with the goal of creating useful products for people. On Friday, January 24th, 2025, the students made their final project presentation. Each team conducted interviews with their target users to identify underlying issues and needs. Based on their findings, they developed devices to address these problems and presented their solutions.

 I would like to introduce each team’s projects.

【Hot Spring (Onsen) Facility Hime no Yu Team A: Ocket】
Ryotetsu Sano, Madoka Nakazawa, Kotori Mae and Pantawat Lapananrat

 The first team presented the Hot Spring Facility English Guide System.
 On Hakusanroku campus, there is an onsen facility called "Hime no Yu," which is used by students, local residents and tourists. Through interviews with the onsen staff, students discovered that many foreign visitors who come to Hime no Yu for the first time struggle to understand the admission fees, ticket purchasing process, and onsen etiquette. They also found that it was challenging for the onsen staff to explain these details in English.
 To address this issue, the students developed a system called “Ocket” that provides video explanations with English audio and subtitles on how to pay for admission and use the onsen properly. The tablet running the application is decorated in an inviting manner and includes a motion sensor that detects people approaching, triggering the guidance.
 Additionally, the video features Mr. Pantawat Lapananrat, an international student from Thailand, making this project truly global.

【Hot Spring (Onsen) Facility Hime no Yu Team B: Okojo L’Arc】
Shuntaro Tanaka and Chihiro Fukumoto

 The next team presented the "Onsen Information Guide Mascot." Similar to the Onsen Team A, this group also developed a product to assist onsen staff. The Hime no Yu onsen staff frequently explain the facility’s features to customers. Through interviews, students discovered that onsen staff often struggle to communicate with foreign visitors and effectively convey the charm and appeal of the onsen.
 The “Onsen Information Guide Mascot” is modeled after the Stoat (okojo), a native of Hakusan, and holds pamphlets and other goods in a tub in Stoat’s hand. The mascot also has a built-in speaker and can play messages recorded in English and Japanese by students to introduce the onsen. The original goal was to create a robot that could move around the onsen facility, but due to the number of students in the team, the plan was changed to stationary robot. Maybe they can try building a robot when they become upperclassmen.

【Gym Team: Shuttlecock Collector】
Soma Ioroi, Hajime Tani and Seiya Fujiwara

Badminton Club Practice

 The next team introduced the "Badminton Shuttlecock Collection Robot" to assist with gym cleanup. Through interviews with teachers who frequently use the gym, the team found that maintaining cleanliness was a common concern. At the Hakusanroku campus, the badminton club practices in the gym after school. After practice, collecting scattered shuttlecocks and placing them back into their cases is a tedious task. To address this, the Gym Team attempted to build a robot that would automatically place shuttlecocks into their tubes when thrown in the robot. Although they were unable to achieve full automation, they gained valuable insights into the challenges of transporting objects automatically. In particular, they realized that the feather of a shuttlecock makes it difficult to handle with an automated system. Reviewing and analyzing what didn’t work is just as important as achieving success—it will certainly be useful for their future projects.

【Maker Studio Team: Black Dame Dame】
Kaisyu Ishiharada, Ayane Ito and Ikki Hashimoto

 The last team is the “Cleanup Time Notification Robot”. ICT has a mini factory called Maker Studio as a facility for making things. After school, it is always bustling with students who love to making things such as robots. However, when students are deeply focused on their work, they often do not start cleaning up even when the faculty managing the Maker Studio reminds them to do so. Additionally, they sometimes become so absorbed in their work that they forget about dinner and miss their meals. To address this, Marker Studio Team built a robot that moves around the Maker Studio when clean-up time approaches, displaying the current time and letting students know it’s time to clean up. The robot had large time display and a speaker to broadcast messages. Since several students on this team had participated in the NHK ROBOCON College of Technology contest , they were able to build a robot that was able to perform multiple functions such as moving by tires and displaying the time. I thought it was good that they were able to make use of what they had learned in their daily activities.

 All teams delivered their presentations in English, and naturally, the Q&A sessions with foreign faculty members are also conducted in English. Students who had attended Japanese middle schools sometimes struggled to find the right English words, but they confidently presented their self-made products using the English skills they had developed over their first year of study.

