Taiwan-based APD showcased a full range of high-quality cutting-edge medical power solutions at China International Medical Equipment Fair (CMEF 2019), a global event for the medical devices market, which concluded on May 17 in Shanghai. As a leader in medical power solutions, APD has a proven track record for building customized power solutions for global medical device manufacturers.According to Rax Chuang, general manager of APD's power system business group, APD is an expert in medical-grade power supplies and a long-term partner with leading medical device manufacturers worldwide. With increasing public awareness on health issues in China, the quality of healthcare is catching public's attention. As a wide range of technologies are being applied in the healthcare industry, the medical device market in China is expected to enjoy a period of robust growth with device reliability being a top consideration.At CMEF 2019, APD presented multiple power solutions designed specifically for use by medical device manufacturers in CPAP (continuous positive airway pressure), oxygen concentrators, humidifiers and surgical equipment, all compliant with the high reliability and low EMI requirements for medical power solutions. In particular, the 80W/24V power supply used in CPAP features high peak current - supplying up to 9Amps (270% of rated current) of power for up to 1.5 seconds. It meets the peak current requirement by most CPAPs in S/T mode. These technologically advanced products attracted attention of CMEF visitors. Leading medical device manufacturers also approached APD to inquire on these products and exchange views on market conditions.The manufacturing of medical devices requires a high level of expertise. APD is able to combine its expertise in power supplies and medical devices to deliver power solutions with a high level of customization tailored to suit medical device manufacturers' products. Furthermore, APD's power solutions are produced using flexible smart manufacturing process to shorten the lead time. With advanced safety laboratories compliant with UL, TUV and Nemko standards to enable in-house certification, product certification now takes only half the time it used to require, accelerating time-to-market for customers. APD's R&D center in Shenzhen provides premium quality power solutions and convenient support to local customers. APD will stay committed to the research of critical technologies and strive to bring the most competitive power solutions and services to customers around the globe.APD at CMEF 2019

Asteria Corp and Gorilla Technology Inc announced a business alliance regarding their video analytics technology and products using AI. Asteria and Gorilla plan to grow their presence in Japan and build on edge AI solutions optimized by the Intel OpenVINO toolkit which have seen success in Taiwan's airports and police bureau. This alliance will enable rapid expansion in societal and industry applications by combining both companies' market proven edge computing technologies.Asteria's Gravio was launched in October 2018 as an AI-equipped IoT edge-integrated SaaS with the goal of simple AI and IoT implementation. Gravio collects various sensor data, processes it, executes various tasks, and also recognizes video with its built-in machine learning engine. During its deployment, individual needs for machine learning, camera and sensor type placement, internal processing of collected data for video recognition, varying environments, and other specifics needed to be addressed. With regard to video recognition specifically, Asteria required a wide range of knowledge and technologies. In order to address this and to increase Asteria's data collaboration, processing, and sensor data utilization solutions, they determined it necessary to enhance AI functions that utilize high-performance and versatile video analytics in order to meet customer needs.Gorilla's products, such as IVAR (Intelligent Video Analytics Recorder), have been deployed and are currently being used effectively in Taiwan's law enforcement agencies, Taoyuan Airport, and Chunghwa Post. The performance of Gorilla's products over the last 18 years is a testament to their promise of cost performance and ease of use. Gorilla continues to be well-known for its adoption of advanced technologies, such as IVAR being the first product to receive certification of the Intel optimization OpenVINO toolkit. IVAR provides edge AI video analytics and perfectly matches the merits of Gravio's edgeware. By integrating these systems, the two companies plan on increasing overall capability, further reducing network load and latency, and ensuring deeper security and privacy.After announcing the achievement of becoming the first Intel certified Market Ready Solution (MRS) partner to deploy OpenVINO optimization in their computer vision solution, Gorilla secured a multi-million D-series funding from SBI Investment in order to propagate AI