Toyota Commemorative Museum

Were back to Nagoya in transit to our final destination. The flight was one hour late, I'm glad Noriko-san and Watanabe-san patiently waited for us. We were met by Sasaji-san, the main guide assigned by AGGN (Aichi Goodwill Guide Network) at Meitetsu platform and proceed to our itinerary, a trip to Toyota Commemorative Museum of Industry and Technology.

The museum tells the history of Toyota. I was surprised to know that the company all started by making wooden loom, transformed to modern inventions of weaving machines and morphed into automobile production for a company that is well known all over the world.

Here's the chronological record of Sakichi Toyoda's life, founder of the Toyota Group and a major contributor to the development and modernization of Japan's machine industries.

1867 Born in Shizuoka Prefecture (Yamaguchi-mura, Fuchi-no-kori, Totomi-no-kuni)

1890 Visits National Exhibition of Japan in TokyoInvents Toyoda wooden hand loom
1894 Invents yarn winder
1896 Invents Toyoda power loom made of wood and iron
1897 Establishes Okkawa Menpu (Cotton Cloth), where power loom operations start
1899 Establishes lgeta Shokai
1901 Invents warp let-off motion
1902 Establishes Toyoda Shokai ; continuous full-capacity production possible because of wide acceptance of Toyoda power looms
1904 Invents cop-change automatic loom
1906 Invents circular loom
1909 Invents automatic shuttle changer
1910 Visits the U.S. and Europe
1911 Establishes Toyoda Jido Shokufu Kojo
1912 Receives Medal of Honor with Blue Ribbon from the Japanese government
1918 Establishes Toyoda Boshoku
1921 Establishes Toyoda Boshoku Shou Works in Shanghai
1924 Receives second Medal of Honor with Blue Ribbon (with Bar for Additional Services) from the Japanese governmentCompletes non-stop shuttle change automatic loom, Type G
1925 Donates¥1,000,000 prize money for invention of a storage battery to the Imperial Institute of Invention and Innovation
1926 Establishes Toyoda Jido Shoki Seisakusho (today's Toyoda Automatic Loom Works, Ltd.)Receives Commemorative Imperial Award from the Imperial Institute of Invention and Innovation
1927 Receives Third Class Order of the Sacred Treasure from the Japanese government.Granted personal audience by His Majesty the Emperor at the Imperial Villa in Nagoya
1929 Transfers patent for automatic loom to Platt Brothers & Co., Ltd. of the U.K.
1930 Dies October 30 ; posthumously awarded the Junior Grade of the Fifth Rank of Honor by the Japanese government

The museum depicts the ingenuity and craftsmanship of Sakichi Toyoda and the Japanese in general that made "Made in Japan" synonymous to quality.

TCMIT also shows the past, the present and a clue of what would be like in the future.