2026 Japan Smart Prototypes Summit

A smarter approach to vehicle development by seamlessly integrating simulation-based virtual testing, physical testing with real vehicles, and test measurement data into a unified environment.

A Seminar on " Smart Testing"

Today's vehicle development environment faces increasing challenges to reduce the number of physical prototypes, improve correlation between virtual and real-world testing, and enable faster, more confident engineering decisions. The 2026 JAPAN SMART PROTOTYPES SUMMIT is designed to bring the vision of Smart Testing, advocated by HBK and VI-grade, to the Japanese automotive community.

The event will bring together engineers from leading OEMs, suppliers, technology partners, and research institutions across Japan to share how virtual testing, physical testing, and data-driven workflows are being applied in real vehicle development programs. Participants will gain valuable insights into how these technologies and methodologies are helping to streamline development processes and improve engineering efficiency.

Hosted at the Nagoya International Center, the summit will feature case study presentations from industry leaders including Toyota Motor Corporation, Mazda, Suzuki, TOYO Tire, S&VL, Saginomiya Seisakusho, and ESTECH (in no particular order), as well as technical sessions presented by HBK and VI-grade. In addition, attendees will have opportunities to explore live technology demonstrations and engage in discussions with experts and fellow engineers from across the automotive industry.

The program will cover a wide range of application areas, including vehicle dynamics, NVH, ADAS and autonomous driving, HMI, durability, and reliability engineering. Throughout this one-day event, participants will explore how Smart Testing bridges virtual and physical testing environments, accelerates decision-making, reduces development iteration cycles, and supports more efficient vehicle development.

Join us to discover how the seamless integration of simulation, physical testing, and measurement data can transform vehicle development and help shape the future of automotive engineering.

Event details:

📅 Date: 25 November 2026

📍 Place: Nagoya International Center/ Hall

🕘 Time: 10:30am

Main Topics

Customer and partner case study presentations from leading automotive companies
Technical sessions covering simulation, driving simulators, real-vehicle testing and measurement, durability and reliability engineering, and end-to-end test workflows
Networking and technical exchange opportunities with engineers, partners, and industry pioneers across multiple disciplines
In-depth insights into HBK/VI-grade’s Smart Testing solutions

Networking Reception

A networking reception will be held from 18:00 following the seminar. The reception will take place at Recipe, located just a five-minute walk from the International Center.

Join us in a relaxed and informal setting to continue the discussions sparked during the day's sessions. This is an excellent opportunity to engage with speakers and fellow participants, exchange ideas, and expand your professional network with experts and innovators in the field of automotive engineering. We look forward to welcoming you for an evening of insightful conversations and meaningful connections.

Venue：recipe

Access：https://tabelog.com/aichi/A2301/A230101/23089563/dtlmap/

Address：1F, Dai-2 Nagoya Sanko Building, 3-19-14 Meieki, Nakamura-ku, Nagoya, Aichi 450-0002, Japan

Agenda・Schedule

Explore detailed information on the products and solutions related to this event.

sports car parked front wheel with wireframes

VI-grade

VI-grade and HBK are driving the transformation of product development through Smart Testing.

Today, the question is no longer whether to choose simulation or physical testing. Rather, the key challenge is how to intelligently combine the two to maximize efficiency, accuracy, and innovation throughout the development process.

nCode® Durability Analysis and Test Data Processing Software

From digital signal processing to FE (finite element)-based fatigue analysis, nCode enables engineers to extract valuable insights from test data while ensuring efficient and streamlined data management.

ReliaSoft® Reliability Analysis and Management

ReliaSoft provides a comprehensive suite of powerful software solutions that support reliability engineering through a wide range of modeling and analysis methodologies, enabling thorough and data-driven reliability assessments.

Time	Company name	Presenter	Presentation title
9:15 AM 10:35 AM	Registration / Welcome Coffee
10:35 AM 11:00 AM	HBK	Ryota Ikeda, Head of Sales, Rest of Asia & Japan Country Manager
11:00 AM 11:35 AM	TOYOTA MOTOR CORPORATION	Hirokazu Suzuki, Project Manager, Powertrain Function Development Div. , Powertrain Company Kazuya Takenaka, Powertrain Function Development Div. , Powertrain Company	From Real-Vehicle-Based Development to Smart Testing －The Digital Shift in Toyota’s Product Appeal Development
11:35 AM 11:55 AM	SAGINOMIYA SEISAKUSHO	TBD	TBD
11:55 AM 12:20 PM	VI-grade	Toru Yoshii, Japan Country Manager
12:20 PM 1:30 PM	Coffee break
1:30 PM 2:00 PM	MAZDA MOTOR CORPORATION S&VL	Shuichi Kondo, Hideyuki Muramatsu	TBD
2:00 PM 2:20 PM	ESTECH Corporation	Hiromichi Ebisawa, Solution Innovation Division Division Director	Application of a Driving Simulator for Evaluating Tire Performance Trends in Tire Development
2:20 PM 2:50 PM	TOYO TIRE	Akio Uesaka, Assistant Manager, Advanced Technology Development Dept. Technology Development Division	Application of a Driving Simulator for Evaluating Tire Performance Trends in Tire Development
2:50 PM 3:15 PM	ホッティンガー・ブリュエル・ケアー(HBK)	Hidaka Kobayashi, Application Engineer	Data Management for Durability Validation: Accumulating and Utilizing Road Load Data
3:15 PM 3:50 PM	Coffee break
3:50 PM 4:25 PM	TBD	TBD
4:25 PM 4:55 PM	ホッティンガー・ブリュエル・ケアー(HBK)	Kimio Mizokami, 振動騒音、音響コンサルタント、元トヨタ自動車車両実験部、元(社)日本自動車工業会騒音部会小型車分科会長. Yasuji Akisuki, 元三菱自動車工業株式会社実験部 MG. 平山正充, 技術Grアプリケーションエンジニアアドバイザ.	Simulationだけでない自動車振動騒音開発の基礎と現場
4:55 PM 5:25 PM	Suzuki	Namekawa Keisuke, Department Manager in Charge Motorcycle Engine Function Experiment Dept Motorcycle System Control Design Div	Virtual Vehicle Simulation Driven by Measured Data: Indoor Pass-by and Data-Driven Acoustic Development in Motorcycles
6:00 PM 8:00 PM	Networking Reception