solutions in Japan. Gorilla has also been very open about actively seeking out partnerships and has attended more than 15 tradeshows and conferences since January in order to create and grow an AI ecosystem."Asteria's strong market and channel position cements Gorilla's footing in Japan and the alliance opens the door for IVAR to add its AI-based video analytics value across many verticals with Gravio." Gorilla CEO, Dr. Spincer Koh continued, "With the demand for both IoT and AI solutions, we believe this collaboration will bring more exciting applications to the clients and present many new business opportunities."Specifically, Asteria plans on joining their middleware "ASTERIA Warp," which has already been introduced to more than 7,500 customers, with Gravio and then integrating Gorilla's edge AI IVAR technology. In this respect, Asteria will be able to provide clients with an optimal form of software with AI and Gorilla will be able to expand Asteria products to their target market. As a result, the two companies intend to jointly drive the worldwide spread of edge computing that is necessary for AI and IoT to thrive.About Edgeware and Gravio (https://www.gravio.com/jp )Gravio is an edge computing type IoT integrated software with AI functions that is developed for IoT based on the technology accumulated in "ASTERIA Warp," the number one type of data collaboration tool in Japan with an emphasis on its usability by non-programming and intuitive screen design. Furthermore, the built-in recognition technology using AI and multi-platform support dramatically expands the use possibilities being an intelligent edge software. Asteria also offers a free loan program for various certified sensors, eliminating the complexity when installing. Gravio's collection of various data, processing, and cooperation are also intelligent. Asteria makes it easier and faster to use IoT.About Gorilla IVAR and Edge AI Computing Technology (https://www.gorilla-technology.com/IVAR)IVAR is a comprehensive VMS and IVA control and management software created to deliver actionable results and offers API integration as well as the flexibility to build on Intel based systems running Windows or Linux. View, control, schedule, and manage video streams, recording, storage, and playback with IVAR which also supports RTSP and ONVIF. That functionality is meshed with IVAR's IVA (Intelligent Video Analytics) for easy, fast, and accurate detection, recognition, and notification of things regarding people, behavior, and vehicles within video. While IVAR is a complete solution, IVAR's API integration supports transitioning from or building on existing VMS and AI applications. IVAR's uses are wide reaching and public safety, enterprise security, and retail are a few where IVAR excels.Joint announcement made at the press conference in TokyoGorilla and Asteria announce strategic edge AI alliance

Clientron, a global provider of Thin Client, POS and embedded systems, debuts the advanced PT2500, a flexible all-in-one POS terminal, based on Intel 7th Gen Core i processors to deliver high value and premium performance product segments for retail and hospitality solutions.Utilizing the advantages of PT2000 seriesThe PT2500 is built upon the existing features of the popular PT2000 series. With the state-of-art configurations, the PT2500 features panel PC style all-in-one POS terminal with standard VESA mount supporting various foot stands for options. It supports 15-inch projected capacitive multi-touch, offering IP64 water & dust-proof and 7H degree scratch-proof, and presents the features of solid flat panel for cleaning grease stain easily. The PT2500 aims to mainstream POS market with valuable benefits supporting multiple peripheral solutions to enhance user experience.Design with energy-efficient and powerful platformWith solid and streamline design, the PT2500 runs on high performance Intel Gen7 dual core processors including Intel Celeron 3965U 2.20GHz, Intel Core i3-7100U 2.40 GHz ,Intel Core i5-7200U 3.10 GHz and Intel Core i7-7500U 3.50 GHz platforms to accommodate customers' needs from entry to high-end POS market.Rich I/O ports and flexible modular designFeaturing modular mechanical design, the PT2500 supports easy installation and maintenance for SSD, and optional POS peripheral modules mountable for both side of display with a simple USB connector. In addition, it supports various peripherals options for easy expansion and multiple choices for optional VFD, 8-inch/ 9.7-inch customer displays, MSR, iButton, barcode scanner and WiFi module, these make PT2500 a flexible and cutting edge POS terminal with high expansibility. Moreover, it offers rich I/O including four USB 3.0 ports, four USB 2.0 ports and three powered COM ports for POS peripherals connection such as payment solution, receipt printer, membership card reader, and etc.Family model - PST750 printer POS terminalThe PST750 printer POS terminal is based on the PT2500 