Furuno’s fish finder has been recognized as an IEEE Milestone by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), the largest technical professional organization dedicated to advancing technology for the benefit of humanity, for its role in the world’s first commercialization and for contributing to the modernization of the fisheries industry. On April 25, Furuno headquarters played host to a ceremony graced by Professor Kathleen A. Kramer, the President and CEO of IEEE, Dr. Tom Coughlin, the past President of IEEE, Professor Toshio Fukuda, the 2020 IEEE President, and other esteemed guests from home and abroad.
The plaque presentation ceremony
(From left to right: Prof. Kathleen A. Kramer, the President and CEO of IEEE, and Yukio Furuno, the President and CEO of Furuno)
About IEEE Milestone
IEEE established the Milestones program to recognize significant achievements in the fields of electrical, electronics and information technology that occurred at least twenty-five years ago and have contributed to the advancement of society and the industry. Approximately two hundred sixty Milestones have been approved and dedicated around the world by 2024, including the Voltaic Cell, the Fleming Valve, and the QR Code. Furuno’s fish finder (1949), Karaoke Device (1967), and Gennai Hiraga's Elekiteru (1776) were newly recognized in 2025.
Learn more at https://ethw.org/Milestones:IEEE_Milestones_Program
Remarks from Yukio Furuno, the President and CEO of Furuno, upon receiving this honor
It is both a great honor and a profound privilege to receive the prestigious IEEE Milestone award. This recognition is also for those who laid the foundation of our success. I am on behalf of the founders of the fish finder, the visionary brothers, Mr. Kiyotaka Furuno and Mr. Kiyokata Furuno, to express my heartfelt gratitude to everyone involved in the selection and organization of this award. Our advance we see today is rooted in the words of the founder, "Today is always a new beginning.” This phrase, encapsulating the pride and spirit of engineers, has become deeply integrated in the DNA of Furuno employees, and it continues to drive us forward. As we look ahead, we remain committed to uncovering new discoveries, making new inventions, and contributing to both societal progress and the coexistence of people and the natural world.
About our recognized fish finder
In 1949, Furuno successfully commercialized the world’s first fish finder. At that time, it used an improved reception amplifier to detect weak echo signals reflected from a school of fish and ultrasonic transducers that protruded from the fishing boat’s bottom to minimize the influence of sailing noise, improving the catch and rapidly being adopted as an indispensable equipment for fishing. The improved catch helped to secure Japan's protein resources, which had been in short supply after World War II, and contributed to the stability of Japanese life. Today, fish finders are equipped on almost every fishing boat in the world. The invention of the fish finder has an extremely important historical value in that it has brought about a revolutionary change in fisheries by giving a "scientific eye" to fisheries that had previously relied solely on the intuition and experience of fishermen, and electrical technology has brought about the modernization of the fisheries industry.
Furuno’s first-generation fish finder
IEEE Milestone Plaque is displayed alongside Furuno’s first-generation fish finder as the guests from IEEE gathered to mark the occasion (From left to right: Prof. Isao Shirakawa, the IEEE Japan Council History Committee Past Chair; Prof. Toshio Fukuda, the 2020 IEEE President; Prof. Kathleen A. Kramer, the President and CEO of IEEE; Yukio Furuno, the President and CEO of Furuno; Dr. Tom Coughlin, the Past President of IEEE; Prof. Shojiro Nishio, the Past President of the University of Osaka; Dr. Yasushi Nishimori, the Fellow of Furuno; Prof. Takao Onoye, the IEEE Kansai Section Chair)