WHOI-90-52

manufacturers look for very speific high volume niches for their survival in that industry.)
We have not identified any initiatives in Japan that portend increased efforts by its government
in the marne consumer electronics industry. However, there is some reason to believe that the
Japanese government has begun to taget the ocographic and environmenta monitoring
instrmentation setor through government-sponsored R&D efforts. This may be parcularly
troubling for U.S. manufacturers of these
technologies, becuse this is not the typical mass
market toward which most Japanese government support has been tageted in the past.
In the defense and milta systems setor, there is mixed news. We expet to se increased
competition from the Japanese in terms of components included in western defense systems. It
is conceivable that there may be some market opportunities for U.S. vendors as Japan expands
its parcipation in the western alliance antisubmarne warare (ASW) efforts (although this is a
sensitive area not usually taked about openly).
The principal sponsor of marne technology development efforts in Japan is the Science and
Technology Agency (STA), parcularly through its subsidiar body, the Japan Marine Science
and Technology Center (JAMSTEC) (Okamura, 1987; Saeki, 1984). Table 2 in Hoagland and
Kite-Powell's paper gives a general impression of the size of funding for ocographic resech
in Japan (and compares it to the levels of other countres). STA is the primar sponsor of a
number ofMEI-relevant projects that include the parcipation and paral sponsorship of Japanese
industral corprations (STA, 1987). These projects are wort describing:
1. The Japanese are at the cutting-edge of marne submergence technology. JAMSTEC has
operating experience with its own 200m capable deep diving manned submersible and
has just taen delivery of its "world class" 6500m deep diving submersible, the Shinka
6500. This submersible wil be equippe with the capabilty for sending television signals
acousticaly.
2. JAMSTEC has constrcted and successfully operate a 300m remotely operate vehicle
(ROV), the Dolphin 3-K. Beginning in 1992, R&D efforts are planned for a 10,OOm
capable ROV. The development and manufacturig budget for this ROV has been
estimated at $20 milion.
3. JAMSTEC is involved in several instrmentation projects as components in the design of
a much larger "marne environmenta control system." These include marne remote
sensing tehnologies, relate parcularly to eaquake prediction, and geologic and
seismic sensors.
4. There are several interagency projects, including one directed at the development of new
ocographic instrumentation for exploitation of the Japanese EEZ (Chijiya and
Odamak, 1988). These include fast collection and procssing systems for oc data and
oc "condition" observational instruments. Among the speific instrument typs are
composite optica sensors for sewater analysis, a ship-mounted acoustic doppler current
7