Photo 1 VOICEHUB leaflet created for "Communication Tokyo"

There was already a space where the VOICEHUB would be placed in the exhibition booth. Leaflets were ready (photo 1). And there certainly was no turning back.

I listened to Mr. Kuboki's plan as if I were grasping at straws. His idea was to create a circuit and replace the portion with the LSI bug on another circuit board. A chip that allows changes in functions would be used with a program called FPGA to substitute LSI. Easier said and done, the task was nothing short of outrageous for circuit designers.

For Mr. Kuboki, it was his fifth year with OKI. Luckily enough, his little experience in circuit design led to this daring proposal. Mr. Kuboki also had a challenging spirit and was mentally focused enough to actually go through with the ordeal he was about to face.

There was no quitting. And there were certainly no other options. From that day, Mr. Kuboki and I spent day and night in the lab. Mr. Kuboki took charge of the modification and I helped his work from behind like a haunting ghost. A haunting ghost - this is the actual expression people use to describe me at the time.

The lab was located on the 11th floor of the Shibaura Building, with a view of the Tokyo Tower. In the morning, the Tokyo Tower glittered from the morning rays of the sun as we entered the lab. The next thing I know, the Tokyo Tower in the window would be covered by night illuminations. And in such way, each day passed if it were captured in fast-motion. That much concentration was involved. It was one week prior to the exhibition when we finally heard something that seemed to resemble a voice.