January 2023 Vol. 21 No. 112023

https://www.ntt-review.jp/archive/2023/202301.html

Front-line Researchers
Shigeto Furukawa, Senior Distinguished Researcher,
NTT Communication Science Laboratories

Rising Researchers
Yuta Ueda, Distinguished Researcher, NTT Device
Innovation Center

Front-line Researchers

Shigeto Furukawa, Senior Distinguished Researcher, NTT
Communication Science Laboratories▼Abstract
According to the World Report on Hearing issued by the World Health Organization,
it is estimated that by 2050, approximately 2.5-billion people (one in four people) inthe world will suffer hearing loss, which is considered a major risk factor indeveloping dementia. Hearing is an indispensable information-processing
mechanism for understanding the environment and communicating with people andan important component of the sensory world that is directly linked to emotions. We
interviewed Shigeto Furukawa, a senior distinguished researcher at NTT
Communication Science Laboratories investigating the auditory mechanism, about
the progress of his research activities and his attitude as a researcher.

Feature Articles
Transport Network Technology for IOWN Implementation

Optical Transmission Technology for Practical
Implementation of the All-Photonics Network▼Abstract

Feature Articles
Transport Network Technology for IOWN Implementation
Optical Transmission Technology for Practical Implementation of the All-Photonics Network
Service Node Architecture Technology for Disaggregated Network Service Functions andFixed-mobile Convergence Networks
Network Control System Configuration Technologies for Advanced Network Operation

Regular Articles
Understanding Desire to Touch Using Large-scale Twitter Data

Global Standardization Activities
Standardization Trends in Real-time Communications at 3GPPNTT Network Innovation Center is developing
technologies and systems for the practicalimplementation of an optical transmission
network, the key element for implementing theAll-Photonics Network (APN), which in turn will
support IOWN (the Innovative Optical andWireless Network). With our next-generation
optical transmission network, which is anadvance release of the APN, we are working toincrease speed and capacity to handle growing
communication traffic as well as provide open
optical interfaces for connecting various systems
and devices without photoelectric conversion toenhance the added value provided by opticalnetworks and develop operations andmaintenance technologies for these networks.

ROADM

ROADM

APN-I

APN-I

function

Fault
Delay
prediction
manage- Deterioration
estimationment

function

Optical transmission network design• 1T-class optical transmission• C-band + L-band transmission

ROADM

ROADM

APN-G

APN-G

functionfunctionOpen
optical IF
1T-class
opticaltransceiverOpen IF
Open IF
opticalopticaltransceivertransceiver
Various
Delay
functions, such measurement
as transportand control

1T-class
opticaltransceiver

Controller
and management

Collection andcontrol
of internal
information

Open IF
Open IF
opticalopticaltransceivertransceiver
Various
Delay
functions, such measurement
as transportand control

Regular Articles

Understanding Desire to Touch Using Large-scale Twitter Data
▼Abstract

I and research colleagues investigated people’s desire to touch by collecting andanalyzing a large amount of text data that contain phrases such as “want to touch”
on Twitter. We revealed the relationship between the body part that people want totouch and the touch gesture. We also revealed the effects of the COVID-19
pandemic on the desire to touch. Specifically, we observed “skin hunger,” i.e., thestrong desire for physical communication, and variation of touch avoidance toward
objects such as doorknobs. Our results will be beneficial for understanding humanbehavior as well as for the further development of haptic technology.