Kawasaki Institute of Industrial Promotion Innovation Center of NanoMedicine received“Japan Open Innovation Prize Selection Committee Special Award”!
Kawasaki Institute of Industrial Promotion
Chairperson, Atsushi Miura
This time, the project of the Innovation Center of NanoMedicine (iCONM) operated by theKawasaki Institute of Industrial Promotion, "In-Body Hospitals will change the future-Aimingfor innovation from a sick care society to smart life care society-" received the 3rd Japan Open
Innovation Prize Selection Committee Special Award from the Cabinet Office.
Firstly, I would like to express my sincere appreciation to everyone involved and so many
people who supported us.
To Dr. Hiromichi Kimura, COINS Project Leader, Dr. Kazunori Kataoka, COINS ResearchLeader and iCONM Director General, Dr. Takanori Ichiki, Professor, Graduate School ofEngineering, The University of Tokyo, all the scientists, and all of the participating institutions, I
would like to pay my deepest respects for their long-standing and continuing efforts toward
research and social implementation.
Secondly, I would like to thank Kawasaki City centered on the Kawasaki City Coastal Area
International Strategy Headquarters. They have been committed, for many years, to developing
the King SkyFront. It is an advanced life science research area where the Innovation Center ofNanoMedicine is located. Moreover, I would like to thank numerous public officials at national,prefectures, and related local government offices for their on-going support.
Furthermore, I am very grateful for the support of companies, research institutions, academia,
and local citizens from this area.
By 2045, we are aiming for realizing a society where people become healthy by being freed
from diseases that have a heavy social burden, by creating “In-Body Hospitals”; a virus-sized
smart nanomachine and autonomously patrol the body and perform treatment and diagnosis 24
hours a day.
iCONM plays a central role with a total number of 25 institutions (6 universities, 12 companies,
5 research institutes, 2 local governments: as of December 2020) participating. With the backingof Kawasaki City, we have built, under-one-roof, a research system facilitating industry,
government and academia collaboration. We have achieved many results; academic research
papers, patent applications, license acquisition, as well as the creation of venture companies. It isa reflection of these material efforts that we been highly evaluated and recognized by this award.

Currently, the research on intractable cancer, dementia, osteoarthritis, etc., which are major
issues in the super-aging society is underway, as well as developing diagnostic devices.
Furthermore, in readiness for the potential invasion of new viruses in the future, we are conducting
research toward the development of vaccines that can be efficiently produced, in a short period oftime, in cooperation with the Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Medical Science.
Encouraged by this award, we will continue to strive to realize a smart life care society withthe aim of becoming the most innovative base in the world that local citizens can be proud of, andwe ask for your continued support.