Author Archives: richard wilson

LG goes big on flexible OLED displays

LG flexible OLED displays

LG flexible OLED displays

LG Display is bidding to become a leading supplier of flexible OLED displays with a $1bn (KRW1.05 trillion) investment in a new production line in Korea.

Flexible OLEDs are expected to be designed into smartphones, wearable devices and automotive displays.

The production line at the Gumi Plant in Gyeongbuk Province is scheduled to start mass production in the first half of 2017.

It will have capacity to produce 7,500 input sheets per month using a 6th generation size substrate sheet of 1,500mm x 1,850mm.

This will produce more than 200 cuts of a 5.5-inch OLED displays from a single substrate, which is nearly four times the production efficiency of a conventional 4.5th Generation line, which uses 730mm x 920mm substrate sheets.

The OLED’s flexibility is achieved by the use of a plastic substrate instead of a glass substrate as in a conventional OLED display.

LG Display is already a supplier of large-sized non-flexible OLED panels and it introduced a 55-inch OLED TV panel in 2013.

In the same year it started mass production of its first plastic substrate-based 6-inch flexible OLED display for smartphones.

Last year it introduced a 1.3-inch circular flexible OLED display.

According to IHS DisplaySearch, the flexible OLED market is expected to see sales of $3.5bn in 2015.

 

Richard Wilson

5G research groups scrabble for millimetre wave expertise

The search for millimetre wave expertise

The search for millimetre wave expertise

There is a flurry of activity in the various research teams developing technology for the 5G generation of mobile communications around the world .

The trigger seems to be to build know-how in millimetre-wave radio technologies which will operate around 60GHz.

Keysight Technologies is to work with Japan’s main mobile operator NTT Docomo on 5G communication system development.

In the UK, Bristol start-up Blu Wireless Technology has joined the University of Surrey’s 5G Innovation Centre (5GIC) as part of its SME Technology partner programme.

This follows the announcement earlier this week that Imagination Technology was also contributing semiconductor IP and developers to the Surrey-based 5GIC.

5G now looks like being a game-changing development in mobile communications and it will require big technology changes from the semiconductor level to network architectures. Because of this test is a major element in the early development of the 5G standards.

The 5GIC in the UK already has test firms Cobham and Rohde & Schwarz among its partners.

Keysight’s collaboration in Japan will involve multiple 5G research areas including millimetre-wave (mmWave) communications technology, which plays a major role in enabling 5G.

Lower power millimetre wave transmission is being considered for 5G because of the scarcity of spectrum resources below 6GHz, which leads to high interference levels, the public concern about microwave electromagnetic field (EMF) exposure in dense areas and the power consumption of the infrastructure.

According to Dr. Laurent Dussopt, MiWaveS project manager and Leti research engineer: “the flexible spectrum usage of the mmW frequency bands at 60GHz and 71-86GHz will enable data transmissions up to 10Gbit/s for backhaul and 5Gbit/s for mobile users access”.

According to Seizo Onoe, chief technology officer of NTT DOCOMO:

“NTT DOCOMO is targeting a 5G commercial launch in 2020, and we expect the partnership with Keysight, and use of its deep measurement expertise, will allow our mobile communication industry to gain insight into the capabilities of 5G technologies faster.”

Keysight is presenting its 5G technologies including millimeter wave channel sounding, ultra wideband and massive MIMO measurements, at the 5G Tokyo Bay Summit this week.

“5G has aggressive performance goals that will be addressed with multiple enabling technologies including mmWave frequencies, ultra-broad bandwidths, massive MIMO, and new air-interfaces,” said Jay Alexander, Keysight’s chief technology officer.

Blu Wireless will bring its millimetre wave gigabit modem expertise to the 5GIC mobile testbed.

The official launch or the 5GIC on the University of Surrey campus is due in September. It is the UK’s main 5G technology initiative and includes companies such as BBC, BT, Cobham, EE, Fujitsu, Huawei, Rohde & Schwarz, Samsung, Telefonica and Vodafone.

Mark Barrett, Blu Wireless CMO, said:

“The 5GIC is a global centre of research into next generation wireless networks and we are delighted to be a part of it. Our technology will enable 5G infrastructure and access applications such as radio transport over Back Haul and Front Haul networks and will help to drive the research that will underpin the 5G standards of the future.”

According to Professor Rahim Tafazolli, director of 5GIC,  with Blu Wireless joining the Centre, its capabilities are further strengthened particularly in millimetric band technologies.

“We look forward to integrating their equipment and expertise into our new test bed, housed on our campus in Guildford.”

 

Richard Wilson

Rohm buys Irish digital power chip firm

adap_contRohm has completed the acquisition of Irish power management IC developer Powervation for $70m.

