About Us Overview

Business description

Our mainline business is to manufacture and sell the Kekkan Bijin capillary blood flow observation device. Our company has sold about 800 units since our establishment in 2009 (about 2,000 units if our former company’s sales are included). Our main customers are medical institutions, a drugstore chain, the health insurance society of a major automobile manufacturer, and the merchandise development department of a major sanitary company. The merchandise development department of a major sanitary company is using the product to evaluate the effects of their products. We attend exhibitions and academic society meetings to promote product sales. We are also conducting joint research with the Osaka University Faculty of Medicine to commercialize our next-term product (capillary status digitizing system).

Company strength

No other inspection and observation equipment easily acquires vital data as-is from the human body in a non-invasive manner. A low-cost microscope is used as hardware to acquire very fine capillary vessel images. Other companies cannot imitate this technology because it is patented. Our system to digitize the acquired images is based on special algorithms achieved in joint research with the Osaka University Faculty of Medicine. There are no competitors for these technologies from the software aspect as well.

(1) History of hardware development: We developed the Kekkan Bijin capillary vessel observation device ourselves, and have been selling the product since 2003 while making improvements. In 2015 we will market the computer-linked Capillary Analysis System (CAS).

(2) Development of image processing algorithms and systems: We have developed capillary condition digitizing algorithms and systems, infrared ray and finger vein authentication algorithms, image clarification and contour extraction algorithms, and medical image diagnosis algorithms. We have also developed automatic continuous image processing and volume analysis systems.

We also possess many unique high-level image processing technologies. All software programs for these technologies are created from scratch in the C language without using any external libraries. These programs are thus unique (black box characteristics) and advantageous for installation in products. Our vessel-related analysis know-how using visible light and infrared rays are particularly unrivaled. We collaborate with many universities and medical institutions. This is why we can establish a research system and also apply the latest medical image diagnosis technologies and easily obtain clinical data.

Strength of products/technologies

We have accumulated more than 1,000 capillary vessel images and observed the capillary vessels of more than 20,000 people to find relationships with lifestyles and digitize capillary vessel images. This unique know-how for analyzing capillary vessel images is the technical foundation of our business. Our company was selected for the Osaka City Grants to Create Innovation in October 2013. We started joint research on capillary vessel digitization with Associate Professor Naomasa Kawaguchi at the Osaka University Faculty of Medicine in November of the same year. As the result of this research we succeeded in binarizing capillary vessel images in February 2014, which had been the greatest issue to solve for digitizing capillary vessel images. We developed a capillary vessel digitizing system with these algorithms in August 2014.

(1) History of hardware development: We developed the Kekkan Bijin capillary vessel observation device ourselves, and have been selling the product since 2003 while making improvements. In 2015 we will market the computer-linked Capillary Analysis System (CAS).

(2) History of image processing algorithm and system development: We have developed capillary condition digitizing algorithms and systems, infrared ray and finger vein authentication algorithms, image clarification and contour extraction algorithms, and medical image diagnosis algorithms. We have also developed automatic continuous image processing and volume analysis systems.

We also possess many unique high-level image processing technologies. All software programs for these technologies are created from scratch in the C language without using any external libraries. These programs are thus unique (black box characteristics) and advantageous for installation in products. Our vessel-related analysis know-how using visible light and infrared rays are particularly unrivaled. We collaborate with many universities and medical institutions. This is why we can establish a research system and also apply the latest medical image diagnosis technologies and easily obtain clinical data.

Profile

Dan Takeno

AT CO., LTD. president and CEO/Director of the NGO Environmental Protection “Stop the Global Warming” Club

Dan Takeno has experience observing the capillary blood flow of over 15,000 people. He engages in the Kekkan Bijin business under the theme of raising awareness toward mibyou, or “pre-symptomatic illnesses,” which represent the space between being health and being sick.

【Published Essays】
Capillary Blood Flow Observation, monthly theme “Thinking of Pre-Symptomatic Diseases,” Issue 8, Volume 54, IGAKU-SHOIN

Studied abroad in Shanghai as a university student. Entered an electronic components manufacturer listed on the JASDAQ. Transferred to Hong Kong and oversaw the establishment of a representative office in Shanghai and management duties at local factories.

After retiring in 2006 and upon his father being diagnosed with cancer, pursued overall management duties and conducted research on capillary blood flow observation in order to take over the Kekkan Bijin business, which centers on a capillary scope developed by his father.

In 2009, established the R&D venture company AT CO., LTD. after participating in a business establishment school (hosted by Uji Chamber of Commerce and Industry) and a seminar on the challenge of starting a business (hosted by the Business Innovation Center Osaka).

In 2011, expanded personal connections by participating in a producer development course aimed at commercializing research (hosted by Knowledge Frontier Osaka).

In October 2013, was selected to receive aid from Osaka City to create innovation and commenced collaborative research with Osaka University’s Graduate School of Medicine to develop non-invasive systems that measure observational images of capillaries using fingertips. Received recognition from Osaka City as a top-runner project in December of the same year.

Selected to receive monozukuri aid in 2014, and is currently working on a prototype for a system that automatically measures and evaluates capillary condition.