The shape of the future city!

The shape of the future city!

What kind of future will we have when things are connected via the Internet? What will happen when a smart city is realized? I would like to introduce the article.

What is a smart city? -The shape of a future city that continues to change-

Recently, when I watch TV news, I have more and more opportunities to hear the keyword "smart city" in the topic of urban development and operation. Although there are differences in scale, "smart communities" and "smart towns" have similar concepts and concepts.

This time, after introducing the concrete initiatives that are underway in Japan and overseas and the technologies that are already planned to be introduced / put into practical use, what is a smart city? I will explain it with mixing.

What is a smart city? A sophisticated and smartly functioning high-tech city

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism has described "smart cities" as "sustainable cities where management (planning, maintenance, management, operation) is carried out and overall optimization is achieved while utilizing new technologies such as ICT for various problems faced by cities. It is defined as a “possible city or district” and was previously focused on “individual field-specific” initiatives such as energy.

However, in recent years, by making full use of big data from both the public and private sectors, we have shifted to a "cross-disciplinary type" that comprehensively links and optimizes multiple fields such as transportation, tourism, disaster prevention, health, medical care, energy, and the environment. One example is "MaaS," which regards mobility as a service.

Source: Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism

Currently, "smart", which has been divided by field, such as "smart mobility" such as connected cars and "smart grid" which is the next-generation power grid, is centrally managed and operated on one platform, and each infrastructure is seamless. We are in the stage of aiming for. In addition, in order for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to function and develop smart cities "sustainably" as defined, not only government-led public infrastructure development such as transportation, electric power, and communication, but also technology developers / service provision, urban developers, and urban management It is necessary to collaborate mainly with people, residents and local companies, and the next-generation IoT technology (seeds) of private companies will build a management system that can always match the needs (needs) of local governments and residents. This trend can be said to be a new trend in the smart city concept, both domestically and internationally.

What kind of technology will be adopted in smart cities?

According to the "Call for Seeds Needs Proposals for Realizing Smart Cities" conducted by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism from December 14, 2018 to January 25, 2018, areas where early technology introduction is required. Next to transportation / mobility, tourism / regional revitalization, disaster prevention, health / medical care were proposed as "needs" by local governments.

From this, assuming that the smart city management system that the ministry is aiming for is in place,

Communication networks and sensing technology (5G, lasers, sensors, etc.)
Analysis / prediction technology (simulation of evacuation facility placement, etc.)
Data possession (real-time disaster information, etc.)
Data platform (3D location information, etc.)
Utilization of data (sharing, visualization, etc.)
New applied technology (autonomous driving, drone, etc.)
It is thought that "private company seeds" such as these will be implemented in smart cities at any time.

Overseas cases of smart cities and domestic initiatives

When it comes to the realization of smart cities, Japan is a little behind internationally, with Europe and the United States one step ahead. In Asia, China and Singapore seem to be rapidly increasing in speed in recent years. In this section, we will introduce examples of smart cities in the United States, the Netherlands, and China, which are advanced groups, and ongoing efforts in Japan.

Gigabit communication is possible throughout the city of New York, USA! "Link NYC"

Source: LinkNYC

New York is a city where smart city projects are underway in all fields, but the one that is highly regarded internationally is the next-generation urban communication infrastructure "Link NYC."

The old public telephone booth, which has become "useless" due to the spread of mobile phones, can be replaced with "high-speed Wi-Fi" equipped with a gigabit high-speed Internet antenna, an Android tablet that can use information apps, and a 55-inch HD display. By replacing it with a "base," New York has now evolved into the world's number one telecommunications city, where citizens as well as tourists can use the Internet "smartly."

You can access maps and directions on your tablet, and make free calls anywhere in the United States. You can charge the device with the complete USB port, and a mechanism has been added to deliver local information in real time to the large screen display. The LinkNYC network currently has 6 million unique users, and a total of 8.6 TB (equivalent to music data of about 1.3 billion songs) has been used.

Also, according to Intersection, LinkNYC is not just a useful tool for New Yorkers, but an essential "lifeline" for New Yorkers, given that the most frequently searched words are "work, housing, hygiene, and public benefits." You can see that it is part of.

Amsterdam, the Netherlands "ASC Program" aiming to become the world's most energy-saving city
Amsterdam is formulating and promoting the "Amsterdam Smart City (ASC) Program" with the aim of realizing an intelligent city ahead of other European cities. At the root of this is efforts to change the energy consumption behavior of citizens. Specifically, measures in the following four fields are the pillars, and thorough reforms from how to make energy to how to use it are being carried out in order to form a smart city that can achieve both energy efficiency and quality improvement of people's lives. It is being pushed forward.

Sustainable Living --- By introducing smart meters, visualization (visualization) of power consumption and promotion of changes in citizens' environmental awareness and power usage behavior (lifestyle)
Sustainable Working ・ ・ ・ Conversion to smart buildings with enhanced lighting / heating / security functions and reduction of energy consumption
Sustainable Transport: Mutual power charging between ports and ships, widespread use of EV vehicles, and expansion of charging points
Sustainable Public Space: Use of EV vehicles for garbage collection, introduction of solar-powered garbage compressors

Hangzhou, China Congestion has disappeared! ?? "ET City Brain" developed by Alibaba
It is an ancient city on the shores of Lake Nishiko, which was loved by literary people, and because there are many narrow roads such as one lane on each side, traffic jams will spread instantly if an accident occurs, and traffic in the entire city will often be paralyzed. Hangzhou city that was happening. In particular, until 2012, the subway did not exist, so citizens had to take a bus or taxi, which took a lot of travel time. For this reason, not only daily life but also air pollution that obstructs the scenery of scenic tourist spots and the resulting sluggish growth of inbound demand have been regarded as problems.

