World Conquest by Toyota, Moved by Pizza and Croissants
Toyota and Rinnai Unveil World's First Hydrogen-Powered Stone Oven
Toyota and Rinnai have jointly built the world's first hydrogen-powered stone oven, marking a significant step towards making hydrogen a part of everyday life and creating a hydrogen society.
The hydrogen stone oven was unveiled at last year's Japan Mobility Show, where it served freshly baked pizza and croissants to visitors. The unveiling was a demonstration of Toyota's ability to apply its monozukuri capabilities and work practices in diverse areas.
Kenji Takahashi, a senior expert at Toyota's plants, applied his genba perspective to identify and prioritize potential stumbling blocks in the hydrogen cooker project. Tatsuyuki Hayashi, a member of the Products Development Dept., Raw Material Development Div. at Toyota, notes the lack of standards adds another layer of difficulty to monozukuri.
To overcome these challenges, the team harnessed Rinnai's strengths in combustion technologies and Toyota's long-established carmaking expertise to create a safe hydrogen cooker. Technology for safely supplying and monitoring hydrogen, honed for the Mirai fuel cell vehicle, was also utilized in the hydrogen cooker project. Technologies used to safely control combustion furnaces and paint-drying ovens in car manufacturing were applied to the hydrogen cooker project.
Masao Nonoyama, a developer from Rinnai's Advanced Development Section., R&D Headquarters, recalls trouble along the way in creating the hydrogen-powered cooker. Despite these difficulties, the team persevered, envisioning various possible risks and dealing with them in order of priority.
The hydrogen cooker project is a testament to Toyota's commitment to advancing hydrogen's practical uses. Atsushi Shirakawa, Group Leader of Prototype Development Section, Raw Material Development Div. at Toyota, believes making hydrogen feel like part of everyday life is crucial for creating a hydrogen society. Tetsuya Naka, Assistant Manager of Products Development Dept., Raw Material Development Div. at Toyota, notes that while hydrogen is still unfamiliar, cooking with it in daily life presents a good opportunity to expand the horizons of a hydrogen society.
The hydrogen stone oven was popular among children at the event, with many expressing interest in it for their school projects. Hydrogen has a high combustion temperature, which makes dishes crispy on the outside and succulent inside.
This innovation reflects Toyota’s goal to promote hydrogen usage in diverse fields beyond vehicles, such as logistics and plants, offering new comforts and experiences for users and employees. By applying hydrogen power to a traditional cooking method like a stone oven, Toyota is likely aiming to combine heritage craftsmanship with cutting-edge clean energy technology, enhancing energy innovation within daily life environments such as company cafeterias.
[1] Source: Toyota Newsroom
In conclusion, the hydrogen-powered stone oven serves as a demonstration of Toyota’s ability to apply its monozukuri capabilities and work practices in diverse areas, while also promoting hydrogen usage and energy sustainability. The project presents an opportunity to expand the horizons of a hydrogen society and offers a glimpse into the potential of hydrogen as an energy source in the kitchen.
Science and technology are harnessed in the hydrogen-powered stone oven project, as Toyota leverages its long-established carmaking expertise, combines it with Rinnai's strengths in combustion technologies, and applies technologies used in safe hydrogen supply, monitoring, and combustion furnaces from the Mirai fuel cell vehicle. This amalgamation of science and technology is a significant step in creating a hydrogen society and expanding technology's practical uses in diverse fields like cooking.
