Dr. Hiroyo Ogawa graduated from the Department of Electronic Engineering, School of Engineering at Hokkaido University in 1974, completed a Master’s course at the Graduate School of Engineering in 1976, and joined the Yokosuka Electrical Communication Laboratory of the Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Public Corporation (currently NTT) in the same year. In 1990, he was a senior researcher at the Advanced Telecommunications Research Institute International (ATR). After working as a Group Leader at the NTT Wireless Communication Systems Laboratories from 1993, he was transferred to the Communications Research Laboratories of the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications in 1998. After this, from 2005 he served as the Director of the Yokosuka Radio Communications Research Center of the National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT), and in 2008, he became the Deputy Director of the Association of Radio Industries and Businesses. Since 2015, he has been the Visiting Researcher at NICT and is active in international standardization for wireless communication.

He has researched and developed wireless communication systems and devices from microwaves to millimeter waves for many years at laboratories such as NTT, ATR, and NICT. He has also played a pioneering role in proposing and demonstrating high-frequency circuit technology, fiber optic wireless systems, and short-range high-capacity transmission systems and has achieved many excellent research results. His notable contributions include outstanding achievements in the international standardization of these technologies and the international standardization of the spectrum for wireless systems that extends to the terahertz bands.

First, in the field of Microwave Integrated Circuits (MICs), he contributed significantly to the practical application of all-MIC transmission/reception devices using double-sided MIC technology that utilizes both sides of the substrate. In addition, he devised a uniplanar monolithic millimeter-wave integrated circuit (MMIC) technology that can highly integrate circuit functions on a single plane. This technology greatly influenced the subsequent configuration of millimeter-wave transceivers.

Next, in the field of optical fiber wireless technology in the interdisciplinary area of light and microwave/millimeter-waves, he proposed a millimeter-wave subcarrier transmission method as an effective transmission technology for distributing millimeter-wave signals to hotspot areas and demonstrated its effectiveness. He also played a key role in the launch and establishment of the Time-limited Technical Committee on Microwave Photonics (MWP) and the MWP International Conference to discuss this field. In addition, he set up a group to discuss the standards of fiber optic wireless technology at the International Electrotechnical Commission and the Asia-Pacific Telecommunity Standardization Program, and he is taking a leadership to develop the international standard based on Japanese technology.

Furthermore, in the field of millimeter-wave short-range large-capacity transmission systems, he has contributed significantly from the beginning to the establishment of a group to discuss the 60-GHz IEEE802 standard with the aim of making research results a global standard. In addition, he played a leading role in the revision of Radio Regulations at the World Radiocommunication Conference to open the spectrum to mobile and fixed radio systems in the terahertz bands. On the other hand, in the field of radio wave administration in Japan, he is also a leading contributor to the development of technical standards for deregulation in the 60 GHz band.

For his achievements in these studies and standardization, he has received many awards, including the 1992 and 1995 Best Paper Awards and the 2005 Achievement Award from the IEICE, the 2007 and 2020 Maejima Hisoka Awards, the 2018 and 2020 Achievement Award in the ITU Association Award, the 2019 Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Award in the Industrial Standardization Business Award, , the 2020 TTC Chairman’s Award in the Information and Communication Technology Award. On the other hand, as an Expert Member of the Information and Communications Council of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, he also contributed to developing the field of wireless communication from the perspective of radio wave administration. He also contributed to the development of the IEICE, including serving as the Chair of the Technical Committee. The IEICE and the IEEE have also awarded him the title of Fellow.

As mentioned above, Dr. Ogawa’s achievements in the fields of electronic information and communication and standardization have been outstanding, and we are confident that Dr. Ogawa is a worthy recipient of the Distinguished Achievement and Contributions Award from the IEICE.