Title: Sleeping
Link: https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/shows/2101034/
Transcript:
Hi everyone, and welcome to DESIGN × STORIES.
How are you sleeping these days?
Life's so busy these days I think all of us are interested in a good, quality sleep!
So today, we're focusing on designs that are all about sleep.
It's said that people in Japan have some of the shortest sleep in the world.
So there's now a host of designs that focus on the importance of sleep.
From a bed that hearkens back to our earliest origins,
to a design drawing on the latest technology.
Today, Andy and I set out to try designs that promote healthy sleep habits!
My first stop is in a Tokyo business district.
I'm visiting a next-generation capsule hotel that's all about sleep quality.
Yonemoto-san? What a beaming smile! Pleasure to meet you.
Hi, it's a pleasure!
So here we are.
- This is the lobby?
- And reception.
- So I'd check in here?
- Yes.
It's very simple.
It's a minimalist hotel, yes.
Signage is clear and simple.
Easy to understand for Japanese and foreign guests.
Four steps to get into a capsule! Check-in, locker, shower, sleep.
That's right.
Let me show you around.
I remember the first capsule hotels.
Really?
This place feels very different!
Floors are divided by gender.
Oh yes.
Men on floors 2 through 4, and women on 5, 7, and 8.
I see.
Japan's capsule hotels gained popularity in the 1980s in response
to the need for overnight accommodation in urban areas.
They were a cheap, rather claustrophobic option for a short sleep, aimed primarily at men.
Around 2010, a new take on the idea emerged.
Capsule hotels began leveraging design to provide safe, comfortable accommodation,
and opened to women as well.
- Wow, this is your lounge?
- Yes.
A shared space. What an amazing room!
Very open, all-round view.
From the highway to the railway, to the river. Even Tokyo Dome!
The capsule hotels I remember were kind of dark.
- Lots of middle-aged men.
- Exactly.
We went back to a blank slate to redefine the idea of capsule hotels.
We removed anything that didn't work for everyone.
Instead, we focused on beds, the lounge, the pillows, the showers.
- You prioritized.
- That's it.
Let's check out the floor with the capsule beds so I can explore its sleeping secrets!
Oh wow, how cool!
Not at all what I expected. So clean.
This floor is for men.
- There are a lot!
- 40 beds.
Like a first-class cabin!
- The capsules have a lot of curves.
- Oh yes.
It's like being in a cocoon.
A soft embrace that encourages sleep.
Interesting! They really have evolved.
A new base for sleeping, to fulfill modern demand.
The capsules are designed with a special focus on sleep.
They're the work of product designer Shibata Fumie.
Shibata also worked on the hotel's overall concept, cutting excess and encouraging simplicity.
The average guest is expected to spend an hour in the showers, seven hours sleeping,
and an hour preparing for the day, for a total of nine hours' use.
The facilities are focused on not just sleep, but good-quality sleep for guests of all ages and genders.
Very simple. No buttons, just USB connectors.
A light dial and a regular outlet.
What was your approach to privacy?
You can close a curtain once you're inside to make the space your own.
What are your guests like?
Folks in their 20s and 30s.
- They use it for business or tourism.
- Tourists too.
People like that it's a Japanese conception.
It's a bit like a spaceship: the future of sleep!
I can see that, yes.
Is it okay for me to go in?
Yes, of course!
- So up here?
- Yes.
Oh, it's so roomy!
A lot of people say it's bigger than they expected.
I'm sure. I'm usually not great with small, enclosed spaces.
The curved design helps with that.
I agree. May I try lying down?
Sure!
It's an awkward angle to be showing someone!
What a great pillow!
We chose it carefully.
Everything is just in reach.
I'm getting kind of sleepy...
- It really is spacious.
- It is, yes.
I'd sleep in this at home!
People ask about that sometimes!
I'm sure!
They say that people today sleep very little indeed.
We can actually analyze your sleep.
Really?
How deep your sleep was, or if you have sleep apnea.
There's a system and mechanisms for checking.
- Devices in the capsules?
- Yes.
There are motion sensors under the mattress.
They can measure your heartrate and breathing, and so on.
That's fascinating. I wonder about that myself. Especially apnea.
That's easy to spot.
Sometimes people know their partner has apnea but they're brushed off.
Yes.
So their wives send them here.
To do a proper check! That's very interesting.
The sleep analysis service was launched as an option in 2021.
Motion sensors, special microphones,
and infrared cameras inside the capsule pick up data while the guest sleeps.