POS platform with multiple integrated thermal printer options. It offers free space on the stand for multiple cube type thermal printers including Epson and Seiko, and fits perfectly into environments, where counter space saving and flexibility is demanded. With screw-less rear cover assembly design, it allows to easy access receipt printer, and a built-in high speed thermal printer helps users to improve work efficiency.Optimized POS solution for smart retail applicationsThe smart design of the All-in-one PT2500 provides quality and high performance in the most demanding hospitality and retail environments at an affordable price. Additionally, with its flexible design, the PT2500 can be used not only for point-of-service solution but also can be used as a self-service terminal, a price checker or for digital signage promotion.The PT2500 / PST750 POS terminals are available now. For more details about our products, please contact your Clientron sales representative, or visit us at our website www.clientron.com.Clientron introduces its new powerful POS Terminal PT2500

IoTize's line of TapNLink products for Bluetooth and NFC communication is available to customers around the world from Digi-Key Electronics, a global electronic components distributor. Under a new distribution agreement, Digi-Key will resell a range of products from IoTize, designers and manufacturers of plug-n-play wireless connectivity solutions for microcontroller-based embedded systems.TapNLink products allow the user to take an existing MCU application that does not have wireless connectivity and add it using only 2 GPIO pins and without modifying the application's original firmware.This approach is a Kickstarter for companies that are fast tracking their wireless integration projects to meet customers' changing expectations. TapNLink reduces design effort and risks by a factor of ten, speeding time-to-market of smartphone-based interfaces for product configuration, monitoring, and control."Our partnership with Digi-Key is a crucial step in getting TapNLink instant connectivity to all types of customers - multinationals, SMEs, and hobbyists - worldwide. Digi-Key optimizes online visibility of products and design resources, as well as the speed and cost of getting products to customers," explained Francis Lamotte, IoTize President.Applications that would benefit from the instant wireless connectivity include factory machinery - control and monitoring, cable replacement, point-to-point data transfer, building automation, automated lighting, and inventory and tracking systems."We are very happy to announce our partnership with IoTize and offer their plug-n-play products to our global customer base," said Robbie Paul, Director, IoT Business Development at Digi-Key. "Their TapNLink line will help customers bring a configurable solution to any project by adding Bluetooth and NFC communication to existing MCUs and will be a strategic relationship moving forward."For more information about IoTize and to order from their product portfolio, please visit the Digi-Key website.IoTize TapNLink

Leading semiconductor test equipment supplier Advantest Corporation will feature its latest products and services enabling the development of 5G technology at Semicon Southeast Asia on May 7-9 at the Malaysia International Trade and Exhibition Center (MITEC) in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.Product DisplaysIn booth #728, Advantest will feature live product demonstrations and digital graphics showcasing its leading-edge IC test solutions. These include a unique automotive display illustrating how the T2000 series of testers is being applied in improving the performance and reliability of broader types of automotive devices, from sensors, processors and powertrains to communication systems; the V93000 SoC test system enabling testing of advanced ICs for automotive, IoT and AI applications; the innovative CX1000P CloudTesting service offering cost-effective, on-demand test solutions; the TS9000 series of terahertz analysis systems measuring IC mold thicknesses as well as the wiring quality of IC packages and printed circuit boards; the AirLogger WM2000 series, which can measure temperature, voltage and strain and send data values to a PC using wireless communication; and an array of field services focused on increasing customers' automation efficiency by creating a test cell solution complete with handler and tester for high-volume manufacturing.Technical PresentationAdvantest also will present a paper on "5G Technology Overview and Testing" at the Product and System-Level Testing Forum at 10 a.m. on May 9. In this session, Alex Leong, staff engineer with Advantest Sales and Support (M) Sdn. Bhd., will discuss how the V93000 Wave Scale series addresses the technical challenges of the emerging 5G market.Social MediaFor the very latest information from the leader in test solutions, follow Advantest on Twitter @Advantest_ATE.