This a second acquisition for Rohm this year as it builds its power IC business on the back of its own core high voltage power semiconductor technology which includes the new “wonder technology” silicon carbide.

In May,  Rohm bought Renesas’ 8-inch wafer fab in Shiga.

The line will mainly make IGBTs, mosfets and piezoelectric MEMS on a 0.15μm process, and will be Rohm’s main site for power and MEMS.

Rohm said it regards power and sensor devices as one of the four growth engines and is currently developing SiC, IGBT and MEMS products.

The acquisition of Powervation, which is a spin-out of the University of Limerick, fits with this. It designs digital power controllers for cloud servers and communications infrastructure. This is a target market for Rohm.

The Irish firm has developed a proprietary DSP control platform with patented xTune auto-tuning and ITM intelligent transient management technologies designed for complex multi-rail and multi-phase power systems.

Rohm said it plans to combine the power management technology with its analogue/discrete power technologies.

Mike McAuliffe, CEO of Powervation believes it is a great fit.

“The combination with Rohm now presents a compelling opportunity for broad market leadership in digital power management solutions.”

According to Jun Iida, head of LSI development at Rohm:

“The combination of our two companies will enable Rohm to develop integrated digital power solutions to serve a broad range of customers, markets, and applications spanning the entire spectrum from computing and communications to consumer and industrial.”

Powervation will become a subsidiary of Rohm with its principal design centre in Cork, Ireland and system application centres in San Jose, California and Asia.

Richard Wilson

France group develops artificial pancreas to treat diabetes

schema_boucl_ferm1Diabetes suffers may one day be given artificial pancreases to treat their condition if work by CEA-Leti and Diabeloop in France is successful.

A joint lab set up by Leti and Diabeloop will develop an artificial pancreas which will automatically deliver the appropriate dose of insulin to patients.

A sensor will measure a patient’s glucose levels and a pump will delivers insulin. The system will be controlled by an algorithm running on a smartphone.

Diabeloop CEO, Erik Huneker writes:

“The system can fundamentally improve everyday life of diabetes patients. It will allow better control of their blood sugar and result in a strong reduction in hypoglycemic events and associated comas, as well as a decrease in diabetes-related complications, such as ocular and renal complications and amputations.”

According to Leti, the control algorithm will take into account the patients’ carbohydrate intake, glycemia, physical-activity and emotional-state history.

Leti said it will be possible for the system to predict how a change of insulin dosage will impact patient glycaemia levels in the next few hours. It will then compute the optimal dose.

Pierre Jallon, Leti R&D manager for digital health-and-wellness systems, writes:

“This joint lab with Diabeloop will build on the success we had in the earlier research project, and bring the world’s first artificial pancreas closer to reality. This is a smart system that will provide a very precise dosage for diabetics.”

The three-year joint lab also will exploit both real and simulated data to improve insulin physiology numerical models with a focus on how physical activity and emotional states affect glycemia levels. Clinical trials involving patients living at home are expected in 2015.

The Diabeloop project was initiated in 2011 by the Centre for Studies and Research for Diabetes Treatment Intensification (CERITD) and received significant financial support from it.

 

 

 

Richard Wilson

France group develops artificial pancreas to treat diabetes

schema_boucl_ferm1Diabetes suffers may one day be given artificial pancreases to treat their condition if work by CEA-Leti and Diabeloop in France is successful.

A joint lab set up by Leti and Diabeloop will develop an artificial pancreas which will automatically deliver the appropriate dose of insulin to patients.

A sensor will measure a patient’s glucose levels and a pump will delivers insulin. The system will be controlled by an algorithm running on a smartphone.

Diabeloop CEO, Erik Huneker writes:

“The system can fundamentally improve everyday life of diabetes patients. It will allow better control of their blood sugar and result in a strong reduction in hypoglycemic events and associated comas, as well as a decrease in diabetes-related complications, such as ocular and renal complications and amputations.”

According to Leti, the control algorithm will take into account the patients’ carbohydrate intake, glycemia, physical-activity and emotional-state history.

Leti said it will be possible for the system to predict how a change of insulin dosage will impact patient glycaemia levels in the next few hours. It will then compute the optimal dose.

Pierre Jallon, Leti R&D manager for digital health-and-wellness systems, writes:

“This joint lab with Diabeloop will build on the success we had in the earlier research project, and bring the world’s first artificial pancreas closer to reality. This is a smart system that will provide a very precise dosage for diabetics.”

The three-year joint lab also will exploit both real and simulated data to improve insulin physiology numerical models with a focus on how physical activity and emotional states affect glycemia levels. Clinical trials involving patients living at home are expected in 2015.