I look forward to seeing what new ideas students will come up with in future Engineering Design courses.

Michihiro Hayashi

 This is Michihiro Hayashi, Engineering Design teacher at Kanazawa campus. From Wednesday, December 4 to Friday, December 6, 2024, I took a business trip to Sapporo, Hokkaido to participate in the international conference, IDW’24(The 31st International Display Workshops).

 Starting from this year, an I4D Contest (Demonstration Contest for College of Technology Students) was held as part of the conference. One of our 4th year students, Shogo Izumiya, gave a demonstration and a speech there. The theme of the presentation was “Differences in Gaze Direction of 3D- and 2D- Avatars: from Viewpoint of ‘Mona Lisa Effect.’” In a painting of a person on a flat canvas, the “Mona Lisa effect” occurs, where the depicted person appears to be looking at the viewer, whether viewed from the front or a slightly oblique angle. How does this effect manifest in a virtual reality environment using a Head-Mounted Display (HMD)? Our task was to demonstrate this through a practical demonstration. HMD is a device worn on the head like a helmet, which provides computer graphics with a realistic three-dimensional vision right in front of your eyes.

 Right after Shogo arrived at the venue, he was very busy preparing the HMD device, displays and other equipment, and putting up his posters on the walls. This was an international conference that used English as the official language. In this regard, Justin Han sensei, who also teaches Engineering Design with us, provided the language support for the posters and the presentation. Therefore, presentations were also primarily given in English. Sometimes we used Japanese for the Japanese speakers, but all posters and other notices were written in English.

Once the presentation started, other students and researchers visited his booth, listened to his instructions, and tried the HMD devices. Even though he looked a bit nervous at the beginning, he got used to it and gave a better presentation. Besides, his efforts to explain his ideas effectively in English were remarkable and easy to understand. This event took nearly four hours, but he was deeply concentrated on it, unaware of the passage of time. However, he seemed quite tired afterward and recovered his energy by eating a lot of Hokkaido food for dinner. In addition, the best and most excellent presentations were selected by the judges. Although our presentation missed out on being selected, after the awarding ceremony, the executive committee chairperson said, “It was a very close decision. Please come to IDW’25 as well. We are looking forward to seeing you.” The next IDW’25 will be held in Hiroshima in December 2025. We will be able to see Shogo senpai presenting with the new 4th year students there. I am looking forward to going with the group again and enjoying Hiroshima food such as oysters and Hiroshima-style Okonomiyaki.

Hi, I am Michihiro Hayashi, the advisor of the Design & Fabrication Club.
On Saturday, October 5, and Sunday, October 6, 2024, I took a business trip with the participating students to the Tokai-Hokuriku Regional ROBOCON 2024 held in Numazu City. Numazu City is located in the eastern part of Shizuoka Prefecture and is the furthest regional competition site from ICT. The students and their faculty advisors traveled there by chartered bus. The one-way trip was about 8 hours long. The students bought a lots of snacks and fast food at the rest area and ate them on the bus. Perhaps the souvenir shops on the highway were a rarity to them, especially since there are few stores around the Hakusanroku Campus.

The theme of this year's ROBOCON is “Return of the Robots,” and the rules call for a robot to launch an another robot, retrieve objects, and return. When the robot is launched, it inevitably receives a shock when it lands, which can cause the robot to break or malfunction, so a mechanism to absorb the shock is necessary. Also, when the robot returns after retrieving an object, some obstacles must be jumped over, so each team needs to be creative in their robot design.

Two teams from our school participated: Team A from Kanazawa Campus, “ХАЙРТАЙ ШҮҮ 3k”, and Team B from Hakusanroku Campus “Tobihoudai”. The captain of Team A was Sansar Sergelen, a 4th year student from Mongolia. Therefore, the team’s name is in Mongolian. If you are interested in the name of Team A, please look up the meaning and pronunciation.

