People and Technology in the Optimization Society
Until now, technologies have been required to allow machines to handle tasks. In the Optimization Society, machines will come closer to people, with the ability to adapt to their needs. By providing the "best matching of machines to people," OMRON will strive to continue its role as a pioneer in contributing to society in the soon-to-be-realized Optimization Society.
In the Information Society, knowledge information could only be exchanged as numerical data in the form of ONs and OFFs or 1s and 0s. The Optimization Society will see further progress in technologies that support and extract knowledge and sensitivity, with the result that aspects such as natural language and human knowledge and sensitivity will be directly exchanged, expressed, and acted on. In other words, technologies that automate parts of our human intellect and sensations will form the foundation for future development.
In the Optimization Society, people and machines will find an ideal level of harmony. Instead of pursuing productivity and efficiency, people will then place more emphasis on finding new ways to live their lives and searching for self-fulfillment. When this happens, it is predicted that people will begin to place their priority on more fundamental desires, such as the desire to be healthy and live a long life, the desire for a comfortable life, the quest of lifelong learning, and the wish to enjoy leisure time.
In order to further advance the fields of safety/security, healthcare and environmental preservation, OMRON is also placing its priority on activities that bring technologies ever closer to people and fulfill these fundamental desires, while maintaining an optimal balance between individuals and society, between humans and the environment, and between people and machines.