April 2024 Vol. 22 No. 4

View from the Top

• Akira Okada, Senior Vice President of R&D, Head of NTT Science and Core Technology Laboratory Group

  

  Abstract
  NTT’s laboratories are engaged in a wide range of research and development from basic research to applications, and divided into four laboratory groups. As one of those laboratory groups, NTT Science and Core Technology Laboratory Group carries out research and development with three missions in mind: “Conduct research and development on cutting-edge technologies to expand NTT’s business domains,” “Create new principles and concepts that will revolutionize society,” and “Research and develop technologies that are friendly to the global environment and people.” We asked Akira Okada, senior vice president of R&D, head of NTT Science and Core Technology Laboratory Group, about the technology strategy of the laboratory group and his mindset as a top manager.

Front-line Researchers

• Masaaki Nagata, Senior Distinguished Researcher, NTT Communication Science Laboratories

  

  Abstract
  Chat Generative Pre-trained Transformer (ChatGPT), a generative artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot developed by OpenAI, is rapidly gaining attention worldwide. ChatGPT generates sentences as a response to input sentences or words and outputs the sentences in the language of the input sentences unless otherwise specified. However, it can be used for machine translation; that is, it outputs a translated sentence when the output language is indicated. Masaaki Nagata, a senior distinguished researcher at NTT Communication Science Laboratories, has been researching natural-language processing and its application, machine translation, for more than 20 years. We asked him about the trends and characteristics of translation using large language models (LLMs) and machine translation using a Japanese-English bilingual patent corpus, which is about to be commercialized. We also elicited his thoughts on the research process and ideas as being a result of encounters.

Rising Researchers

• Motoharu Sasaki, Distinguished Researcher, NTT Access Network Service Systems Laboratories

  

  Abstract
  Today’s network is continuously evolving through a variety of wireless communication systems. Wireless communication is now available just about anywhere—it has become an integral part of everyday life and brought us many benefits. At the same time, wireless communication is predicted to become increasingly complex in the future, so there is a need for further evolution of the wireless network to deal with this complexity. NTT Distinguished Researcher Motoharu Sasaki says, “It is important that the network be easy for people to use without having to think about it.” In this article, we talk with him about his activities as a rising researcher including his research on “achieving complete wireless communication through estimation and prediction technology for radio wave propagation characteristics.”

Feature Articles: Research and Development of Technologies for Nurturing True Humanity

• NTT Human Informatics Laboratories: Researching and Developing Technologies That Nurture True Humanity

  

  Abstract
  Based on the human-centric principle, NTT Human Informatics Laboratories is engaged in research and development related to new forms of co-existence between the real world and cyberworld. In the Feature Articles in this issue, we introduce NTT Human Informatics Laboratories’ latest endeavors.

• Toward Enabling Communication Connecting Mind and Mind, Body and Body, and Mind and Body

  

  Abstract
  To advance research on more intuitive interfaces that connect people to people and people to machines and to achieve interfaces that are user-friendly for everyone regardless of age or disability, we focus on researching neurotechnology using brainwaves and cybernetics using techniques such as electromyostimulation. In this article, we introduce our latest research.

• Project Metaverse: Creating a Well-being Society through Real and Cyber Fusion

  

  Abstract
  NTT Human Informatics Laboratories is researching and developing the “metaverse of the IOWN era” in which the real and cyber worlds converge on the Innovative Optical and Wireless Network (IOWN), NTT’s next-generation communication infrastructure featuring ultra-high capacity, ultra-low latency, and ultra-low power consumption. This article introduces the latest research and development initiatives at NTT Human Informatics Laboratories, which are divided into space and humans (avatars), the main components of this metaverse.

• Project Humanity: Providing Intimate Support to Respect the Humanity of Individuals

  

  Abstract
  At NTT Human Informatics Laboratories, we are engaged in Project Humanity aiming at solving problems on the basis of the human-centric principle of respecting the humanity that each person values and in a way that does not burden the user. In this article, we introduce five case studies in our effort to achieve Project Humanity.

Regular Articles

• High-definition AI Inference Technology for Detecting a Wide Range of Objects with One Camera at One Time

  

  Abstract
  Object detection in high-definition video is required in video artificial intelligence (AI) applications for edge/terminals to detect a wide range of objects with one camera at one time. Although various AI inference schemes for object detection (e.g., You Only Look Once (YOLO)) have been proposed, they have a limitation regarding the input image size, thus need to shrink the input high-definition image into that limited size. This collapses small objects, making them undetectable. This article introduces high-definition AI inference technology we previously proposed for solving this problem, with which multiple object detectors cooperate to detect small and large objects in high-definition video.

Global Standardization Activities

• Standardization Trends of Northbound APIs in 3GPP

  

  Abstract
  The 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) has been working on the standardization of the application programming interface (API) framework to enable 3rd party providers (e.g., application providers) to use the functionalities of an operator’s network since Release 15 for collaboration with various industries. The API is called “northbound API” in 3GPP since it can be sketched as a northbound (upward) interface provided by the operators to 3rd party providers. This article provides an overview of the method for obtaining user consent when a 3rd party provider uses the northbound APIs exposed by an operator, which is standardized in Release 18 in expectation of the expansion of 5th generation (5G)/5G advanced/6G services and introduces NTT’s standardization activities in 3GPP.

Practical Field Information about Telecommunication Technologies

• Precautions for Installing and Repairing Powder-coated Messenger Wire

  

  Abstract
  This article presents precautions to be taken when installing and repairing powder-coated messenger wires to prevent corrosion in salt- and sulfur-affected areas. This is the eighty-first article in a series on telecommunication technologies.

External Awards/Papers Published in Technical Journals and Conference Proceedings

• External Awards/Papers Published in Technical Journals and Conference Proceedings