The mobile phone and tablet fast charging system were developed and invested by Nemesis Biotech. After years for researching and developing Nemesis Biotech have completed mature testing of prototype model. The specifications as follow:Battery 3.7V, Capacity 5500mah, Charging for 100 seconds can be charged for 64% battery capacity. After charging 2000 cycle times, the battery still has 80% available capacity. Voltage: 110V, Maximum efficiency: 1.1kw, Charging current: 125AThis product is bound to bring a lot of machine changes trend, fast charging system will also become the standard equipment for mobile phones and it will be good news for highly mobile phone users.Interested in cooperating with mobile phone manufactures, please contact:- Nemesis Biotech, Mr. Lai- Mobile: +886-966-505245- Tel: +886-4-22516388- E-mail: service@apheliabiobeauty.com

Power supplies for consumer electronics that are produced in large quantities are mostly available in standardized general-purpose designs. Although it may require a certain level of technology know-how to make this type of power supplies, the entry barrier really is nothing. Today there is a growing demand for customized power solutions arising from specific applications in healthcare and network communication sectors, for example. They require purpose-built power supply systems and customized design services to suit their needs.The ability to design power solutions compliant with requirements by specific industries must be backed by professional knowledge, robust R&D teams, design and manufacturing flexibility as well as rigorous certification processes. With 25 years of experience in power supply products, Asian Power Devices (APD) has everything it takes to deliver customized power solutions, particularly for applications in network communication equipment, medical devices and consumer electronics.APD founded its business on power supplies for consumer IT equipment and has always adhered to the principle of delivering high-quality products. This was the reason why APD was able to maintain growth even during the 2008 financial crisis. However, that was also the time when APD began to realize the consumer electronics market was growingly saturated while the healthcare and network communication sectors still had tremendous growth potential. APD then decided to divert some of its resources toward the two sectors. In recent years, the healthcare and network communication sectors indeed are experiencing rapid growth. APD, having made the right decision, has secured market presence today.According to Rax Chuang, general manager, APD's power system business group, since the company's transformation in 2008, APD has focused efforts on providing power supplies targeting applications in specific fields and delivering customized solutions. APD products are enthusiastically embraced by the market and APD is even regarded as an expert of medical-grade power solutions by medical device manufacturers. According to IHS, APD is ranked the world's No. 4 medical power solution provider. Its products are widely used in CPAP machines, oxygen concentrators, humidifiers and surgical equipment. Engaging in partnerships with leading medical device manufacturers worldwide, APD has established presence all around the globe. In addition to European and American markets, APD is also stepping up efforts toward the China market. Medical devices powered by APD's solutions are being put to use at several large medical institutions in China.Robust R&D capability enables tailored design servicesThe decision to transform itself is one of the factors that led APD to success. Technology and talent are the other two. Chuang knows very well the importance of product R&D particularly for the customization market that APD specializes in. Customization is a knowledge-intensive service. Firms that offer customization design services should, first and foremost, have a strong R&D team. APD employs a team of more than 350 R&D engineers, representing 17% of its staff. It regards the team as the company's core asset and allocates 7% of its annual revenue for product research. The amount increases as APD's revenue grows.Furthermore, APD also implements talent incubation programs such as Project Management Professional (PMP) and Design for Six Sigma (DFSS) certifications. APD is so fully committed to DFSS certification for its R&D engineers that 30 of them have obtained black belt certification and 16 have completed green belt certification. According to Chuang, DFSS highlights the management of innovation and quality. In order to achieve innovative results, DFSS has to be incorporated into the entire design process including sub systems, raw materials and every link of the supply chain. R&D engineers have to get involved every step of the way and engage in contact with the supply chain to stay on top of industry dynamics. By doing this, APD can enable innovation while optimizing product quality.Aside from keeping contact with upstream suppliers, APD also requires that its R&D engineers have a clear understanding on the features of customers' systems. Chuang points out that compared to other products, reliability is a top concern for medical devices as they directly affect human safety, so manufacturers take great care in selecting the components they use, which is also why the medical device market is more conservative. Vendors looking to penetrate into this segment can only win customer trust by offering premium quality and service consistently over a long period of time. Having been market proven to deliver top-notch quality and service, APD has been a long-term partner with leading medical device manufacturers worldwide.As a leader in customized medical power solutions, APD actively participates in industry events. At CMEF 2019, taking place May 14 to May 17, APD will showcase a full range of