TEKKON Informatic (Apr 2023)

• TEKKON, an app that protects cities from infrastructure crises, accelerates new initiatives in the new semester in April!
• Selected as a pioneering example at Harvard University Blockchain event and joint business with Tohoku Electric Power Network started

Activities to protect infrastructure with Citizen, TEKKON activities are expanding in Japan and overseas

The Whole Earth Foundation (hereafter, WEF), an NPO organization that builds, provides, and operates a citizen-participation-type infrastructure information platform, has a slogan of "protecting infrastructure together with citizens." We are promoting activities to comprehensively check the condition of the infrastructure daily basis.In April, as a joint project with Tohoku Electric Power Network Co., Ltd., we started a demonstration experiment to verify whether operation efficiency can be improved by utilizing "Posting" for patrol inspection work of power distribution facilities, which requires a lot of labor. In addition, TEKKON was selected as a pioneering initiative, and the new semester was full of new events for TEKKON, such as introducing the TEKKON initiative at the blockchain work shop hosted by Harvard University.Utilizing the social contribution type Web 3 application "TEKKON" as a tool to collect photographic images of social infrastructure "Manholes" and "Power poles", we held an event "Infrastructure hunting" to invite many citizens to participate, with the power of citizens. We will work on comprehensive inspections of infrastructure nationwide. By providing infrastructure image data collected by citizens to local governments and infrastructure companies for use in maintenance and management, we will solve the social problem of aging infrastructure, and realize the construction of a low-cost infrastructure maintenance ecosystem through citizen participation. We aim to bridge safe infrastructure to the next generation.

Citizen participation expands TEKKON activities

The results of citizen cooperation as of April 2023 are as follows. The number of manhole images collected by citizens exceeded 3.56 million! The number of daily posts continues to increase! "TEKKON" was released on September 13, 2022 for a limited time, and last month, half a year after it was released to the public on October 15, the number of registered users exceeded 100,000, the number of manhole images collected by citizens also increased by 500,000 in January from about 3 million last month, and manhole data for about 3.56 million manholes (the number of manhole images acquired worldwide) was collected.

In addition, we have collected over 400,000 data on utility poles, which were added as new infrastructure photography targets in October last year. The 300,000 photo was taken on March 26, and more than 100,000 power poles were posted in less than a month.

Is utility pole inspection by citizens useful for the maintenance and management of power distribution facilities, leading to the realization of efficient operation? Collaboration business of Tohoku Electric Power Network Co., Ltd. has started! Held the “Utility Pole Hunting in Tohoku and Niigata”

Tohoku Electric Power Network Co., Ltd., which has endorsed TEKKON, has approached us and started a joint project in April. Electricity supports our lives. Regular inspections of power distribution equipment are essential for safe and stable use. Utilizing the Citizen Participation Event "Power poles hunting", images collected by citizens will be used for patrol inspection work of power distribution equipment, which requires a lot of labor due to the huge number of equipment, and verify whether efficiency can be improved. We will work on demonstration experiments.

Starting from April 21st in Sendai City, Miyagi Prefecture, the “Utility Pole Hunting in Tohoku and Niigata” will be held in 6 prefectures and 11 cities in Tohoku and Niigata. In Sendai, the goal was to acquire images of the specified 2,000 utility poles in five days, but the project was completed in three days, two days earlier than planned. In 2023, we will continue to conduct demonstration experiments in all Tohoku and Niigata prefecture.

Harvard University is also paying attention to TEKKON! ? Selected as a pioneering example leading the Web3 industry at the Harvard University blockchain event held on April 25.

On April 25th, the “Blockchain for Impact Workshop” was held at the Harvard Kennedy School, where Impact Plus, the Celo Foundation, and Taiwan implemented digital measures as pioneering examples of the blockchain/Web3 industry in each country and field. “TEKKON” was also selected along with The Ministry of Digital Affairs (moda), which promotes it. The theme of this event is to explore the potential for positive social change facilitated by blockchain technology in the three areas of international development, public goods, and the regenerative economy. A lively discussion ensued, with many students asking questions.In addition, it has been featured in many media such as television and newspapers, and has attracted a lot of attention both domestically and internationally. We will accelerate our efforts so that more people will know about “TEKKON” activities.

Six events were held in April to create a community among users. We will continue to implement infrastructure hunting events in Japan and overseas with the aim of further expansion.

Lastly...

Social infrastructure such as waterworks, manholes, utility poles, and guardrails are essential to our lives. It is an essential infrastructure not only in Japan but also in any city in the world, but its aging has become a major social issue. The WEF believes that there is a way to prevent infrastructure collapse by having the general public participate in the problem-solving process. We are promoting a system for replenishment.We will continue to operate TEKKON with the aim of building an ecosystem that realizes "protecting infrastructure together with citizens."