Toyota Research Institute of North America (TRINA) is Toyota’s research arm that is working to discover next-generation core technologies and breakthrough applications for a sustainable mobility society, and this year the organization is celebrating its 15th anniversary.

Since inception, TRINA’s collaborative efforts across North America have resulted in more than 1,200 patents awarded to Toyota. There also have been hundreds of journal articles and several books published on TRINA’s research.

For the first 15 years, TRINA has focused on the future of three areas: mobility, materials and electronics. Each of the projects in these areas has produced tangible concepts for further exploration or graduation to advanced development, such as vehicle automation, morphing parts, new battery chemistries, innovative color pigments, radar, LiDAR and bio-metric sensors and energy storage and consumption solutions.

TRINA’s vision and achievements have been documented in the PDF below. The publication provides an in-depth overview of the pioneering innovation this research organization has delivered to Toyota. Also included below is a companion video that gives voice to the researchers explaining their groups’ accomplishments in their own words.

In its next chapter, TRINA’s research is evolving based on current trends in the socio-technical world where there is potential and opportunity for Toyota, including topics such as bio-inspired solutions, quantum science, carbon neutrality and data & math science.

The aspirational spirit of TRINA is helping Toyota probe questions that do not yet have answers as mobility changes faster than at any point in history.

With TRINA’s help, Toyota will continue its work to create a cleaner, safer and more harmonious world.