power solutions designed specifically for use by medical device manufacturers in CPAP (continuous positive airway pressure) , oxygen concentrators, humidifiers and surgical equipment at it booth 6.1D12.In addition to healthcare, network communication is also an important application area of APD's products. Its power solutions are mostly used in PoE switches. The market of network equipment requiring high-wattage power supplies also imposes stringent requirements on quality, design and material like the medical device market. Moreover, as PoE switches using APD's products are generally embedded in customer's systems, a certain level of design service is usually needed. Being a veteran in this field, APD's customization service is well recognized by manufacturers producing network equipment. Now most tier-1 manufacturers choose APD's solutions to power their products.Flexible manufacturing enables production switches in a snap to meet the need of small quantity and large variety productionAPD's customization service is not limited to R&D but extends to production. The customization service model is characterized by small quantity and large variety production so production switches are common. APD, for example, reconfigures its production line five or six times a day on average and therefore requires extreme facility flexibility to support small quantity and large variety manufacturing. Accordingly, APD pays as much attention to its production process as its R&D. During the product design phase, the production department will raise manufacturing issues or needs and work with the R&D team to resolve them. Some of APD's production lines can now be reconfigured in close to zero time. APD is also incorporating Six Sigma DMAIC in its production process by implementing a five-step cycle - Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve and Control to perfect its production process and maximize production performance, comments Chuang.APD stays committed to talent incubation and infrastructure enhancement so that it is able to uphold premium product and service quality. In terms of fostering talent, APD has long been devoted to power supply education by helping universities build power supply research labs and actively engaging in industry-academia collaboration programs. Supporting power supply education is APD's way of contributing to the Taiwan power supply industry, says Chuang. APD also recruited a group of talented employees from the industry-academia collaboration programs it participated years ago. These employees now hold critical positions in different departments supporting the company's operations.APD has R&D centers in Taiwan and Shenzhen to provide convenient support to local customers and help them speed up time-to-market. Furthermore, APD has also established the highest level safety laboratory(CTDP & CTF Stage3), compliant with UL, TUV Rh and Nemko standards. This laboratory enables certification of APD's power solutions on compliance with not only regular consumer-grade and industrial-grade standards but also the IEC 60601 standards for medical electrical equipment. More importantly, the certifications can be conducted in-house and thus only take half of the time it usually requires, so products can go to market faster.Going forward, APD will still focus on customization services, notes Chuang. With smartization being a clear trend across industries, the demand for power supply quality by smart devices will only go higher. As such, APD will continue to strengthen its R&D and manufacturing capabilities so as to deliver premium quality design service to customers.R&D strength and customization service are APD's advantages leading to its success in the power supply market, says Rax Chuang, general manager, APD's power system business groupAPD 500W embedded medical power solution

In recent years, digital signage has been widely adopted and surging among retail, restaurants, and advertisement related projects. Central management and monitoring, content designing and distribution, and system reliability and security have been more and more essential for the administrators. It has become a challenge to have the capacity of a full care of the system, and satisfy the needs to strike a sturdy balance between security and efficiency at different branches.In the light of that, Cayin Technology upgrades its digital signage content management server as the front-runner in the industry. Innovative designs of the CMS software include multi-server architecture, 5-layer group management, and CMS-PRO, the advanced add-on management module.In this CMS V11.0 software upgrade, one of the highlights goes to "Multi-server Environment Design." Administrators can assign the main server, site server and backup server roles to the CMS structure. The CMS main server centrally controls the whole digital signage deployment as the essential component, while the backup server supports failover upon the failure or abnormal termination of the main server. And, the site server, installed at a branch office or any local site, shares the workload and internet dataflow between servers. Building a multi-server architecture ensures centralized and/or decentralized management, flexible network planning, bandwidth saving, content backup, and non-stop services. It is the best solution for administrators developing a customized network to achieve a stable long-term operation.The latest version of CMS software also expands digital signage player group management from 2 to 5 layers. This means administrators can now deploy hierarchies exquisitely when supervising large-scale projects and perform segment marketing with flexibilities. If administrators need advanced applications when deploying projects with different scales, CMS-PRO provides them with a more efficient and advanced central management.CMS-PROCMS-PRO is an optional