Team A's robot was designed with airbags for shock absorption and an arm that extends like a crane when returning. With only three members, various tasks took time, and they couldn't fully adjust the robot by the final date. On the day of the competition, they continued making adjustments at the venue but unfortunately couldn't demonstrate the soft landing with the airbags. As a result, they lost both matches in the preliminary league. However, despite the small team, their innovative efforts were recognized, and they received the "DENSO Special Award."

Certificate and Trophy (Team A)賞状とトロフィー(Aチーム)

Team B's robot was constructed so that it could continue to operate even if it was upside down on landing. They also built a robot that uses a rotating roller like a pitching machine to retrieve objects. The members gathered after school until just before the competition to continue adjusting the robot. However, they struggled to reduce the weight of the robot and were forced to bring the improved parts to the venue by bus. As a result, the robot was able to successfully pass the weighing and measuring inspection for the competition. In the competition, the students showed off how they flew and landed their robots and achieved one win and one loss in the preliminary league. The efforts of the younger students were also recognized, and they received the “Mabuchi Motor Special Award.”

Although neither team was able to advance to the final tournament or be nominated for the national tournament, I believe that they were able to fully demonstrate the results of their activities. Some students may have felt that they “failed” or “felt frustrated,” but I hope that these feelings will become rich nourishment for their future.

Michihiro Hayashi

 Hello, this is Arihiro Kodaka, Dean of Student Affairs. This time, I would like to write about the details of the students' participation in community planning and management

 On Monday, September 23rd, 2024 (Autumnal Equinox Day), a marking event for the Asagimadara (*) (Chestnut Tiger Butterfly) was held in the field across from Hakusanroku Campus.

(*) The Asagimadara is a butterfly named for its wings, which are light blue with mottled patterns. It is a butterfly that migrates several thousand kilometers across the ocean. In order to track their migration patterns, the less powdery light blue parts of their wings are marked with the date and capture location using a permanent marker. The Asagimadara are attracted to flowers in the Asteraceae family, such as the Fujibakama flower (boneset) and the toxins in the nectar help them with reproduction and protection. Additionally, one of the characters in the anime Demon Slayer is inspired by this butterfly.

For information on last year’s Asagimadara marking event.

 2nd year students supported an event organized by the Tatsunokuchi Community Development Council, Hakusanroku Satoyama Revitalization Council, and the Asagimadara Fan Club. In a fallow field across from Hakusanroku Campus, fujibakama flowers are cultivated to attract the Asagimadara. In the Engineering Design class, the Agribusiness team of students started planning in April of this year, aiming to utilize Asagimadara as an environmental resource to boost the local community. Through creative ideas and a fresh, student-oriented perspective, they tackled the challenge of revitalizing the area.

 The students aimed to create continuous interactions between local residents and non-residents through the event, ensuring that everyone involved would have lasting memories. They put great effort into the planning and organization, incorporating many thoughtful details to achieve this goal.

Photo Spot

 A photo spot created by students was set up for everyone who came to see the Asagimadara, and many people took pictures there. I was happy to see visitors taking memorable photos at the photo spot, and I believe that we were able to respond to their desire to preserve their memories.

Making Goods with Elementary School Students

 Elementary school students who participated in the marking event spent the afternoon making original goods under the guidance of ICT 2nd year students. The goods were hair clips and magnets with Asagimadara images, and the elementary school students added decorations and finishing touches by devising color schemes and decorations.

Merchandise Sales and Hands-on Crafting Experience Activities.

 For those who stopped by the Sena Roadside Station, learned about this event, and observed Asagimadara, students sold a capsule toy key chain with an illustrated book describing the ecology of the Asagimadara. Additionally, a hands-on workshop was held where participants could use a laser utter to create their own keychains as a keepsake. These activities were part of a unique initiative by ICT students.

 The students thought about how local residents and the visitors could be involved in the project and implemented it. Afterwards, the students reflected on the event and voiced many opinions about how to make the next event even more fulfilling. The students who will take over in the next year are expected to take this feedback into account and make the event better.

 This year, perhaps due to the hot weather, the number of Asagimadara was very small, but I hope that next year many more Asagimadara will visit.