The Diabeloop project was initiated in 2011 by the Centre for Studies and Research for Diabetes Treatment Intensification (CERITD) and received significant financial support from it.

 

 

 

Richard Wilson

Imagination gives 5G centre chip focus

Hossein Yassaie

Hossein Yassaie

The UK’s 5G mobile development initiative has received a big boost from a global semiconductor company.

Imagination Technology is joining the UK’s 5G Innovation Centre (5GIC) at the University of Surrey which is developing and defining underlying technologies for next-generation 5G mobile communications networks.

Imagination will provide developers and semiconductor IP platforms to the 5G development project.

According to Professor Rahim Tafazolli, director of the 5GIC and Institute of Communication Systems, this will enable the centre to address “not only the operator and device manufacturers but, thanks to Imagination, also the needs of the global semiconductor industry.”

The 5GIC is backed by the UK government and industry partners.

Hossein Yassaie, CEO, Imagination, writes:

“Previous generations of network technology have been voice-centric, with data as an ‘add-on’. With 5G, data is at the heart of the concept.”

The 5GIC, which houses 170 researchers in a purpose-built building on Surrey University campus, is funded by £12m from the Higher Education Funding Council for England and over £68m co-investment from the Centre’s industry and regional partners.

Partners include Aircom, BBC, BT, Cobham, EE, Fujitsu, Huawei, Rohde & Schwarz, Samsung, Telefonica and Vodafone.

 

Richard Wilson

Imagination gives 5G centre chip focus

Hossein Yassaie

Hossein Yassaie

The UK’s 5G mobile development initiative has received a big boost from a global semiconductor company.

Imagination Technology is joining the UK’s 5G Innovation Centre (5GIC) at the University of Surrey which is developing and defining underlying technologies for next-generation 5G mobile communications networks.

Imagination will provide developers and semiconductor IP platforms to the 5G development project.

According to Professor Rahim Tafazolli, director of the 5GIC and Institute of Communication Systems, this will enable the centre to address “not only the operator and device manufacturers but, thanks to Imagination, also the needs of the global semiconductor industry.”

The 5GIC is backed by the UK government and industry partners.

Hossein Yassaie, CEO, Imagination, writes:

“Previous generations of network technology have been voice-centric, with data as an ‘add-on’. With 5G, data is at the heart of the concept.”

The 5GIC, which houses 170 researchers in a purpose-built building on Surrey University campus, is funded by £12m from the Higher Education Funding Council for England and over £68m co-investment from the Centre’s industry and regional partners.

Partners include Aircom, BBC, BT, Cobham, EE, Fujitsu, Huawei, Rohde & Schwarz, Samsung, Telefonica and Vodafone.

 

Richard Wilson

Printed polymer sensors change look and feel of IoT

Printed polymer sensors change look and feel of IoT

Printed polymer sensors change look and feel of IoT

Printed polymer sensors look like being the next big thing in IoT device technology.

At Sensors Expo in California this week Hoffmann+Krippner demonstrated how sensors based on printed polymer pastes can be accurate enough for IoT position or pressure sensors.

The sensor materials called SensoInk can be printed as potentiometers, resistors, switches or keyboard contacts on circuit boards or electronic components.

Only two components are required for signal transformation: a printed potentiometer track on a carrier material (e.g. FR4 or PET foil) and a conductive wiper.

The firm also has a membrane position sensor called Sensofoil, which is a thin-film membrane 0.5 mm to 1 mm thick.

It is available in lengths of 50 mm up to 500 mm, 40mm wide rotary. The supplier claims a repeat accuracy of 1mm to 10µm.

Jens Kautzor, CEO of Germany-based Hoffman+Krippner writes:

“To detect how the state of the internet-connected “thing” changes, an electronic evaluation of the initial state must be conducted. With our sensors you can accurately measure changes, detect positions, or count objects.”

Another firm Thin Film Electronics has demonstrated a printed sensor for tagging bottles which can detect when a product is “sealed” and “open”.

Likely to be used for tagging wine and spirits, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics and automotive fluids, the tag is designed to provide NFC-readability before and after a factory seal on the product has been broken.

According to the Norway-based company, it is possible to provide content to mobile devices on “sealed” or “opened” status, as the consumer’s context shifts from “pre-purchase” to “in use.”

For example, a sealed product could trigger multimedia content to encourage a consumer purchase, while opened products could deliver messaging with usage tips and recommendations of complementary products.

An attraction of the printed NFC tags is that the can be produced at lower cost than traditional radio-frequency identification (RFID) devices, said Thin Film Electronics

Cambridge-based PragmatIC, which recently received a cash injection from investors such as ARM and CIC, said it has plans to broaden its circuit design activities, including applications such as sensors, processors and wireless communications. 

