At CEATEC 2024, the Fujitsu booth-themed “Vision AI Park*” showcased AI as a trusted assistant that enhances people’s lives in sports, healthcare, and culture. The exhibition highlighted how Fujitsu’s Human Motion Analytics (HMA)* technology leverages markerless computer vision, AI, and data to enhance sports performance, improve well-being, and preserve traditional art.
Visitors experienced firsthand how AI could digitize human movements and deliver actionable information instantly, opening new avenues in each field. Fujitsu’s AI-centric approach aims to drive economic growth and improve quality of life by enabling a future where humans and AI collaborate, complement each other, and advance together.
Sports Zone: AI and Data Transform Training for Peak Performance
At CEATEC, I experienced the Fujitsu interactive basketball booth powered by Fujitsu’s Vision AI x Sports technology that does not use any markers or wearable sensors
Since winning the W League playoff championship in April 2024*, the Fujitsu Red Wave became Japan’s top women’s basketball team.
At CEATEC 2024, Fujitsu collaborated with the Red Wave team to create an interactive basketball booth. Fujitsu’s Human Motion Analytics (HMA) technology uses AI to analyze visitors’ shooting forms, offering real-time improvement advice based on Red Wave players’ data. Visitors could compare their technique to elite athletes and observe improvements through AI-guided feedback.
I tried the demo, and I was able to make some improvements to my shooting form. Here is how it worked:
The demo occurred on a partially virtual basketball court, where participants like myself could join Fujitsu’s Red Wave, the women’s professional basketball team, and take free throws.
Initially, I took a practice shot with my natural form. Fujitsu’s HMA technology then captured and analyzed my movements, comparing my form data to that of a Red Wave player. This allowed for detailed, real-time feedback on areas needing improvement.
After my practice shot, I got feedback from the Red Wave team’s coach, Shota Goto, based on Human Motion Analytics technology, to help me improve my second shot.
Next, a virtual coach provided tailored advice based on the professional player’s data, highlighting specific adjustments to get closer to the Red Wave standard.
With this guidance, I was given another chance to shoot. This time, the experience was intensified with a simulated game scenario. I wore the team’s #90 jersey, and a commentator set the stage: “The score is tied at 89-89, with #90 attempting a free throw to win the game.” This added a thrilling sense of pressure.
Afterward, Human Motion Analytics’s high-precision skeletal analysis allowed me to view and compare my movement data from both shots. The precise side-by-side analysis made it easy to understand the impact of the coach’s guidance on my form. This demo demonstrated Fujitsu’s innovative approach to sports analytics, making it possible to visualize, adjust, and refine physical performance in real-time.
A Fujitsu spokesperson explained that Human Motion Analytics technology, part of the Fujitsu Kozuchi AI platform for Vision x Sports, aims to support training for athletes and young players interested in basketball and soccer. I am convinced that the technology could be applied to all sports in the future.
This high-precision, markerless skeletal analysis technology already powers the Fujitsu Judging Support System, which the International Gymnastics Federation has used in competitions since 2019 and across all ten apparatuses since 2023.
Healthcare Zone: Supporting Mind and Body Health with AI-Driven Insights
In the Healthcare Zone, Fujitsu introduced a Pilates and yoga booth to demonstrate AI’s role in improving overall well-being. The AI analyzes visitors’ roll-down movements, a Pilates exercise that indicates balance capability. Based on an assessment of spine range of motion and movement speed, visitors receive personalized guidance from a professional instructor to refine their posture and movements.
Although we didn’t experience this demo firsthand, Fujitsu representatives explained the technology and shared plans for deploying it in collaboration with yoga studios.
Culture Zone: Passing Down Traditional Techniques with AI and Data Support
Fujitsu presented AI-assisted Noh performances in the Culture Zone in partnership with the Nohgaku Performers’ Association. Noh, a classical Japanese theater art form, relies on precise movements and expressions.
Fujitsu’s AI technology allows visitors to visualize their own movements and positions, comparing them to those of professional Noh actors. Visitors then receive expert guidance on Noh’s refined, expressive techniques from renowned Noh artist Yoshimasa Kanze.
We attended a Noh instructor’s performance, and the Fujitsu spokesperson explained that one of the greatest challenges in learning Noh is visualizing the precise position of the limbs, which are hidden by the traditional voluminous costumes. Fujitsu’s AI-driven Human Motion Analytics (HMA) technology enables accurate body motion capture and skeletal visualization, allowing novice Noh students to correct their posture right after practice.
A Noh instructor’ performs at the Fujitsu booth while the Fujitsu Kozuchi AI platform monitors his movements using Human Motion Analytics and then visualizes the skeleton positions with high precision.
Beyond Sports, Wellness, and Culture, the Fujitsu Kozuchi AI Platform Aims to Support People Across Diverse Fields
The Human Motion Analytics (HMA) technology is part of Kozuchi, Fujitsu’s AI platform launched in April 2023. Kozuchi, which integrates Fujitsu’s AI Vision with HMA, offers structured AI services, including generative AI, serving as a trusted assistant across seven key primary areas. With more than 30 years of research and 7,000 use cases, Fujitsu’s AI Vision, through its Uvance model, seeks to address societal issues across industries while enhancing productivity and creativity.
At CEATEC, Human Motion Analytics , part of Fujitsu’s Vision AI, was highlighted as a powerful tool for digitizing and analyzing human movements. Using Kozuchi’s advanced algorithms and high-precision skeletal analysis, Human Motion Analytics (HMA) delivers highly accurate motion data analysis, initially developed for AI vision-assisted scoring in gymnastics and adopted by the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) in October 2023 for all ten apparatuses. Fujitsu’s Judging Support System (JSS)* has been developed in collaboration with FIG since 2017 and started to officially help judges for four apparatuses at the 2019 Stuttgart Artistic Gymnastics World Championships*.
Fujitsu asserts that its skeletal analysis technology ranks among the world’s most precise, with applications spanning sports, healthcare, entertainment, retail, and manufacturing sectors. Through Kozuchi, HMA facilitates enhanced performance, refined skills, and optimized movement, creating new insights into human motion. This is in alignment with Fujitsu’s vision for 2030 to “become a technology company that realizes net positive through digital services […] and to deliver a net positive impact to society through corporate activities,” as stated by CEO Takahito Tokita in Fujitsu’s Technology and Service Vision 2024 document (page 4 – in English).
*Links to Japanese webpages – you need to use Google Translate to read them in English
Filed in . Read more about AI (Artificial Intelligence), CEATEC, Ceatec 2024, Fujitsu, Japan and Sports.
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