TOPPAN Toppan Printing launches "Sword Appreciation", a smartphone app that allows you to enjoy the brilliance of a sword at hand

Developed an app for smartphones that allows viewers to view swords and ground iron as if they picked up a sword, and will be on sale from February 2 (Wednesday).

Toppan Printing Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, President: Hideharu Maro, hereinafter referred to as Toppan Printing) has Hamon and Jiga as if the viewer had picked up the sword himself. Developed "Sword Appreciation", an app for smartphones that allows you to appreciate the detailed texture of the sword. As the first content, the important cultural property "Katana Shumei Yoshihiro / Hon A (Huaya) (Katana Shumei Yoshihiro / Hon A (Kaou) )" (hereinafter, special product Matsuie) will be on sale from February 2, 2022 (Wednesday).

Toppan Printing has been working on digital archives of valuable cultural properties, promoting the development of VR technology "Toppan VR" as a method of disclosing the data, and providing an experience of viewing cultural properties using theaters and mobile terminals. I am. This time, with the theme of swords, we have developed an application that allows you to experience detailed appreciation of swords such as swords and ground iron on personal mobile terminals such as smartphones using high-definition digital archive data.

Background and features of the development of the smartphone app "Sword Appreciation"

The sword is a cultural property that has historically been popular with enthusiasts as a proof of authority and arts and crafts due to its powerful and beautiful appearance. Recently, due to the influence of games and animation, the interest of young people has increased, and sword appreciation has become a high-profile event from a wide range of generations. In appreciating swords, special conditions were required to express how the sword changes depending on the way the light hits and the viewing angle, which are its characteristics, in display cases and catalogs. In this application, by using high-definition digital archive data and performing image analysis unique to Toppan Printing, you can appreciate the features of the surface of the sword (such as swords and ground iron) that experts recognize in an easy-to-understand manner. It enables and provides the user with an experience as if they were actually looking at the sword. In addition to the operability that allows you to browse comfortably with touch operation, the operation technology (patent application) that allows you to experience sword appreciation in a simulated manner by using a smartphone as if it were a sword and moving it in a way that makes you feel as if you are appreciating the real thing. Medium) developed. The way the light hits the sword, which changes as you move the smartphone, is reflected in the texture expression, and the experience of appreciating the sword such as swords and ground iron is realized on the smartphone. In addition, not only free operation by the user, but also a navigation mode is installed to explain in detail the viewing points of each sword. Every part of the app is designed to make you want to see the real thing by looking at the app. As the first step of this app, with the cooperation of the Sano Art Museum (location: Mishima City, Shizuoka Prefecture), you can appreciate the important cultural property "Yoshihiro Sword Zhu Mei / Hon A (Huaya) " owned by the museum. I made the content.

Features of the first important cultural property "Katana Yoshihiro / Hon A (Huaya) " for smartphones

・ High-definition digital archive that allows you to appreciate the scenery and scenery of Matsuie E. Based on the digital archive technology of cultural properties that Toppan Printing has cultivated so far, we carry out high-definition digital archive of the famous Matsuie without distortion. It is possible to magnify the famous Matsuie's ground iron to fill the screen of the smartphone and appreciate the ground boiling and the scenery * 1.

・ Analyzing Matsuie's unique texture to realize a more realistic expression of a sword that changes depending on how the light hits. Take hundreds of images with the light source moved little by little, and analyze the images using Toppan's unique technology. .. Under the supervision of the Sano Art Museum, the texture of the sword has been reproduced in detail. We have realized the appearance of the sword and the ground iron that change depending on how the light hits the sword as an appreciation on a smartphone.

・ Realistic sword appreciation experience with proprietary operation technology In addition to operability that allows you to browse comfortably with touch operation with the operation technology developed by Toppan Printing, it seems that you are watching the real thing by using your smartphone as a sword. By moving it to, it provides an experience as if you were actually watching a sword.

About the distribution of the smartphone app "Sword Appreciation" "Sword Zhu Mei Yoshihiro / Hon A (Huaya) "

* Please see the official website for sales details.

About the important cultural property "Sword Zhu Mei Yoshihiro / Hon A (Huaya) "

The important cultural property "Sword Zhu Mei Yoshihiro / Hon A (Huaya) " was made by Yoshihiro E at the end of the Kamakura period. It is called "Matsuie" because it was owned by Yasuyuki Matsui, the chief retainer of the Hosokawa clan of the Kumamoto domain, in the "Kyoho Specialty Book". Tsuruhime, the daughter of Tsunayoshi, the fifth shogun of Tokugawa, was given to the Kishu Tokugawa family as a gift when she was given a gift, and has since been introduced to the family.

Important Cultural Property "Sword Zhu Mei Yoshihiro / Hon A (Huaya) " Exhibition Information

* For details on the exhibition, please see the Sano Art Museum website (https://www.sanobi.or.jp/).

the next deployment

This app is scheduled to release the national treasure "Tachi Unsigned Ichimonji (Yamatorige)" owned by Setouchi City as the second release in March. Toppan Printing will release various swords in sequence with this application, and provide an appreciation experience that conveys the charm of swords. In addition, we will return a part of the profits of this application to the sword holders and carry out sustainable business activities for the protection and utilization of cultural properties.

Toppan Printing's Digital Archive Initiative

Toppan Printing is working on a digital archive of cultural properties in order to pass on the appearance of cultural properties, which are irreplaceable assets of humankind, to future generations. In addition to the high-definition digital photography and color measurement that we have cultivated through printing technology, we are also promoting the development of unique equipment such as large orthoscanners dedicated to cultural properties, based on technologies such as three-dimensional shape measurement. So far, we have been working on digital archives of many valuable cultural properties in Japan and overseas, such as the national treasure "Kanshinwa Joza Statue" (collected by Toshodaiji Temple) and the national treasure "Hinozu Ryofu" (collected by the Tokyo National Museum). In addition, various digital archive data such as high-quality reproduction of cultural properties such as the national treasure "Rakuchu Rakugaizu Rakufu" (Tokyo National Museum collection) and the important cultural property "Toshodaiden Emaki" (Toshodaiji collection) and the production of VR works. We are promoting the development of various expression methods. URL: http://www.toppan-vr.jp/bunka/

that's all

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