However, in 2017, after the introduction of "ET City Brain" developed by "Alibaba Cloud" of Alibaba Group, the largest electronic payment company, heavy traffic jams have almost disappeared. .. ET City Brain is an AI-based "traffic control solution" and its main function is

The traffic flow rate is adjusted by signal control to prevent and suppress the occurrence of traffic congestion.
The signal is switched to "blue" according to the movement of an emergency vehicle such as an ambulance to shorten the arrival and departure time.
Automatically recognizes traffic violations and accidents from surveillance camera images and makes an emergency call to the police.
Although similar traffic control and monitoring systems are being introduced in stages in Japan, in the case of ET City Brain, for example, in the event of a large-scale accident, it is dedicated to predetermined emergency vehicles. Thoroughly the signal in the lane becomes "all blue". As a result, the average speed of emergency vehicles has increased by 50%, the arrival time has been shortened by more than 15 minutes, and the time has been reduced by less than half. In addition to early elimination of traffic congestion, it also contributes to the prevention of secondary damage and the improvement of the lifesaving rate of those at the time of the accident.

In addition to reducing traffic congestion and accident damage, ET City Brain also has a "fire occurrence recognition / alarm function" that detects abnormal temperature rises in managed IoT devices, and in the event of a fire, the fire department in charge is notified of the location of the fire and its surroundings. In addition to notifying the road conditions and the presence or absence of large combustibles such as gasoline, oil, and explosives, data such as photos, sounds, and texts from the fire brigade that arrived will be shared by the emergency, police, water, and electric power companies. It has become.

ET Brain, which can play a central role in the security management and maintenance of future cities, is currently automatically controlling 1/4 of the intersections of the entire city of Hangzhou, and is suffering from severe traffic congestion like Suzhou and Hangzhou. Gasping, trial introduction in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia has also begun.

Initiatives for smart cities in Japan
In the previous section, I touched on the outline of the smart city concept presented by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, but in the following four cities selected for the "Next Generation Energy and Social System Demonstration Project" promoted by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, projects led by private companies Is in progress. And since it has achieved certain effects such as CO² reduction, here are two main initiatives.

Yokohama-city kanagawa prefecture
Toyota City, Aichi Prefecture
Kyoto Prefecture Keihanna Science City
Kitakyushu, Fukuoka Prefecture
Yokohama City: Progress of smart projects centered on energy reform

In Yokohama City, which has the largest number of basic municipalities in Japan at 3.73 million, a total of 15 projects have been implemented over a five-year period in collaboration with 34 companies such as TEPCO, Meidensha, and Toshiba, centered on the Regional Energy Management System (CEMS). What was specifically introduced

HEMS (Home Energy Management System) ・ ・ ・ 4,200 households
PV (solar power generation): equivalent to 37 megawatts
EV (electric vehicle) ・ ・ ・ 2,300 units
As a result, we have achieved a CO² reduction of approximately 40,000 tons and a high performance that exceeds the target. In addition, as an initiative for BEMS (Energy Management System for Buildings), demand response is more effective than HEMS by requesting participation in buildings in the Minatomirai area, lowering electricity bills according to power saving charges, and paying incentives. I heard that I was able to confirm it.

Although it is hard to say that the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism has reached the "cross-disciplinary type", it has become a "horizontal expansion" of smart cities centered on energy reform, such as proceeding with plans to install emergency storage batteries in elementary and junior high schools that will serve as bases in the event of a disaster. Is also beginning to focus.

Toyota City started demonstration experiment of ultra-compact EV sharing service

In Toyota City, Aichi Prefecture, where related companies are crowded at the knees of Toyota Motor Corporation, a demonstration experiment of "Ha: moRIDE", a sharing service using the ultra-compact EV "COMS" developed by Toyota Motor Corporation, will be conducted in September 2019. It has been held since 9th of March. This agrees and participates in this demonstration experiment, evaluates the safe driving of Ha: mo RIDE members on a 5-point scale, allocates it to the next usage fee for members who are trying to drive safely, and can exchange it for eco points and PeX points. , Ha: mo This is an initiative to give away points.

This is a convenient service that allows vehicles to be dropped off between stations installed in various locations, and this initiative for the realization of a smart city called "EV x sharing" that achieves both improved convenience of urban transportation and reduction of CO². , Tokyo, Okinawa, Bangkok, etc. The demonstration area is expanding.

What is the future "town development" that smart cities aim for?

Before the emergence of new trends, smart cities had the main purpose of conserving resources that generate energy and protecting the global environment, but now there is a need to promote work style reforms, create new business models, and diversify. There is a need to solve the problem by technology (autonomous driving, 5G, data utilization, etc ...) and complete an integrated community.

Through hunting, agriculture, industry, and the information society, the arrival of "Society 5.0," an ultra-smart digital society that fuses cyberspace and physical space, is imminent, and there are no differences by region, age, gender, or language. It is expected to realize a smart city that provides services and services. However, since smart cities are only a mechanism that is considered indispensable due to the advent of the advanced IoT era, related organizations want to add the acronym "digital" in their recommendations, but civil society has introduced it. If you can't master the techniques that have been used, you can end up with a treasure trove.

What is important is to achieve both the solution of social issues and the abundant "humanity", and to reach the "continuously developing city = sustainable city", which is the future vision of smart cities. can not. If AI robots and self-driving cars support life in the city, the sense of blockage is overcome through innovation, and a smart city that everyone can respect is completed, future generations will be able to live affluently on a beautiful earth. It can be said that the day when "society" will be realized is near.