add-on module embedded in a CMS server. The main features of CMS-PRO include efficient access to detailed information of SMP players, time-saving batch configurations, live monitoring of multimedia playback status, and instant alert mechanism. CMS-PRO lets administrators gain thorough control of every digital signage player's settings, updates, and live performances.If users wish to integrate digital signage servers into their existing corporate systems, CMS V11.0 offers a series of SDKs supporting self-research and development as well.Cayin's digital signage software, SMP-NEO2 V3.0, was also released recently. Apart from touch screen and multi-touch gesture support that increases interactions, users have the ability to preview or edit the content right from the interface. Moreover, SMP-NEO2 V3.0 adopts artificial intelligence which can tell whether the multimedia files are compatible with the system.Cayin continues to roll out a range of edge-cutting and powerful digital signage software, players, and content management servers in the year 2019. To keep up with the latest information, please visit Cayin's website at www.cayintech.com.Cayin CMS V11.0

With advancing developments in medical technologies and increasing public awareness about health issues, the medical devices market in China is growing rapidly over recent years. The China International Medicinal Equipment Fair (CMEF Spring) held in Shanghai every year has therefore become a global event at the center of market attention. APD(Asian Power Devices Inc.), focusing efforts toward the healthcare sector for years, will participate at CMEF 2019 Spring, taking place May 14 to May 17, showcasing a full range of cutting-edge medical power solutions. (Booth no. 6.1D12)Having devoted long-term efforts toward the healthcare sector, APD has been supplying high-quality custom-made power solutions to medical device manufacturers worldwide. According to IHS, APD is ranked the world's No. 4 medical power solution provider. Reliability has always been a top concern for medical devices. APD is known for providing premium quality products and tailored design services. This is why world renowned medical device manufacturers engage in long-standing partnerships with APD, says Rax Chuang, general manager, APD's power system business group.To further enhance service quality, APD will continue to focus on building up R&D and manufacturing capabilities and speeding up design and delivery services. APD has also established the highest level safety laboratory (CTDP & CTF Stage3), compliant with UL, TUV Rh and Nemko standards. This laboratory enables in-house certification of APD's power solutions and reduces the certification time by half, accelerating time-to-market for customers.As a leader of medical power solutions, APD attaches great importance to the China market, in addition to European and American markets. APD has begun to supply custom-made power solutions to worldwide medical customers. Medical devices powered by APD's solutions are being put to use at several large medical institutions in China. Chuang comments the healthcare sector imposes demanding requirements on medical devices. APD will showcase high-reliability power solutions for CPAP, oxygen concentrator, endoscope and surgical equipment at CMEF 2019. Visitors are welcome to APD's booth for a firsthand experience.APD's 500W embedded medical power supply

Internet of Vehicle (IoV) continues to grab market attention. Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) that were just a concept a few years ago are now a reality. Some mid-tier vehicles entering the market in 2018 came with ADAS and more are expected in 2019. According to the Automotive Research & Testing Center (ARTC), the cost of semiconductor components per car has exceeded US$330 and in electric vehicles, the amount comes close to US$1,000. The automotive electronics market is completely different from the consumer electronics market that Taiwan-based IC makers are familiar with.Allan Tseng, iST's assistant vice president notes that automotive systems have always imposed stringent requirements on reliability and are beginning to demand high performance as well in recent years. Vendors looking to expand into automotive electronics are advised to pay attention to both product reliability and performance.Reliability has constantly been a top concern for automotive electronics. On top of this, with IoV and AI technologies being growingly incorporated in automotive IC, performance is also becoming an important consideration, which is bringing changes to IC design. According to Tseng, semiconductor chips have been housed in BGA, QFP and SOP packages, which are mature packaging technologies but have difficulty meeting the demand ofnew-generation IoV communication standards such as AI, HPC,C-V2X(Cellular V2X) and DSRC(Dedicated Short Range Communication) for transmission speed. This gives rise to advanced packaging technologies including Multi-Chip Module (MCM), System in Package (SiP) and Fan-in/Fan-out, which can expect to become the prevailing trend but will also have to stand the test of quality, safety and reliability.The automotive industry has established comprehensive standards on quality and safety. IATF 16949 sets the requirements for an Automotive Quality Management System (QMS). Compliance to VDA 6.3 is mandated by some European automakers. For the mass production phase, new IECQ Automotive Qualification Program (AQP) gives the automotive industry a standardized way of testing components to ensure quality. ISO 26262 specifies functional safety of electrical and/or electronic systems in production automobiles. As to reliability, it has to be evaluated respectively on the device, board and module levels, each of which represents a step in the IC packaging process. If a semiconductor chip can pass reliability tests for all