????日本企業(yè)的研發(fā)經(jīng)費(fèi)都沖到馬桶里去了嗎？日本領(lǐng)先的高科技衛(wèi)浴設(shè)備制造商?hào)|陶集團(tuán)（TOTO）推出的一些創(chuàng)新產(chǎn)品表明,，情況似乎確實(shí)如此,。該公司推出了一款新型馬桶,，它居然能以160公里的時(shí)速射出一個(gè)足球。這個(gè)古怪而又了不起的科技產(chǎn)物充分顯示了日本馳名已久的獨(dú)創(chuàng)精神,。這個(gè)過(guò)分夸張的精巧裝置同時(shí)也表明,，日本企業(yè)所花的大量研發(fā)經(jīng)費(fèi)到底在哪兒出了岔子。

????日本的一些企業(yè)老是搞這么多似乎雞毛蒜皮,、沒(méi)有前途的小發(fā)明,，這早就讓東京的技術(shù)咨詢(xún)師林信行覺(jué)得惱火了。他說(shuō),，要理解這類(lèi)現(xiàn)象,，就要了解日本人的思維定勢(shì)和教育體系。他的觀點(diǎn)是：“日本人容易把手段當(dāng)成目的,。在日本的學(xué)校里,，記住入學(xué)考試中那些難題的題型，要比探究事物的本質(zhì)重要得多,?！?/p>

????另外一些人則認(rèn)為，對(duì)一個(gè)制造型經(jīng)濟(jì)來(lái)說(shuō),，這種一門(mén)心思是有效的,，但它卻讓日本企業(yè)走向數(shù)字經(jīng)濟(jì)的轉(zhuǎn)型之路變得異常艱難。笠原吉川是東京大學(xué)的（Tokyo's University）一名研究員,，他已為韓國(guó)的電子巨頭三星公司（Samsung）效力了10年之久,。在他看來(lái)，日本的這些技術(shù)型公司,，例如擁有巨大研發(fā)中心的電訊巨頭Docomo公司之所以無(wú)法影響市場(chǎng),，就是因?yàn)樗麄儗?duì)全新的市場(chǎng)不夠了解，或者不愿做出改變來(lái)適應(yīng)它,。他說(shuō)：“日本也許擁有很優(yōu)秀的技術(shù)創(chuàng)新，但對(duì)企業(yè)來(lái)說(shuō),，這已不再是一種競(jìng)爭(zhēng)優(yōu)勢(shì),。因?yàn)槿毡镜脑O(shè)計(jì)太貴，還缺乏蘋(píng)果（Apple）和三星那樣的市場(chǎng)洞察力,?！彼囊馑迹瑩Q言之就是這些日本企業(yè)沒(méi)有提供消費(fèi)者想要的產(chǎn)品,。

????隨著日本經(jīng)濟(jì)陷入更深層次的衰退,，日本幾大消費(fèi)電子巨頭令人震驚的慘淡銷(xiāo)售數(shù)字更證明了這一點(diǎn)——盡管日本每年的專(zhuān)利申請(qǐng)數(shù)量在全球僅次于美國(guó)和中國(guó)。實(shí)際上,，據(jù)世界知識(shí)產(chǎn)權(quán)組織（World Intellectual Property Organization）的最新數(shù)據(jù)稱(chēng),，2010年日本的專(zhuān)利申請(qǐng)量為344,598件,，僅次于美國(guó)的500萬(wàn)件，占世界專(zhuān)利申請(qǐng)總量大約18%,。

????批評(píng)人士稱(chēng),，這個(gè)輝煌數(shù)字掩蓋了一個(gè)事實(shí)，即大量專(zhuān)利常常是挪用,、或者模仿美國(guó)原型,，做一些小改進(jìn)而已。勞埃德解釋說(shuō)：“研究人員都有專(zhuān)利配額,，哪怕是一點(diǎn)小改進(jìn),，他們也被鼓勵(lì)拿去申報(bào)專(zhuān)利。實(shí)際上,，這被看成是一種練習(xí),，而不是研發(fā)那些往往風(fēng)險(xiǎn)和投入都同樣巨大的突破性技術(shù)?！彼a(bǔ)充說(shuō),，對(duì)日本人來(lái)說(shuō)，從其他國(guó)家拿來(lái)最好的技術(shù)并在本國(guó)應(yīng)用是最高效的做法,?！熬瓦@方面來(lái)看，日本的技術(shù)研發(fā)并不生產(chǎn)初級(jí)產(chǎn)品,，而是生產(chǎn)有用的產(chǎn)品,。”

