Global Automobile Giant Toyota Expands Beyond Cars, Offers Pizza and Pastries Worldwide
Toyota and Rinnai Unveil Groundbreaking Hydrogen Cooker
Toyota and Rinnai, two industry giants, have jointly created the world's first hydrogen-powered stone oven. This innovative cooking appliance is set to revolutionise the culinary world, offering eco-friendly and innovative food preparation methods.
The hydrogen stone oven was first unveiled at last year's Japan Mobility Show, and now it's making headlines once again. The oven, which is currently being used for testing purposes, is part of Toyota's broader efforts to expand hydrogen use in various fields, such as logistics and facilities.
The high combustion temperature of hydrogen leaves vegetables bursting with moisture and delicious flavours, and dishes crispy on the outside and succulent inside. At the Japan Mobility Show, the oven served freshly baked pizza and croissants to visitors, making it a popular attraction, especially among children.
Toyota's strengths in combustion technologies, honed from their work on the Mirai fuel cell vehicle, were harnessed for the project, along with Rinnai's expertise in hydrogen cookers. Safety was a key concern, and the collaboration aimed to create a safe hydrogen cooker. Technologies used to safely control combustion furnaces and paint-drying ovens in car manufacturing were applied to the hydrogen cooker.
The lack of certification systems for hydrogen cooking appliances adds another layer of difficulty to the manufacturing process, known as monozukuri in Japan. However, engineering skills and hands-on genba expertise were key drivers, with senior experts like Kenji Takahashi and Tetsuya Naka at Toyota drawing on their manufacturing experience to identify potential issues and devise improvements for the hydrogen cooker.
Atsushi Shirakawa, Group Leader of Prototype Development Section, Raw Material Development Div. at Toyota, believes that making hydrogen feel like part of everyday life is crucial for creating a hydrogen society. He sees the hydrogen-powered stone oven as a step towards this goal, demonstrating hydrogen's versatility in everyday life alongside its established role in fuel cell vehicles.
Toyota's research and development of hydrogen-powered stone ovens align with their ongoing commitment to hydrogen as a clean energy source. They are pioneering hydrogen fuel cell trucks and other hydrogen-powered devices, and the hydrogen-powered cooking device, including the stone oven, has already been introduced in their employee cafeteria in Toyota City.
In the words of Tetsuya Naka, Assistant Manager of Products Development Dept., Raw Material Development Div. at Toyota, "People may think they are just messing around making pizzas at work, but we are determined to pave the way for a hydrogen society." This initiative underscores Toyota's dedication to exploring new and diverse applications of hydrogen energy beyond automobile use, contributing to a more sustainable and efficient future.
[1] Source: Toyota Press Release, 2021.
The collaboration between Toyota and Rinnai, leveraging their respective expertise in science and technology, resulted in the creation of the world's first hydrogen-powered stone oven, a groundbreaking innovation aimed at revolutionizing the culinary world and expanding hydrogen's use in various fields.
With the hydrogen cooker, Toyota is demonstrating the versatility of hydrogen energy in everyday life, aligning with their ongoing commitment to hydrogen as a clean energy source, extending its established role in fuel cell vehicles to new applications beyond automobile use, such as cooking devices.
