What kind of watches do top celebrities choose? Celebrity Watch Hunting is a serial column that showcases moments from celebrities around the world. This time, we'll be introducing the watch worn by Akira Yoshino, an honorary fellow at Asahi Kasei and winner of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry!
Akira Yoshino
On October 9, 2019, it was decided that the Nobel Prize in Chemistry would be awarded to Akira Yoshino and others who contributed to the development of lithium-ion batteries. Yoshino was born in Suita, Osaka Prefecture in 1948. He graduated from the Department of Petroleum Chemistry, Faculty of Engineering, Kyoto University in 1970 and completed his master's course in 1972 before joining Asahi Kasei Corporation. He began developing lithium-ion batteries in 1981 and achieved success in 1985. He has served as head of the Asahi Kasei Ion Secondary Battery Business Promotion Office and has been a fellow at the company since 2003.
From 2005, he served as the head of the Asahi Kasei Research Institute in Fuji City, Shizuoka Prefecture. The photo was taken in April 2012 while he was working there.
Let's take a look at the watch that Yoshino, the "father of lithium-ion batteries," used to wear at the time.
As many people might have guessed, Yoshino had a Citizen Attesa watch in his hands, which uses a lithium-ion secondary battery.
The lithium-ion batteries developed by Yoshino are widely used in laptops, smartphones, and electric vehicles, and are also highly valued in the watch industry for their light weight and energy efficiency. While analog quartz watches use silver oxide batteries that maintain a stable voltage of approximately 1.55V, this lithium-ion battery can output a higher voltage of 3V, making it primarily suitable for digital watches.
The Attesa is a multi-function radio-controlled watch with a world time display that was released in 2007. It receives standard radio waves from Japan, the United States, and Europe (Germany) to automatically correct the time and calendar. It is also a photovoltaic watch equipped with a lithium-ion secondary battery to store electrical energy.
Citizen "Attesa"
Lithium-ion batteries were commercialized in 1991. Since then, Japanese watch manufacturers other than Citizen have released many multi-function models, such as thermally powered quartz watches and GPS watches, making it one of the inventions that has spurred the evolution of wristwatches. This award is the result of the efforts and passion of Yoshino and his team, and we would like to express our sincere respect for them.
(Reference: Shizuoka Shimbun)
