The first toilet seat with a built-in warm water shower-spray was released 50 years ago by Ina Seito in Tokoname, Aichi Prefecture, the predecessor of Lixil Group.
Sales were sluggish at first but the electronic toilet has grown in popularity and is now synonymous with the Japanese people's love for cleanliness.
"For the past 50 years, we have made efforts to improve the product, thinking about the users," said Ikuya Idota, 59, who has been engaged in the development of the product ever since he joined Ina Seito in 1976.