At SAE `99, DENSO Looks Back At Its Roots, Exhibiting 400-Year-Old Wooden Technology.

DETROIT--(AutomotiveWire)--March 1, 1999--DENSO, a leading global supplier of advanced technology, systems and components, will display a 400-year-old technology today through March 4 at the 1999 Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) International Congress and Exposition.

A sharp contrast to today's technologies, the Karakuri Folding Crane Machine was one of the top winners in an annual innovation competition held at DENSO's international headquarters in Kariya, Aichi, Japan. Previously, it was exhibited at many trade shows in Japan.

"Karakuri" machines first appeared in 1600 in Japan and were designed for amusement.

DENSO's wooden "karakuri" machine transforms a small square of white cloth into a crane, demonstrating a variation of "origami," the Japanese art of folding paper. The sharp lines of the crane's body create a simple, but abstract sculpture, a typical Japanese art form. While folding and unfolding the crane, the machine also plays a musical piece, "Passing Time," all without electronics.

The competition, held annually to inspire innovative thinking at DENSO Corporation, asked participants -- today's engineers -- to look back at the roots of technology in Japan for inspiration. Although the Folding Crane Machine is based on "karakuri" mechanisms, the majority of contest entries were based on state-of-the-art technologies such as those on display this week at DENSO's SAE Exhibit 1922.

Of DENSO's 9,400 worldwide engineers, 5,500 are engaged full-time in research and development three to 15 years before product introduction. The company annually invests an average of 6.5 percent of its revenues back into R&D. Founded in 1949, DENSO's automotive technology has been evolving for 50 years.

Worldwide sales for the 1997-98 fiscal year totaled nearly $13 billion. North American consolidated sales are estimated at $3 billion for 1998.

DENSO, the fourth largest automotive supplier in the world, operates in 25 countries with 69,000 employees (consolidated figure) and 58 manufacturing facilities. In North America, DENSO employs more than 11,000 people at 16 sites.

For more information, visit the newly redesigned North American DENSO website at www.denso-int.com.