Takaaki Konno

Yasuda Enterprise Development Co Ltd. (YED) is a joint venture between Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co. and Sompo Japan Insurance headquartered in Tokyo with offices in Osaka, California and Taipei, the firm was established in 1999 and specializes in venture capital investments.

Nano Fusion Technologies, Inc. (NFT) is providing micro-fluidics solutions, i.e., 'control of micro fluids'. There have been efforts for the research and development of micro-fluidics technology but it is not yet at commercialization although many advantages are promising. One of the barriers to make the micro-fluidics technology commercialization is a micro pump deployed with the technology. A pump for non-micro fluids applications is commercialized with a developed technology but it is still premature for micro-fluids applications. NFT believes that development of a micro pump controlling micro sized fluid is the first step for its mission. NFT has developed micro electro-osmotic pumps (micro EO pumps) and related technologies. NFT's micro EO pumps have many advantages such as the smallest size in the world (Diameter: 8 mm, Thickness: 4 mm, Weight: 0.4 g, Q-max: 70 µL/min and P-max: 120 kPa @18 V for methanol), high pressures, no pulsations, immediate response time, low operation voltages. EO pumps have some disadvantages such as bubbles and performance volatility on sorts of fluids to be controlled. However, NFT has developed technologies to mitigate or solve them. 'Micro-fluidics' is generally meant to be a technology for life science and chemistry which have been handling fluid. However, NFT believes the micro-fluidics in wider senses. For example, NFT is a pioneer for applying the micro fluidics technology to micro fuel cells. NFT has its own manufacturing facility and supplies products as well as is a technology provider and system integrator of the micro-fluidics technologies.