There's no need to wear any devices,
so it's a simple way to check on the quality of your sleep during a stay.
All private information is anonymized,
and an AI analyzes the large amount of sleep data.
You receive a report on your sleep about one week later.
We're not a medical facility. We just provide objective data.
Sleep onset at 12 minutes.
Waking 433 times?
People wake a little. Brief moments.
- No rolling over?
- Not at all.
- They were still?
- Pretty impressive.
Very unusual.
Because the capsules are identical,
the hotel can collect data under the same conditions.
They've now set up a program where aggregate data
is provided to hospitals and research groups.
Certain sleep patterns make people susceptible to illness.
Preventative medicine uses the data along with research groups.
Interesting.
It's one more reason to choose our capsule hotel.
We do get a lot of guests interested in sleep analysis.
Going that extra step seems a perfect match to today's needs.
Do you have any ideas about future developments?
We're hoping for more precise data.
We could provide a full health check after a single night's stay.
Oh wow!
This really fires up the imagination, doesn't it?
I do feel there's so much potential and an interesting future here.
Now let's look at bed design!
Round and a little small...
This unusual design has a gentle, rocking motion.
It was actually inspired by chimpanzee beds.
It's the brainchild of primatologist Zamma Koichiro.
He's been studying wild chimpanzees in Tanzania for 25 years.
I researched grooming and had to climb into their beds to collect hairs.
They build beds 10-20 meters above ground, and I'd climb up.
It's a bed, you know? I got curious!
I tried lying down in one and it was so comfy!
Their beds are like oval plates. You feel embraced by it.
The shaking was scary when I was climbing, but soothing in the bed.
All that led me to try making a bed.
Even after returning to Japan, Zamma couldn't forget the comfort of the bed.
His determination to recreate it led to an encounter with a historic Kyoto bedding maker.
Zamma worked with an environmental designer, doing a series of experiments.
Finally, they created a bed that provides the same coziness as a chimpanzee bed.
Chimpanzees make beds high up on tree branches.
They bend branches or snap them off to make the base.
Then they layer the foundation with lots of twigs of various lengths.
They pull them off trees and build up layers and layers.
Finally, they end up with an oval with raised sides and a central hollow.
The many layers of twigs and leaves create a cushion of air.
That very specific firm, yet yielding pressure was recreated with feathers.
When you roll over, the bed rocks like a cradle.
Just like a tree, the bed will move freely in any direction.
Chimpanzees make new beds every day.
They make one at night, sleep, then eat and travel 3-4km a day.
Then they make a new bed. It only takes 2-3 minutes.
Instead of returning to the old bed, they just make a new one.
Since they make new beds every day of the year, chimpanzees are masters of the art.
Inspired by this trait, Zamma's bed can also be customized every day.
The base is a matrix of linen straps.
These are adjustable tapes.
If you want a softer bed today, you can relax them.
If you want a firmer bed, just pull them tighter.
Just like this.
If this feels too high, you can push the edges down lower.
If the pillow is too low, you can raise it up.
You can adjust the bed to suit.
Chimpanzees sleep on their back like this, or on their side.
They'll rest on their arm too. It's very similar to us.
Zamma wants people to find more freedom in sleep.
With the entire rim serving as a pillow,
the design allows for all kinds of sleeping positions.
Chimpanzees and humans are very similar, with a common ancestor.
It's thought that our branch of evolution also slept in trees for some time.
We used these beds regularly in our evolutionary history.
But today we're used to always sleeping in the same beds.
I think it's fun that this gives us new options.
It's possible to customize your bed to suit your needs that day.
I'd never even thought about differently shaped beds.
But I feel this design really does bring to mind our earliest instincts for sleep.
Do you have favorite pajamas to wear in bed?
I'm visiting a small workshop in Tokyo that focuses on uniquely Japanese fabric.
- Hello!
- Hi, welcome!
- I'm Shaula.
- I'm Nakayama.
- May I look around?
- Sure.
I can see a lot of things already. Are these children's clothes?
For babies and children, yes.
We make pajamas and jinbei jackets from gauze.
Take a good look.
So cute!
And soft, perfect for sleeping.
Most people use the jackets as pajamas.
Babies and children have such sensitive skin.
Yes, this is 100% cotton, loosely woven to make gauze.
It's layered up, so this is double gauze.
The more you wash it, the more air it absorbs, making it softer.
I see!
This hasn't been washed.
Afterwards, it becomes like this.
Lovely! So fluffy.
- The same number of handkerchiefs.
- Really?
