Masaru Ibuka facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Masaru Ibuka
井深 大 |
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| Born | April 11, 1908 |
| Died | December 19, 1997 (aged 89) Tokyo, Japan
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| Nationality | Japanese |
| Education | Waseda University |
| Known for | Sony |
| Spouse(s) |
Sekiko Maeda
(m. 1936, divorced) |
| Children | 2 daughters, 1 son |
| Awards | IEEE Founders Medal (1972) |
Masaru Ibuka (born April 11, 1908 – died December 19, 1997) was a Japanese electronics expert. He was one of the people who started the famous company Sony.
Starting a New Company
Masaru Ibuka was born in 1908. He went to Waseda University and graduated in 1933. After university, he worked at a company that processed movie film. He also served in the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II.
After the war, in September 1945, Ibuka started a small radio repair shop. It was in a bombed-out department store in Nihonbashi, Tokyo.
In 1946, another researcher from the war, Akio Morita, joined him. Together, they started a new company. They called it Tokyo Telecommunications Engineering Corporation. Later, in 1958, this company became known as Sony Corporation.
Innovations at Sony
Ibuka played a big part in getting transistor technology for Sony. Transistors are tiny electronic switches. Sony got the license from Bell Labs in the 1950s. This made Sony one of the first companies to use transistors for everyday products. Before this, transistors were mostly used for military things.
He also led the team that created the Trinitron color television. This TV was very popular and came out in 1967. Ibuka was the president of Sony from 1950 to 1971. After that, he was the chairman until he retired in 1976.
Awards and Honors
Masaru Ibuka received many important awards for his work.
- In 1960, he received the Medal of Honor with Blue Ribbon.
- In 1978, he was given the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Sacred Treasure.
- In 1986, he received the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun.
- He was also honored by Sweden with the Commander First Class of the Royal Order of the Polar Star.
- In 1989, he was named a Person of Cultural Merit in Japan.
- In 1992, he received the Order of Culture, one of Japan's highest honors.
Ibuka also received special degrees from universities. These included Sophia University, Waseda University, and Brown University. The IEEE, an organization for electrical engineers, gave him the IEEE Founders Medal in 1972. They even named an award after him, the IEEE Masaru Ibuka Consumer Electronics Award.
Scouting and Books
Masaru Ibuka was also involved with the Boy Scouts of Nippon. He was the Chairman of their National Board of Governors. In 1991, the World Organization of the Scout Movement gave him the Bronze Wolf award. This is the highest award in Scouting worldwide. He also received the Golden Pheasant Award from the Scout Association of Japan in 1989.
Ibuka wrote a book called Kindergarten is Too Late (1971). In this book, he shared his ideas that children learn the most from birth to three years old. He suggested ways to help young children learn during these important early years.
