Advantech, the embedded platform and integration services provider, announces the introduction of a new industrial-grade, Mini-ITX motherboard supporting the latest AMD R-Series processors. AMD R-Series feature intelligent performance, power efficiency, and integrated AMD Radeon HD 7000 graphics with DX11 and dual HD decoding 1080i+1080p support.AIMB-224 is capable of SATA RAID 0, 1, 5 & 10 to ensure reliable storage and system protection for gaming-intensive applications, retail, medical, digital signage and many more.Delivering Exceptional Performance in a Power Efficient PlatformAIMB-224 is designed with the AMD Embedded R-Series platform which delivers high-performance processing for a premium high definition visual experience (AMD eyefinity technology supports multiple independent display outputs simultaneously). With average power below 35 Watts and AMD Radeon graphics performance integrated into the AMD R-Series APU, the AIMB-224 allows full multimedia capabilities at resolutions up to 1920 x 1080 and 2048 x 1536 via DisplayPort. AIMB-224 Mini-ITX motherboard offers advanced 3D graphics and supports a total of three independent displays via dual DisplayPorts 1.2, VGA on the rear I/O, as well as onboard 24-bit dual channel LVDS interface supporting a 3.3V, 5V or 12V large sized panel.Maximum Connectivity for Minimum ResourcesThe AIMB-224 board comes with high connectivity and a variety of expansion options including: a single PCIe x8 and two miniPCIe x1 expansion slots (one full size/one half size), six serial ports, three SATA III 600 MB/s connectors, two USB3.0 and eight USB 2.0 ports. AIMB-224 also comes with software RAID 0, 1, 5 and 10 support, offering abundant data storage and reliable data protection, as well as dual PCI Express based Gigabit Ethernet ports delivering up to 1000 Mbps of bandwidth for network-intensive applications. The platform also has two DDR3/3L 1333/1600MHz SO-DIMM slots which can support up to 16 GB of system memory. AIMB-224 accomodates both ATX12V and DC-in power to provide a low total cost solution. All this connectivity is packed into a space-saving, power-efficient, and cost-effective Mini-ITX form factor. For applications looking for more security protection, TPM 1.2 is also integrated into this board.Built-in Remote Management Technologies Increase ReliabilityAIMB-224 has SUSIAccess remote device management software built in. It provides device monitoring, automatic alerts by email/SMS, system recovery and protection, and remote KVM features to help your application be more reliable and smart.Integrated Intelligent Software APIAdvantech provides drivers and APIs for different operating systems including GPIO, SMBus, watchdog timer, hardware monitor, panel backlight on/off, and brightness control. Supported operating systemsinclude Windows 7, Windows XP, XP Embedded, Windows CE, and Linux—hardware drivers for these OS are readily available. AIMB-224 is available now; please contact your local sales or visit the website for more information.Features- Supports AMD Mobile R-series Quald Core / Dual Core processor- Two 204-pin SODIMM up to 16GB DDR3/DDR3L 1333 MHz SDRAM- Supports VGA/LVDS/dual DisplayPorts- Dual LANs, 6COMs, 2 x Mini PCIe, and 10 x USB ports- Supports embedded software APIs and utilitiesAIMB-224Finding more case study articles

In the 21st century, the ubiquitous Internet of Things (IoT) technology has already generated many new applications that improve human life, bringing us the comforts, convenience, and efficiencies of digital signage, bank queuing systems, bus arrival prediction systems, and automobile parking service systems, to name just a few. These applications are usually carried out by thin-client computers and devices hooked to a network with a centralized server. Many of the terminal-end computers are deployed in commercial, industrial, or transportation spaces, indoors or out, and they need to be rugged and durable; smaller form factors and less power consumption are desirable, with a view to saving space, cost, and energy.Advantech, a world-renowned industrial computer manufacturer, is rolling out its newest palm-size fanless intelligent system, ARK-1122, powered by Intel Atom dual core N2600/N2800 CPU. ARK-1122 reduces power consumption to 10W with higher performance and higher specifications in terms of CPU and memory, storage capacity and I/O support, delivering more powerful computing and graphic performance with additional display interfaces. ARK-1122 comes in three SKUs with varied I/O designs suited for different embedded application scenarios.ARK-1122H supports dual displays for bank queuing systemWith VGA and HDMI outputs, ARK-1122H supports independent dual displays, and provides rich I/O options (4 x USB + 1 x COM). So it's suited for commercial digital signage applications which require connection with electronics devices. A typical scenario is a bank queuing system, which often has two displays at the bank counter - one for showing queuing numbers and the other for broadcasting videos or other information. ARK-1122H also featured palm-sized design weighing less than one kilogram, can easily be installed behind a display with a VESA bracket or in a hidden corner with DIN rail or wall mount. It is extremely competitive on cost, and on space and power requirements.ARK-1122C provides rich peripheral connections for parking lot kioskFor applications that need to connect with more peripheral devices, many of which still use serial data transfer interfaces, ARK-1122C is a good option, as it provides rich I/O connections in both serial and USB ports (4 x COM + 4 x USB). A typical application scenario, for example, is that of a parking facility management system, where ARK-1122C can be installed in a kiosk to integrate automatic toll collection, receipt printing and cash machine. ARK-1122C, with a VGA output, can support a kiosk display