Description

In the late Meiji period, Ina Hatsunosuke, who had begun manufacturing clay pipes, actively promoted the mechanization of production processes. However, transporting the pipes still relied on manual labor, placing a heavy burden on workers.
To address this issue, Hatsunosuke’s eldest son, Chotaro, devised this transport vehicle while consulting with his father. Its structure lifts pallets and carries them, functioning much like a manual forklift.
Although the invention was patented in 1915 under Hatsunosuke’s name, the design was openly shared, and it eventually came into widespread use across factories in the Tokoname region.

photo by. Owashi Yosuke