????與此同時(shí),，日本的研發(fā)產(chǎn)出正在下降,。從地域來(lái)看，北美企業(yè)的研發(fā)支出增長(zhǎng)率為9.7%,，略高于全球平均值9.6%,，而日本企業(yè)的增長(zhǎng)僅為5.4%。實(shí)際上,，日本企業(yè)可能對(duì)長(zhǎng)期規(guī)劃和巨額研發(fā)投入這種模式喪失了信心,，過(guò)去正是這種模式能收回那些失敗產(chǎn)品，推出轟動(dòng)一時(shí)的新品,。過(guò)去十年來(lái),，日本的消費(fèi)電子業(yè)口口聲聲要實(shí)施變革，甚至強(qiáng)有力的官方輿論也努力推動(dòng)它們進(jìn)行改革,，但結(jié)果卻徒勞無(wú)功,。

????Is Japan's research and development spending going down the toilet? Some of the innovation, for example, at the country's leading high-tech?lavatory maker Toto, suggests perhaps so. The company has developed a new washroom model that is inexplicably capable of?shooting a soccer ball at 160 kilometers-per-hour. This bizarre and wonderful piece of technology showcases the ingenuity Japan is famous for. The overly ornate contraption could also symbolize where much of research and development spending by Japanese companies has gone wrong.

????That some in Japan pursue so many seemingly trivial, unwarranted inventions has long vexed Tokyo-based technology consultant Nobuyuki Hayashi. His explanation, he says, is to understand the Japanese mind-set and educational system. "[The] Japanese tend to mistake the means for the end. At Japanese schools it's more important to memorize the patter of tricky questions presented at the entrance exam than to study the real nature of things," he argues.

????This type of focus, others agree, was useful for a manufacturing economy but makes the transformation into a digital economy?difficult for Japan Inc. Tech companies, such as Docomo with its vast R&D centers, are failing to make an impact because they don't understand or are not willing to change to suit the new market says researcher at Tokyo's University, Ryozo Yoshikawa who spent 10 years working for Samsung, the Korean giant. "Japan may have superior technological innovation, but this is no longer a competitive advantage for businesses because Japanese designs are too expensive and lack the savvy that the likes of Apple (AAPL) and Samsung have." In other words, he says they are not offering what the consumers want.

????As Japan slides deeper into recession, the proof is in the appalling sales figures of consumer electronics makers -- despite the fact that Japan is third after the US and China for the number of patents filed each year. In fact, Japan put in for 344,598 patents in 2010 according to the latest figures from World Intellectual Property Organization. That's just behind the USA's half-million applications and nearly 18% of the world total.

????Critics say that this impressive figure masks the fact that many patents are focused on small incremental improvements often using and imitating an American model. "Researchers are set patent quotas and are encouraged to file on any minor improvement," explains Lloyd. "Indeed, it's considered a learning exercise, and rather than creating breakthrough technologies which typically entail high risk and expense." He adds that it is highly efficient for Japan to get the best technologies from other countries and apply them at home. "In this respect Japan's tech R&D doesn't produce raw products, but it does produce useful outputs."

????Meanwhile, R&D output is falling in Japan. Regionally, companies based in North America grew their R&D spending by 9.7% -- slightly above the global average of 9.6% -- while Japanese firms grew theirs at 5.4%. Indeed, Japanese companies may be losing faith in the long term-planing and heavy R&D spending model that was able to absorb the misses as well as generate the hits in the past. Over the last 10 years Japan's consumer electronics industry promised reform and even the country's powerful mandarins tried to push them to evolve to no avail.