PeopleofSuperintelligence

Researcher

Johji Tajima

Also known as 田島 譲二

Johji Tajima is a researcher in image processing whose work spans pattern analysis, color reproduction and 3D vision. He graduated from the University of Tokyo's Faculty of Science in 1971 and researched image processing and pattern analysis at NEC from 1971 to 2003, including a guest-scientist appointment at FIM in Karlsruhe from 1979 to 1980. His work includes the Rainbow Range Finder, color-sensor quality measures and the SOCS database; he also published Principles of Color Image Reproduction in 1996. IAPR named him a Fellow in 2002, and he served as professor at Nagoya City University's Graduate School of Natural Sciences from 2003 to 2014. He served on MVA 2025's Advisory Board in Kyoto; as of October 2026, he is Professor Emeritus at Nagoya City University.

Now at
Nagoya City University
Badges

Timeline

  1. 1971–2003

    NEC research and FIM visit

    He graduates from the University of Tokyo's Faculty of Science in 1971 and joins NEC in 1971, researching image processing and pattern analysis through 2003. From 1979 to 1980, he works as a guest scientist at FIM in Karlsruhe, Germany.

  2. 1990

    A doctorate and range finder

    He receives a doctorate from the University of Tokyo in 1990. Range Image Acquisition by Rainbow Range Finder appears in IEICE Transactions in 1990.

  3. 1996

    Color reproduction measures

    He publishes Principles of Color Image Reproduction in 1996. His 1996 conference paper proposes the weighted quality factor, spectral characteristic restorability index and color reproducibility index to evaluate color-reproduction quality.

  4. 1999

    Developing the SOCS database

    He coauthors development of the Standard Object Colour Spectra Database (SOCS) in 1999. It organizes object-color spectra by category and intended use, with samples spanning photographic materials, printing, computer printer output, paints, flowers, leaves and human skin.

  5. 2002

    An IAPR fellowship

    IAPR names him a Fellow in 2002 for contributions to color image processing and 3D vision.

  6. 2003–2014

    Professor at Nagoya City

    From 2003 to 2014, he serves as professor at the Graduate School of Natural Sciences, Nagoya City University.

  7. July 2025

    MVA 2025 advisory board

    He serves on MVA 2025's advisory board at the conference in Kyoto in July 2025.

  8. As of October 2026

    Professor Emeritus at Nagoya City

    As of October 2026, he is Professor Emeritus at Nagoya City University. His research fields are image processing and pattern recognition systems.

Career

  1. Since 2003Nagoya City UniversityProfessor
  2. 1979–1980FIMGuest Scientist
  3. From 1971NEC

Education

  1. 1990University of TokyoDoctorate
  2. 1971University of Tokyo

From the biography.

  1. The company share of AI researchers’ top papers was 31% in 2020–2024 and 8% in 1970–1974Includes NEC. We estimate where the people shaping AI worked when their most-cited papers appeared: the company share was 31% in 2020–2024 and 8% in 1970–1974, and Google led all organizations in 2020–2024.
  2. 23% of people shaping AI who left a university for a company later returned to a universityIncludes NEC. We estimate that 468 of the 2,011 people shaping AI who left a university for a company (23%) later returned to a university after a median of 5 years, and 163 of 829 (20%) made the reverse round trip.
  3. People shaping AI work at a median of 3 organizations over a career: 3 for university starters and institute and lab starters, versus 2 for company startersIncludes University of Tokyo. Across 6,853 people shaping AI with a dated work role, we estimate a median of 3 parent organizations over a career (mean 3.6), comparing role groups, starting sectors and starting decades from the 1950s to 2020–2026.
  4. Universities keep AI researchers for a median of 6 years, compared with 2 years at frontier labsIncludes University of Tokyo. Across 15,811 dated work stays (6,529 people), median role tenure runs from 6 years at universities to 2 years at frontier labs. We compare all five organization types, starting decades from the 1970s to the 2020s, and the organizations that keep people longest.

Sources and credits

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  1. IAPR MVA2015 | IAPR Invited Talks mva-org.jp. Checked 21 October 2026.
  2. Johji TAJIMA nsc.nagoya-cu.ac.jp. Checked 21 October 2026.
  3. New Quality Measures for a Set of Color Sensors ∼ Weighted Quality Factor, Spectral Characteristic Restorability Index and Color Reproducibility Index ∼ library.imaging.org. Checked 21 October 2026.
  4. Development of ‘Standard Object Colour Spectra Database or Colour Reproduction Evaluation (SOCS)’ jstage.jst.go.jp. Checked 21 October 2026.
  5. Alphabetical List of IAPR Fellows – International Association for Pattern Recognition iapr.org. Checked 21 October 2026.
  6. Organizing Committee - MVA2025 mva-org.jp. Checked 21 October 2026.
  7. Johji TAJIMA | Faculty Members | Department of Information and Basic Science/Graduate School of Science, Nagoya City University nagoya-cu.ac.jp. Checked 21 October 2026.