three levels, it can be used in an automobile.Three major challenges for automotive componentsAutomotive Electronics Council (AEC) has defined common electrical component qualification requirements in automotive applications. AEC-Q100 specifies failure mechanism based stress test qualification for integrated circuits, AEC-Q101 for discrete semiconductors, AEC-Q102 for discrete optoelectronic semiconductors and AEC-Q200 for passive components. Automotive components to qualify for these standards must pass heat dissipation, material warpage and sequential stress tests.In the harsh automotive environment, heat has always been the biggest challenge in component reliability. Today's automotive systems demand high-performance components that inevitably have high current consumption, which brings even more challenges to component reliability. As such, developers strive to strike a perfect balance between performance and power consumption. Another common and serious problem with automotive components is IC package warpage. To keep up with the demand for high-speed data transmission, automotive semiconductor chips are growingly packaged in MCM/SiP assembly, instead of BGA. However, an MCM package combines a mix of multiple chips, active and passive components and PCB with different thermal expansion coefficients (CTE)integrated in a module so it is susceptible to warpage and deformation in an automotive environment with drastic temperature changes. Such a problem plagues not only IC devices but also print circuit boards (PCB). According to Chia-Hao Chuang, manager, board level reliability engineering, iST, high frequency is now a common design in automotive systems and will become a fundamental design in the 5G era. High frequency systems require PCB made with a special material of which the thermal expansion coefficient at a high temperature may be four times higher than at room temperature, resulting in severe package warpage.Last but not least, more challenges arise from new AEC-Q104, highlighting sequential stress tests, which AEC has been applying to modules for years and has extended to components beginning 2018. AEC established AEC-Q104 in consideration of the fact that automotive systems in real-world use scenarios are subject to a series of conditions and therefore automotive systems and their components must be able to cope with a set of qualification stress test sequences.In the past, chips were packaged individually with simple material composition and assembly structure so they could be tested one by one. Today, advanced packaging , such as MCM and SiP, integrates different types of chips with varying characteristics, which may fail in an automotive environment when a series of conditions happen. AEC-Q104 specifies that chips must pass each step in a sequence of stress tests. For example, high-temperature operating life (HTOL) and thermal shock tests used to be conducted separately. AEC-Q104 requires that chips undergo an HTOL test followed by a thermal shock test and they must pass both to be considered compliant. This not only makes testing more time-consuming but also incredibly challenging. Although AEC-Q104 compliance is not mandatory at present, most automakers do require their components to meet AEC-Q104 standards, notes Tseng. Accordingly, it is important for suppliers looking to expand into the automotive sector to obtain AEC-Q104 certifications for their products.Challenges for automotive PCBsSuppliers often need to address another problem with automotive PCBs. That is, the PCB they have designed according to the specifications may be quite different from what is actually needed in real application. The traditional approach is to come up with an initial PCB design based on the specifications and then make adjustments on the fly until a usable version is available, which consumes tremendous time and effort.iST crafts a complete testing platform combining software and hardwareTo solve problems with IC devices and PCBs in automotive systems, iST makes use of new tools, both software and hardware. It has built a platform that can measure the warpage of IC packages and PCBs before the surface mount process to help customers ensure soldering quality.iST works with US-based DFR Solutions (DFR) to design PCB simulation software. DFR is a renowned consulting firm in the automotive sector. Its Sherlock Automated Design Analysis software has been adopted by leading American and European automakers. iST makes use of the massive data accumulated by Sherlock in the past and is able to find stress parameters in all kinds of applications such that PCB design can closely match real use conditions. Sherlock serves as a tool to analyze materials' thermal expansion coefficients, malleability and response to external stress prior to reliability tests. It can also work with widely-used computer-aided engineering (CAE) tools to significantly reduce the time it takes to conduct analyses.ADAS are enjoying a rapid rise in popularity beginning in 2018, spurring new opportunities for the semiconductor industry. Technology firms in Taiwan are gearing up toward automotive electronics development. As automotive systems are quite different from consumer electronics in terms of design thinking, industry ecosystem, requirement standards and particularly test procedures, Tseng advises that Taiwan firms leverage third-party help in their endeavors toward the automotive market. iST has many years of experience in automotive electronics testing and can guide Taiwan firms in the right R&D direction, shorten time-to-market and help them build up competitive edge.Allan Tseng, assistant vice president, iST (right) and Chia-Hao Chuang, manager, board level reliability engineering, iST, both advise that Taiwan-based firms looking to expand into the automotive market should leave their old consumer electronics thinking behind.