that shows parking info and also provides rich peripheral connections. More to the point, Computers used in such outdoor applications need to be ultra-rugged and reliable. The ARK-1122C provides wide temperature support of -20 ~ 60o C, and featuring a metal chassis with special anti-corrosion treatment. Its clean, fanless design enhances system longevityARK-1122F delivers rich network support for bus arrival prediction systemMany traffic applications need to communicate with mobile vehicles, and wireless connection becomes an important requirement. ARK-1122F provides rich I/O including two GbE ports for cable connections well as mini-PCIe expansion for wireless 3G/Wi-Fi communications, and supports dual displays (VGA + HDMI), all of which make it well suited for deployment in outdoor information systems such as those for bus arrival prediction. Such a bus arrival prediction system can be enabled by a small ARK-1122F hidden in the equipment box at each bus stop. Each ARK-1122F can support a VGA display that shows bus arrival information and an HDMI display that displays advertisements or service information. A GPS system installed on each bus reports its position in real time to a central server, which in turn controls the content displayed at the individual bus stops. Such applications require rugged industrial computers with excellent data handling ability, networking connection capabilities and display support. With its small form factor and modest power requirements, the ARK-1122F is well positioned to enable these applications.Outstanding hardware plus intelligent managementIn addition to the benefits of superior hardware, Advantech also offers stronger firmware and software support. SUSIAccess, a package of embedded software API and utilities that enable remote management and maintenance, is preloaded free with ARK-1122 series. With SUSIAccess or similar firmware/software, the control center can access remote embedded systems via the Internet, monitor device status, and administer remote diagnosis and trouble shooting. With the intelligent management tools, application systems can be scheduled to shut off during office closed hours to eliminate unnecessary power use.Resource saving palm-sized fanless intelligent system

Cloud and mobilization trends in recent years have triggered the third industrial revolution. The hot selling tablets have also accelerated the computer industry's introduction to a wide variety of tablets or transformer (tablet + laptop) products. Functionality of tablets has also gradually evolved from mostly entertainment functions into commercial application productivity features. These features have prompted the industry to develop faster processor performances and larger storage capacities. The leaders in flash memory production have responded to the future development trend of the tablet industry by accurately grasping the speed acceleration demands of mobile terminal devices to provide a full range of flash memory solutions.PC "Tabletization" revolutionTarun Loomba, vice president of marketing and client storage solutions for SanDisk, made an opening remark on how to design the popular tablet PC products. He presented some market research reports indicating that on-demand content and social media sharing, coupled with the prevalence of the wireless network, has changed the consumer habits of using entertainment electronic products and gradually switched to tablets instead. At present, tablet users spent 86% of their tablet usage time playing video games, visiting social networking sites, and enjoying multimedia entertainment. Cross-room applications allowed tablets to gradually replace or affect other designated application products such as video game consoles, IP video devices, and the often used desktop PCs.The hot sales of tablets has affected the sale for other devices as well. An IDC report estimated that shipments for tablets would reach 190 million units in 2013, with an annual growth rate that reaches 48.7%. By 2017, sales of tablets will exceed those of desktops and various portable computer combinations. According to the tablet market sales breakdown, 49.8 million, 23 million, 35 million, and 25.6 million tablets were sold in the Americas, Western Europe, Asia, and other regions in 2012, respectively. Prices for tablets range from US$150 for 7-inch media tablets to US$800 for high-end 11-inch productivity tablets. Tablets also come in Android, Windows, and iOS operating systems.Design for today's tablets focus on either portability or comfort. In terms of performance, tablets are moving toward 4 or even 8 core processors to provide higher resolutions and larger storage capacities. Tablets have also been promoted for professionals and business users in terms of consumer groups. Looking back at 2010, design features for notebooks (13 to 17 inch) and tablets (under 10 inches) were sharply divided. However, after 2012/2013, tablets became more powerful and have influenced notebook designs to trend toward removable, transformable, ultra-thin, and multi-touch control capabilities in design.Tablets have evolved from entertainment to productivityTablets that emphasize low power consumption are popular in the consumer market; however, consumers are expecting to do more on tablets and enjoy the comforts of tablets while using productivity software. This was acknowledged by the industry by efficient "commercial tablets" being born. The Gartner report also estimates that 13 million commercial tablets were sold in 2012, and that number will reach 53 million in 2016 (300% growth). It is possible that up to half of enterprise employers will formulate the bringing of your own mobile device (BYOD) to work policy by 2017.If you want a tablet that acts like a PC and has multiple program, multitasking, as well as independent foreground and background running capabilities; then you should