About the latter half of the 1920's, the development of aircrafts led to        

a growing demand for the construction of structures affording large spaces     

to house them. Responding to this need, Tomoe Corporation, going beyond       

the conventional wisdom at that time,       

developed in 1933 space structures for creating large spaces through       

the use of diagonal members.                                                   

This structure, "diamond truss", became Japan's first space structure.         

This development was based on the idea that arranging framework members      

in a three-dimensional manner was the most rational approach for structures    

with large spaces. A small triangle was adopted as the basic unit because

it ensures stability and effective load-bearing. The frame was then 

constructed in a diamond-like shape, combining these triangular shapes.                                                       

This frame which seemed as beautiful as a brilliant diamond, while affording   

high quality and rigidity, was christened as "diamond truss". Tomoe was        

thus able to construct large spaces without the use of columns or beams.      

Diamond truss structures not only exhibited geometric structural beauty,       

but provided high strength and stability as well. Based on the diamond truss,  

Tomoe developed a series of epoch-making new structures, among which   

were the "diamond shell" and the "diamond dome".                               

In 1982 we developed "Tomoe uni-truss", a steel pipe space structure       

using spherical joints, and in 1990 we succeeded developing "Tomoe uni-truss 

single", a rigid joint and steel pipe structure system.                                               

Tomoe's space strucures have won overwhelming acclaim both in Japan and        

overseas. At the International Conference on Space Structures in 1993, Tomoe   

made a presentation entitled "Design Procedure for large Single-layer Latticed 

Domes" and submitted a paper on new space structures, both of which were highly   

commended.                                                                     

Today we continue to utilize the technology that we have cultivated and        

accumulated over the years in our quest for the new space structures for the   

generation to come. And, to realize this task, we work hard both day and    

night.                                                                         



Diamond Truss         

TOMOE Uni Truss       

TOMOE Uni Truss Single