Since April 2024, the Japan Craft Industry Association, Ikutouen, Keio University, Nagoya Institute of Technology, and commissure Inc. have been working together on CrafTouch, a collaborative project exploring how digital technology can preserve and pass down the refined skills of traditional artisans. Set at Ikutouen, a Tsuboya pottery studio with 300 years of history in Okinawa, the project uses cutting-edge haptics and robotics to digitally record and share the embodied knowledge of craftspeople.
We are pleased to announce that the outcomes of CrafTouch will be showcased at the JAPAN CRAFT EXPO 2025, held as part of the Osaka/Kansai Expo 2025.

Project Overview

As Japan's traditional crafts face increasing threats due to a declining population and shortage of successors, the arrival of the AI era has highlighted the need for new approaches to cultural preservation. CrafTouch explores how haptic technologies--used to record and reproduce touch and force sensations--can help preserve artisans' embodied knowledge and pass it on across generations, space, and time.

Exhibition Details

Project Title: Project Cybernetic being - Digital Skill Sharing for Craftsmanship
Date: June 16 (Mon) - June 18 (Wed), 2025
Time: 9:00-21:00 (until 18:00 on final day)
Venue: JAPAN CRAFT EXPO 2025, Osaka/Kansai Expo (Inside EXPO Messe "WASSE")
URL: https://kougei-sunchi.or.jp/expo_conference/2074/

Background and Development

CrafTouch was initiated in July 2022, when Tomohiro Haraoka (Executive Director of the Japan Craft & Locality Association) and Prof. Kouta Minamizawa (Keio University Graduate School of Media Design) hosted a workshop at the Cybernetic being Lab (Takeshiba, Tokyo) to explore the intersection of traditional craft and emerging haptic and robotic avatar technologies.
Following this, the first phase of CrafTouch was launched in collaboration with Horita Carpet Co., exploring the tactile qualities of woven materials (see: project link). The results were exhibited at JAPAN CRAFT EXPO 2023 in Osaka.
The second phase began in April 2024, focusing on pottery skills at Ikutouen in Okinawa. Researchers from the Embodied Media Project ((Keio University Graduate School of Media Design, directed by Prof. Minamizawa) and Haptics Lab (Nagoya Institute of Technology, directed by Prof. Yoshihiro Tanaka) conducted fieldwork at the studio, working closely with artisans to measure and understand their "tacit knowledge"--the skills and sensations that cannot be easily verbalized.

Skill Transmission Technology

To digitally record and transmit the tactile and kinesthetic knowledge of artisans, the team developed a system using wearable haptic devices provided by commissure, Inc. The SenseFuse™ sensor captures delicate touch and force feedback from the hands and arms during pottery-making, while FeelFuse™ replays this information to others through haptic feedback.

In addition, a robotic avatar was created based on the recorded movements and sensations, allowing users to perform pottery alongside the original craftsperson. This skill-fusion cybernetic avatar enables a shared creative process, where the user and artisan co-create as if moving in unison--making intuitive transmission of craft skills possible without words.

Contact

For inquiries regarding exhibition participation

Japan Craft & Locality Association
1112-1 Higashikujo-cho, Nara City, Nara 630-8144, Japan
E-mail: info[at]kougei-sunchi.or.jp
Contact: Tomohiro Haraoka l (Direct line: +81-70-1369-8137)

For inquiries regarding research and development

Graduate School of Media Design,Keio University
Keio University Kyosei-kan,4-1-1 Hiyoshi
Kohoku-ku,Yokohama,Kanagawa 223-8526, Japan
E-mail: info[at]cybernetic-being.org
Contact: Kazuya Ohara

Nagoya Institute of Technology
School of Electrical and Mechanical Engineering
E-mail: tanaka.yoshihiro[at]nitech.ac.jp
Contact: Professor Yoshihiro Tanaka

＊Please replace [at] with @ when contacting.