PragmatIC has a production facility based at the National Centre for Printable Electronics in Sedgefield, is using the funding to hire more staff and to enable the scale-up of its production capacity to 100 million flexible integrated circuits later this year.

Pragmatic_Printing_11-300x199Scott White, CEO, PragmatIC (pictured right), says the company now has the funding to address the limitations of how robustly and cost-effectively create printed electronic devices for e-passports and other applications.

“Our technology platform creates a microcircuit thinner than a human hair that can be easily embedded in any flexible surface,” said White.

According to Victor Christou, senior investment director of CIC, PragmatIC’s flexible electronics offers “the most compelling and cost effective product I’ve seen in the 20 years I’ve been involved in this industry.”

Richard Wilson

Printed polymer sensors change look and feel of IoT

Printed polymer sensors change look and feel of IoT

Printed polymer sensors change look and feel of IoT

Printed polymer sensors look like being the next big thing in IoT device technology.

At Sensors Expo in California this week Hoffmann+Krippner demonstrated how sensors based on printed polymer pastes can be accurate enough for IoT position or pressure sensors.

The sensor materials called SensoInk can be printed as potentiometers, resistors, switches or keyboard contacts on circuit boards or electronic components.

Only two components are required for signal transformation: a printed potentiometer track on a carrier material (e.g. FR4 or PET foil) and a conductive wiper.

The firm also has a membrane position sensor called Sensofoil, which is a thin-film membrane 0.5 mm to 1 mm thick.

It is available in lengths of 50 mm up to 500 mm, 40mm wide rotary. The supplier claims a repeat accuracy of 1mm to 10µm.

Jens Kautzor, CEO of Germany-based Hoffman+Krippner writes:

“To detect how the state of the internet-connected “thing” changes, an electronic evaluation of the initial state must be conducted. With our sensors you can accurately measure changes, detect positions, or count objects.”

Another firm Thin Film Electronics has demonstrated a printed sensor for tagging bottles which can detect when a product is “sealed” and “open”.

Likely to be used for tagging wine and spirits, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics and automotive fluids, the tag is designed to provide NFC-readability before and after a factory seal on the product has been broken.

According to the Norway-based company, it is possible to provide content to mobile devices on “sealed” or “opened” status, as the consumer’s context shifts from “pre-purchase” to “in use.”

For example, a sealed product could trigger multimedia content to encourage a consumer purchase, while opened products could deliver messaging with usage tips and recommendations of complementary products.

An attraction of the printed NFC tags is that the can be produced at lower cost than traditional radio-frequency identification (RFID) devices, said Thin Film Electronics

Cambridge-based PragmatIC, which recently received a cash injection from investors such as ARM and CIC, said it has plans to broaden its circuit design activities, including applications such as sensors, processors and wireless communications. 

PragmatIC has a production facility based at the National Centre for Printable Electronics in Sedgefield, is using the funding to hire more staff and to enable the scale-up of its production capacity to 100 million flexible integrated circuits later this year.

Pragmatic_Printing_11-300x199Scott White, CEO, PragmatIC (pictured right), says the company now has the funding to address the limitations of how robustly and cost-effectively create printed electronic devices for e-passports and other applications.

“Our technology platform creates a microcircuit thinner than a human hair that can be easily embedded in any flexible surface,” said White.

According to Victor Christou, senior investment director of CIC, PragmatIC’s flexible electronics offers “the most compelling and cost effective product I’ve seen in the 20 years I’ve been involved in this industry.”

Richard Wilson

Green Hills secures its RTOS for IoT

Green Hills secures its RTOS for IoT

Green Hills secures its RTOS for IoT

Green Hills Software’s latest release of its µ-velOSity real-time operating system (RTOS) has new security and safety features. It is designed as a small foot-print RTOS for IoT and low power devices.

The RTOS is designed to use a small number of CPU clock cycles and memory, requiring only 1.6kbyte of ROM. This supports fast booting without the need for slower off-chip memory.

There is also support for new processor architectures including new family members from ARM Cortex-M and Cortex-R, and Power Architecture e200 processors.

There are also secure communications protocols SSL/TSL and SSH from Green Hills.

The company also offers a suite of FIPS 140-2 compliant cryptographic toolkits for developing high assurance data protection on microcontrollers.

The RTOS has been optimised for reduced interrupt service routine and context switching execution times, while hardware floating-point support for multi-tasking has been expanded.

“Developers can analyze and predict stack usage to avoid overflows – a safety and security hazard – especially important on memory-constrained microcontrollers,” said Green Hills.

Communication option include CAN, USB, TCP/IP, SD Card, Bluetooth and flash file systems.

 

Richard Wilson