Ricoh's 3D model tech enters Tokyo Electric Power Grid maintenance

Ricoh's pitch rests on a specific pain point in 3D digital twins: 360-degree cameras are cheap and fast to use, but they leave holes in the model wherever a surface lacks visual texture. Ricoh says its AI looks at how walls, floors and the room as a whole connect, and fills those gaps — and that in a defect-rate comparison against major commercial tools that use only 360-degree footage, it achieved world-leading high-definition generation. The time saving is the other half of the story: laser scanners took several days from shooting to model, while Ricoh says its upload-and-go workflow takes about half a day.

Tokyo Electric Power Grid's involvement gives the technology a live utility customer. The company started proof-of-concept digital-twin work in June 2026, mainly on office buildings, and has now plugged Ricoh's generation step into that effort. Ricoh supplies the 3D model generation technology, while Ricoh Japan provides RICOH Digital Twin Workplace and support for adoption and use. The result, as the companies describe it, is a way to check building conditions and related information without going on site, and to keep the model updated as construction or equipment changes alter the real space.

Ricoh's longer-term plan goes beyond buildings. The group says it aims to integrate 3D spatial data with equipment and operational data so AI can understand the on-site environment and assist work, with future physical AI deployment in view. It plans to expand from the power sector into construction, manufacturing and facility management.