Hideo Shima

was a Japanese engineer and the driving force behind the building of the first bullet train (Shinkansen).

Shima was born in Osaka in 1901, and educated at the Tokyo Imperial University, where he studied Mechanical Engineering. His father was part of a group of officials that had built up Japan's emerging railroad industry.

Shima also participated in the design and fabrication of a standard heavy duty truck which was mass-produced by Isuzu when World War II broke out. This experience helped in the rapid growth of the Japanese automobile industry after the war.

In addition to its innovative propulsion system, the Shinkansen also introduced features like air suspension and air-conditioning. Shima's team designed the sleek cone-shaped front from which the bullet train got its name. The building of the first line, which needed 3,000 bridges and 67 tunnels to allow a clear and largely straight path, led to such huge cost overruns that he resigned in 1963, along with the president, Shinji Sogō, who had backed Shima's ideas, even though the line proved to be popular and well-used.

Post JNR career In 1969, Shima began a second career, becoming the head of the National Space Development Agency of Japan (NASDA), where he pushed the development of hydrogen engines to power rockets. He retired in 1977.

Awards Hideo Shima was honored by the Government of Japan when the Emperor presented him with the Order of Cultural Merit. As one of the most prominent engineers in post-war Japan, he has also been awarded numerous international prizes and honors, including the Elmer A. Sperry Award by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, and the James Watt International Medal (Gold) by the British Institution of Mechanical Engineers.

Hideo Shima is survived by three sons and a daughter.

Locomotive designs

JNR Class C10 2-6-4T JNR Class C11 2-6-4T JNR Class C12 2-6-2T JNR Class 4110 0-10-0T JNR Class E10 2-10-4T JNR Class C50 2-6-0 JNR Class C56 2-6-0 JNR Class C58 2-6-2 JNR Class C63 2-6-2 JNR Class C51 4-6-2 JNR Class C52 4-6-2 JNR Class C53 4-6-2 JNR Class C54 4-6-2 JNR Class C55 4-6-2 JNR Class C57 4-6-2 JNR Class C59 4-6-2 JNR Class C60 4-6-4 JNR Class C61 4-6-4 JNR Class C62 4-6-4 JNR Class 9600 2-8-0 JNR Class D50 2-8-2 JNR Class D51 2-8-2 JNR Class D52 2-8-2 JNR Class D60 2-8-4 JNR Class D61 2-8-4 JNR Class D62 2-8-4