- Before and after washing.
- What a difference!
It transforms.
When choosing sleeping outfits for my son, I'm drawn to cute things.
But it really comes down to texture. I want him to be cozy in bed.
Sleep is so important. For children and adults.
Very true.
Gauze is a perfect choice.
Nakayama Kazuhisa's father established the textile workshop here over sixty years ago.
From children's pajamas to women's clothing,
they worked with all kinds of fabrics as a sewing subcontractor.
About ten years ago, Nakayama came across Japanese cotton gauze by chance, and fell in love with it.
- Do you know about "wasarashi?"
- What's that?
It's a historic technique that makes soft, white cloth.
Fabric is washed over several days to minimize stress to the textile.
Cotton is soft, so starch is added when it's woven into fabric.
The starch is then removed by boiling the cloth in a large vat.
Then, plant oils and impurities are removed during a bleaching process called 'sarashi.'
"Wasarashi" is a traditional Japanese technique that minimizes stress to the cloth.
It's carefully washed in water over four days.
Each fiber maintains its shape, creating a top-quality fabric.
It takes a lot of time and work,
and only a few factories in Japan still use this important technique.
What appealed to you about it?
I loved the feeling of it against my skin when I used it.
It's so soft, and also very absorbent. And it dries fast.
I fell in love with cotton gauze and decided to focus on it.
Making pajamas with it gives you this wonderful feel.
"Wasarashi" gauze is amazing and it's perfect for pajamas.
Baby softness for everyone:
That was the goal that helped Nakayama decide to only use "wasarashi" gauze for his products.
He's also launched an original nightwear brand to promote its charms.
The concept is a relaxing break at a hotel.
It's a pajama set, complete with a jacket.
Ready?
Let's try it on!
It's so light!
That's the first thing everyone says!
I can't believe it!
Unstressed, relaxed fabric.
And so soft.
I've started getting very picky about the texture of my clothes.
Is that so?
As I get older, I want to wear comfortable, cozy clothes.
For sure.
The design and quality both showcase the wonderful material.
Nakayama takes great care in finishing each item.
Automation is standard these days.
But we still do it by hand. We take great pains to draw and cut.
Such neat work.
Thank you.
These are pajamas?
Yes, for the top.
And of course, the gardener. For the dyeing.
A gardener?
About 18 months ago, the head of a landscaping firm got in touch.
He liked our products and asked about dyeing them with trimmed plants.
So we've begun a collaboration.
A new project, working in tandem with a gardening firm to dye fabric.
The company was discarding trucks full of clipped branches, twigs, and leaves.
Now, a new business team is upcycling these materials to create eco-friendly products.
The project began with jewelry made from trimmed wood, and has now expanded to dyeing.
I was a little shocked that all this healthy, beautiful foliage is discarded.
I wanted to find value in it.
That's when we met Nakayama-san.
The softness for the gauze would be a great match for our plants.
Could the natural dye allow for safe and cozy eco-friendly pajamas?
The team tried various approaches.
The clippings and flowers must first be dried out, then boiled to make a dye.
Landscapers work with unusual plants.
They make beautiful dyes. It's such a waste to discard them.
Using unusual plants often leads to unexpected colors.
The team says it's always a surprise.
Today's batch of dye uses red bayberry and Japanese fir.
The fir clippings make for a pale pink hue.
We get lovely soft hues.
But the time of year and temperature, and dye volume all change the result.
Dyes take differently in winter.
The bayberry comes out a deep yellow.
Natural-dyed gauze pajamas - soft on the skin, and kind to the planet.
Time to try on some of the dyed pajamas.
- How is it?
- I'm ready for bed!
- Is that so?
- Yup!
This was dyed with pomegranate clippings.
Oh, interesting! It creates this color?
It turns out quite nicely.
For the design, we asked moms and female staff to try out patterns.
Then we listened to their opinions and refined the design.
Take the lower shoulders.
Yes?
The wider cut makes it feel relaxed.
The sleeves are shorter for washing dishes.
Makes sense.
They wanted this length. We discussed it all as we went.
It's wonderful that you're using natural dyes.
- I think so.
- Feels safe.
It feels more relaxing when you're getting to sleep.
Oh, I'm sure it does.
I kind of want gauze sheets now!
True.
They'd feel amazing.
We'll start dyeing those as well!
- I look forward to it!
- It's on the list.
Sleep is something we all do every day.
A big proportion of our lives is spent asleep.
I think it's time to reexamine my own sleep patterns and maybe try something new.