You may well be right that it is something new-- it does have
characteristics not shared by other pm motors-- but just to put it in
context, if you go to the japanese patent abstract server at:
http://www2.ipdl.jpo-miti.go.jp/dbpweb/connecter/guest/DBPinit/ENGDB/wrefpaj
and put in search terms like "permanent", "magnet", "motor", "energy" etc.
you will discover that there are SEVERAL HUNDRED pm motor patents on the
server, as well as many even stranger ones. Some of the strange ones are
quite interesting.
There are apparently no restrictions on patents at all in Japan, and
perpetual motion machines abound, some of them looking like they were drawn
on a napkin :-)
I gave up trying to make a list of of the permanent magnet motors quite a
while ago.
Again, this is in no way to denigrate the possible importance of this
particular patent.
Fred