New Establishment and Revision of the Japanese Industrial Standards (JIS) (May 2024)

1. Outline of the JIS

The JIS are a collection of national standards under the Industrial Standardization Act (JIS Act) that stipulate the types, quality, and performance of products, data, services, and so forth, as well as test or assessment methods for ascertaining these types and quality.

Producers and service providers make use of JIS for the purpose of producing and providing quality products and services, while consumers and other product users make use of JIS to access quality products and services.

Related ministries and agencies have been establishing new standards or revising the existing ones in response to technological advancements, changes in social environments, and other factors as necessary.

The establishment and revision of JIS is conducted by the competent ministers, including the Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, through discussions by the Japanese Industrial Standards Committee (JISC).¹ (Regarding a proposal for establishing a new JIS or revising the existing one, which is to be prepared by an Accredited Standards Developing Organization,² the competent minister may swiftly establish or revise the JIS without holding discussions at JISC.)

Notes:

1. JISC is a committee established by METI under the JIS Act.
2. Accredited Standards Developing Organization is a private body accredited as having expertise in developing JIS by the relevant minister.

2. Outline of the new establishment and revision of standards

In May 2024, METI newly established 4 standards and revised 12 standards.

Out of these, one revised standard was drafted by an accredited standards developing organization (the Japanese Standards Association) (see Appendix 1).

METI hereby introduces two standards established and revised this month.

The JIS shown in Item (2) below was established taking advantage of the Standardization System for Cultivating New Markets.

For the outline of this system, visit the website below.

(1) Establishment and revision of JIS for methods for assessing the performance of electrically operated spray seats (JIS A 4424 and JIS A 4422)

Electrically operated spray seats are popular devices whose diffusion rate in Japanese households exceeds 80%, and global demand for the spray seats is rapidly growing. Amid this, as an effort to realize the performance of such spray seats that consumers expect, METI has developed a JIS that stipulates methods for assessing the higher performance of electrically operated spray seats on the basis of the related international standards that were established by Japan’s proposal. Specifically, METI established a JIS for test methods capable of further appropriately assessing the comfort performance and energy-conserving performance of electrically operated spray seats. Moreover, it added to the existing JIS a new category of performance for warm-water-conserving spray type that use less warm water for the shower than conventional types.

The establishment and addition are expected to help companies appropriately assess the comfort performance and energy-conserving performance of the spray seats that consumers seek, thereby contributing to promoting the development of products striking a balance between the two performances and facilitating the popularization of the products.

This effort is expected to not only facilitate worldwide popularization of electrically operated spray seats with outstanding performance but also contribute to the sustainable growth of related industries.

(2) Establishment of JIS for new methods for measuring surface vibration distribution to address vibrations caused by machines (JIS Z 2160)

Vibrations caused by machines and structural objects in operation and use often severely affect the performance, life, and safety of the machines. Making the distribution of vibrations visible is an effective approach to ascertaining the characteristics of vibrations and taking measures against them.

Recently, some new methods were developed for measuring the distribution of vibrations caused by machines and structural objects in order to make the distribution visible in a more swift and detailed manner than conventional methods. The new measuring methods, which use the lattice projection method, are capable of casting lattice patterns on the object to be measured by using a projector and of measuring changes in the patterns caused by vibrations. This allows companies to examine how the vibrations are spreading without touching the object to be measured. Against this backdrop, METI established a JIS that stipulates the procedures for the methods for measuring the vibrations and the performance of related measuring equipment.

The establishment is expected to not only help improve the reliability of measurement results but also help more and more companies use the measuring methods, thereby contributing to the development and manufacturing of products with reduced vibrations as well as greatly contributing to the improvement of technologies that allow companies to safely and swiftly maintain and manage machines and structural objects.

3. Contact for inquiries about the respective JIS

If you wish to inquire about the details regarding the newly established and revised JIS, please contact the division in charge shown in Appendix 1 by email. Please clearly indicate your name, the name of your company (if you send an email as a representative of a company), and your contact information in the email.

4. Past news releases

• For past news releases related to the establishment and revision of JIS, visit this website.

Related Material

• Appendix 1: List of Newly Established and Revised JIS Publicly Notified on May 20, 2024(PDF:97KB)

Related Links

• The Japanese Industrial Standards Committee website
• METI website for standardization and certification
• For details on the respective JIS, visit here

Division in Charge

Information on this press release:

Standards and Conformity Assessment Research and Public Relations Office, Industrial Science, Technology and Environment Policy Bureau

Information on the standards:

International Standardization Division, Industrial Science, Technology and Environment Policy Bureau