Water Pearl is a revolutionary water fountain architecture that creates unique and mysterious water. There are three key elements behind its magic:

1. Water Circulation

Water continuously circulates through the pool (basin), hose, and nozzles.

2. Water Droplet Projection

Specially designed droplets—precisely shaped and sized—are ejected from a motor.

3. Strobe Light

A strobe light flashes at a specific frequency, creating an optical illusion that the droplets are floating, rising, or descending in mid-air.

This principle is relatively simple and well-known, but what makes Water Pearl innovative is its large-scale application and refined design—bringing real, levitating water into theme parks, immersive spaces, museums, art exhibitions, receptions, and commercial environments.

<Operation Examples>

A. How to Have Water Droplets Descend

The Water Droplet Generator releases droplets from the ceiling once every second. The Strobe Light flashes at the exact same timing as the falling droplets.
The droplets are illuminated and visible only at the precise moment the strobe light flashes as they fall from the ceiling to the floor.


B. How to Suspend the Water Droplets: When the strobe light continues to flash in sync with the droplets at one-second intervals, the water droplets appear to remain stationary at the same position in midair.


C. How to Raise Water Droplets: The Water Droplet Generator continues to release droplets from the ceiling once every 1 second, and the Strobe Light flashes every 0.8 seconds.
The droplets appear to be illuminated slightly earlier each time, and seem to appear at a higher position closer to the ceiling.
Repeating this process makes the droplets appear higher and higher each time the strobe light flashes.
This leads to Water Pearl creating the illusion of water rising.

<Explanation Video>

A simple answer is: “No, it isn’t” Water Pearl is designed for the human eye, and in person it truly appears to float, rise, or fall because it is an optical illusion. This illusion occurs through strobe lights flashing at controlled frequencies and water droplets generated in precise patterns. When these frequencies mismatch with how our eyes process motion, the water droplets appear to hover or move in impossible ways — creating the stunning illusion using real, non-digital water.

However, shutter speed and frame rate become important when filming it — not when viewing it with the human eye.

When filming any light-based device (like a TV, monitor, LED panel, or Water Pearl), the camera may capture mismatches between:

• the device’s light-flashing frequency, and

• the camera’s frame rate and shutter speed.

This mismatch often appears as flickering, such as horizontal black bars.

<Example: 00:10>

This happens because the camera operates at a different rhythm than the strobe lights and water-drop generator are flashing.

To avoid flickering when filming Water Pearl in our showroom, we adjust:

• camera frame rate

• camera shutter speed

• Water Pearl’s strobe-light frequency

• Water Pearl’s droplet-generation frequency

Because we have full control over the equipment, we can match these frequencies for clean video.

However, in actual installations, where visitors may not be able to control any device settings, phones or cameras often experience heavy flickering.

This is because Water Pearl constantly changes its strobe-light and droplet frequencies to create floating, rising, or descending effects — and cameras cannot automatically match these changing patterns in real time.

But like any challenge, it becomes an opportunity. We are currently developing a new variation of Water Pearl designed to be filmed on regular smartphones, so that people can enjoy and share the experience more freely and interactively.

So the long answer is: “It could be if you see your eyes as cameras!!!”

Upon installation, please note the following criteria:

1. The room where Water Pearl is installed should block external light, and all lighting should be turned off.

2. Since people may touch the water and cause splashing, the floor should be made of a non-slip material.

3. The wall behind the Water Pearl should be a dark color, with a matte surface (such as velvet) to avoid light scattering.

4. The water used in the fountain should always be kept clean. Please ensure the reservoir has both water supply and drainage systems so the water can be replaced.

All of our products are custom-made and therefore pricing differs depending on its design.

For the one of the Water Pearl models frequently featured on our social media, in our showroom is 3000mm wide, 2000mm high and 1200mm deep, the water pearl system costs start from 5 million JPY for international projects.

In addition to the product cost, international delivery usually starts from around 500,000 JPY.

If our staff is required to be onsite, please arrange for a translator. Staff transportation costs generally start from 300,000 JPY.

For an exact quote, please share your design concept, dimensions, location type, and any other relevant project information.

There are four typical types of Water Pearl. Please see below:

• Parabola Type 1: The nozzles are arranged in a straight line. This is the most commonly recognized type, often featured on our social media from our Tokyo showroom.

• Parabola Type 2: The nozzles are arranged in a half-circle.

• Vertical Type 1: The nozzles are arranged in three concentric circles at a height of approximately 4 meters.

• Vertical Type 2: The nozzles are arranged in a straight line along a mirrored wall.

All of our products are custom-made. Typically, the design and installation cost starts from 5 million yen for international projects. For a more accurate quote, please share your design concept, dimensions, location type, and any other relevant project details.

You can use regular water. The system needs to be connected to a tap water supply or a large reservoir that can be regularly refilled as some of the water might splash like a regular water fountain.

Both hard and soft water are acceptable, but we do not recommend using it as drinking water.

Yes, Water Pearl is primarily designed to create the illusion of floating, ascending, and descending water drops—an effect best experienced with the naked eye. In fact, this optical illusion is often more striking in person than when viewed through cameras or smartphones. Because each device has different systems, frame rates, and shutter speeds, the movement of the water can sometimes appear to flicker on video.

That said, we can also design the installation to minimize or eliminate flickering when viewed on smartphones.

Yes, we can. Multiple water patterns can be programmed as presets into the control panel. It’s also possible to make the experience interactive by connecting external buttons that visitors can press.

For example, in a museum setting, you could have several labeled buttons such as:

• Normal Fountain

• Floating Droplets

• Ascending Droplets

• Descending Droplets

We can further expand the experience by integrating customizable LED lighting or even creating special patterns that appear to float only when viewed through a smartphone camera.

<Projection Mapping>

A hyper-advanced application of our Water Pearl is called Water Drop Projection Mapping.

This technology allows us to create incredibly dynamic and high-speed movements with real water droplets.

Developed by the brilliant creative lab anno lab in Fukuoka, Japan.

It has been featured at numerous tourist attractions and art events, showcasing the power of real water in motion.

Each device is carefully manufactured and customized, so while it takes time to prepare and requires extra cost, we’d love to discuss how it could fit into your project.

Thank you for the great question and idea!

Since this is a fountain system, it typically connects to tap water, with the majority of the water circulating within the system. Because the water remains in the system for extended periods, we do not recommend drinking it.

Additionally, using any liquid other than water may cause clogging and hygiene issues, making the system unsanitary.

To minimize these risks, even when using water, we recommend regularly replacing it and incorporating a chlorine-dispensing device as part of the system.

In conclusion, the tap water will need to circulate within the system.

For leasing, we would be happy to take on the project as long as the budget is agreeable.

If our staff can transport the main equipment to and from the venue by hand (including setup and takedown), we estimate the cost to be around 3 million yen.

However, we would like to confirm details such as the event content, lighting conditions at the installation site, and the on-site support system, as these factors may affect any additional requirements.