{"id":18173,"date":"2018-08-30T16:35:25","date_gmt":"2018-08-30T07:35:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.innovation-osaka.jp\/oih2026\/?post_type=library&p=18173"},"modified":"2026-09-27T18:23:07","modified_gmt":"2026-09-27T09:23:07","slug":"takenodan","status":"publish","type":"library","link":"https:\/\/www.innovation-osaka.jp\/en\/library\/takenodan\/","title":{"rendered":"Dan Takeno"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The development began with \u201cIs this treatment really right for me?\u201d<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The capillary scope Kekkan Bijin is a device, made and sold by At Co., Ltd., for observing blood flow in the capillaries. Since the company was founded in 2009, about 1,000 units have already been sold. The main customers are medical institutions, pharmacy chains, the health insurance society of a major automaker, and the product development department of a major sanitary products company, which uses it to evaluate the effectiveness of its products.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The developer of Kekkan Bijin was Teruo Takeno, the father of CEO Dan Takeno. \u201cWhen my father was found to have colon cancer, that led my father to start developing the capillary scope Kekkan Bijin,\u201d recalls Takeno. Teruo, who ran an electronics store among other businesses, was a humorous person and a self-described inventor. Teruo loved coming up with groundbreaking ideas, such as a system to prevent train derailments and a system for going up and down pedestrian bridges.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After the illness was found, Teruo tried various therapies, such as hyperthermia, but was frustrated at not knowing whether they were right for Teruo\u2019s own body. Amid this, what Teruo focused on to see the effects of treatment firsthand was the \u201ccapillaries.\u201d While thinking it over, Teruo came across a certain paper. Learning that observing blood flow in the capillaries reveals small changes happening in one\u2019s body, Teruo resolved, \u201cI\u2019ll make such a device myself!\u201d That was the beginning of Kekkan Bijin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Osaka\u2019s \u201cWhy not just do it?\u201d pushed the start of the business<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Teruo, whose own illness led to the invention, died in 2009, eight years after being diagnosed with cancer, despite an initial prognosis of six months to live. To carry on the Kekkan Bijin business developed by Teruo and spread it in the world, Takeno left the JASDAQ-listed electronic components maker where Takeno had worked and founded At Co., Ltd., a research and development venture, in Osaka in 2009. The company name \u201cAt\u201d comes from the \u201c@\u201d (at sign). \u201cI named it \u2018At\u2019 because I wanted it to be a company that plays the role of delivering the right information to the right people.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Having grown up watching a father who ran businesses while immersed in inventing, Takeno says starting a business did not itself feel like a hurdle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Takeno is originally from Kyoto. Asked why the company was started in Osaka, Takeno says, \u201cPeople in Osaka are tolerant of challengers, so it was an environment where I could get a push to take on a challenge.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWith anything, the more you think about it, the more risks and negatives you see, and you start to think it might be better not to try. In Osaka, people often say, \u2018Why not just do it?\u2019 And people in Osaka tend to value things that are interesting, even if new. That is exactly why, if you can make them think something is really interesting, there are many chances for them to spread the word or introduce you, which I think is another good point. I often do things without thinking too deeply (laughs), so for someone like me who values the \u2018why not just do it?\u2019 spirit, Osaka may have been just right (laughs),\u201d Takeno said cheerfully. In reality, though, there were many struggles when the company was founded.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhen I first started, no one would lend me money, and when someone finally did, it was at a high interest rate. Looking back, I was still feeling my way at the start, and I think the reasons were that I could not write a good business plan and could not prepare enough of my own funds. Besides, I\u2019m not very smart (laughs),\u201d Takeno says modestly. Even so, At has never posted a loss since its founding and has increased revenue for nine consecutive terms. Perhaps it is the result of Takeno\u2019s positive personality, pushing toward goals rather than dwelling on hardships.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Increasing what Kekkan Bijin can reveal, from healthcare to medicine<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The capillary scope Kekkan Bijin is a device that easily observes blood flow in the capillaries without drawing blood. There are three points to observe: 1. whether the blood vessels are twisted, 2. whether their thickness is appropriate, and 3. whether the blood is cloudy<\/strong>. By seeing the tiny changes inside your own body, you can check your health and use it as an opportunity to rethink your lifestyle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cOur devices so far have been for observing blood flow. What At is working on now is commercializing a device that can not only observe the capillaries but also quantify them. Going forward, we want to make clear at a scientific level the correlation of capillary condition with blood condition and age, and the relationship between capillaries and lifestyle habits such as stiff shoulders and diet, and diseases, so that Kekkan Bijin can help guide lifestyle improvements. For now it is still in the realm of healthcare, but someday I want to raise it to a level that can be called medicine and partner with medical institutions,\u201d says Takeno.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Quantification means the state of capillary blood flow can be understood no matter who measures it, without depending on the individual. With adoption in research and development increasing, makers of health supplements such as tea, water, and supplements are testing how their products can change the capillaries, and in the future it may be possible to propose personalized health methods and products tailored to each person\u2019s condition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI want to prevent illness by paying attention to changes in the body every day, and reduce the number of people who die of illness.\u201d This is the wish of Takeno, who carries on the father\u2019s will.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFirst we will aim for something smaller, a tool as easy to use as a thermometer. And eventually, if machines were placed along people\u2019s daily routes, it would be an environment where you get checked without even noticing, without having to check yourself,\u201d Takeno said, also describing a future vision of one in every home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you want to start a business, get close to an entrepreneur you want to be like<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Starting a business does not guarantee success, and many entrepreneurs are constantly fighting all kinds of anxieties. Takeno, who is growing the company steadily, says Takeno too always keeps an eye on their own market value.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019m not really the logical-thinking type, so I make a point of being close to people who can think logically. If you want to start a business, it might be good to consciously get close to people who have started businesses. Getting a job at a venture company is one way to do that. And it is important to dig deep and think through why you are starting a business,\u201d Takeno said, sending a message to people who cannot find the courage to take the first step toward starting a business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Interview date: August 23, 2018
(Interview and text: Nami Nagase)<\/p>\n<\/section>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":4632,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_locale":"en_US","_original_post":"https:\/\/www.innovation-osaka.jp\/oih2026\/?post_type=library&p=3992","catch_copy":"Watching over the world\u2019s health through capillaries to create a healthy society","company":"At Co., Ltd.","sub_catch":""},"library-category":[30,28,98],"class_list":["post-18173","library","type-library","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","library-category-it","library-category-aplication","library-category-pitch","en-US"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.innovation-osaka.jp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/library\/18173","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.innovation-osaka.jp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/library"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.innovation-osaka.jp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/library"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.innovation-osaka.jp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4632"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.innovation-osaka.jp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18173"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"library-category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.innovation-osaka.jp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/library-category?post=18173"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}