He was born in 1967, and lost his eyesight at the age of 13. He has studied Japanese history and received his Ph.D. from Kyoto University in 2000. He has been working at the National Museum of Ethnology since 2001. Now, he is in charge of the tactile exhibition there. He has many publications in Japanese and some in English. One of his articles in English is: "The Richness of Touch: The Paradoxical Meanings of Disability in Japanese Culture" (THE EAST ASIAN LIBRARY JOURNAL Vol.13 No.2, Princeton University, pp.59-85, May 2010).