not buy an entertainment tablet and should purchase a good performance, lighter, less power-consuming, and reasonably priced commercial tablet.SATA µSSD – the highly efficient tablet storage device designTablets that are currently on the market are divided into two major categories: the entertainment tablet that focuses on low power consumption, uses the ARM processor architecture, and runs on the Android platform; and the high-performance commercial tablet/notebook that uses an x86 processor architecture and runs on the Windows platform. As for storage device choices, the former tends to use Flash memory, and the latter mostly used hard disk drives (HDDs) or hybrid HDDs due to cost considerations.He noted that most people know that compared to HDDs, flash is more efficient, consumes less power, and is more reliable. If tablet products are designed to use flash, not only would it consume 20% less energy compare to that of HDD, it can also increase battery life by 2-3 hours and strengthen product competitiveness.In terms of flash transmission interface options, laptops and desktops are presently SATA based and will advance toward PCle in the future. Regarding high-performance mobile devices (such as the commercial tablets), the current mainstream eMMC 4.51/5.0 can only reach up to 200 MB/s. The faster UFS or PCle interfaces have not yet matured, and the tablet transmission interface will face bottlenecks in the future as a result. Current SATA III can reach a high-performance of 600 MB/s. STAT III is mature, supports a variety of sizes, and has low power consumption, as well as advanced multitasking scheduling features. Using SATA for commercial tablet designs would be a good solution.Therefore, Loombe recommended the µSSD (microSSD) of SanDisk, which has the ultra-small size/low power consumption of eMMC and the high-performance of SATA and complies with JEDEC MO-276 mechanical design specifications. The µSSD standard specification was finalized in August 2012. It has 2-3 times higher performance compared to that of the eMMC and is sold at the similar price level as the eMMC.When the price of the µSSD and the traditional 500GB HDD are compared, a 32GB µSSD costs approximately 40% of the price of a 500GB HDD and a 64GB µSSD costs approximately 30% more than the price of a 500GB HDD. Therefore, based on the performance, size, and power consumption considerations, the µSSD would be a pretty good choice for commercial tablets.Tarun Loomba, VP of marketing and client storage solutions for SanDisk

Founded in Fuzhou, Fujian, Rockchip Electronics has launched a full range of mobile application processor chips – from the single-core CPU/dual-core GPU, to the dual-core CPU/quad-core GPU, and to the quad-core CPU/quad-core GPU. Rockchip has provided overall solutions ranging from chips to SOC software and hardware to allow the industry to seize the market opportunities for tens of millions white box tablets.WINTEL duopoly gradually being brokenFeng Chen, CMO of Fuzhou Rockchip, compared the historic market caps of processor manufacturers Intel and ARM, and found that after the burst of the 2000 Internet bubble, Intel's total market cap jumped by 100-200x over its initial market cap. In contrast, after ARM was listed in 1998, it market cap has grown 800x. Looking at Microsoft, since becoming listed in 1985 and after reaching the highest point of 500x the initial market cap in 2000, Microsoft's growth has hovered between 400-450x in 2013. In contrast, after listing in 2004, Google had a 500x growth in market value by 2005 and its rate of growth has far exceeded that of Microsoft. By 2013, Google had a total market value growth of 2,500x, 5x higher than Microsoft's growth.Chen pointed out that the PC is no longer just a personal computer, it should be defined as personal computing – an application architecture based on networked devices such as notebooks, mobile phones, tablets, or smart TVs connected to the Cloud. In the 1960's, approximately one million large mainframes had been accumulated. In the 1970's, that number grew to 10 million. The rise of PCs started in the 1980's, and the number of PCs exceeded 100 million by the 1990's. By 2000, mobile phones, mobile Internet devices, and notebook computers flourished and the combined market size of these devices topped one billion. The mobile Internet era has flourished since 2010, and the number of networked devices such as e-Readers, tablets, home automation units, smartphones, and car electronics will exceed ten billion by 2020.Chen also listed the shipment volumes of the various digital devices five years after they became available in the market, as measured by various research firms. Notebook PCs had a growth rate of 61% per annum after they became available, but its shipment volume reached only 50 million units annually in the first five years. MP3 devices were the first to break the 100 million unit shipment mark during the first five years. Shipments for smartphones broke the 100 million unit mark after the fourth year, and exceeded 300 million by the fifth year. It was anticipated that annual shipments for tablets can reach an optimistic estimate of 441 million units, with the conservative estimate of 373 million units, or the worst estimate of 300 million units, within five years after they became available in the market.Post-PC era revolution WINTEL replaced by GooARMWhy has the shipment rate of PCs remained at 300 million units, Chen believes that in addition to economic factors, the open architecture of GooARM (Google + ARM) has released the 90% bundled costs/profits of the WINTEL (Microsoft + Intel) duopoly that had strictly controlled hardware capacity and licensing to maintain high profits. Concerning the status of tablets, Chen believes that Apple's iPad initially had oligopoly and domination, and it would be difficult for other brand manufacturers to shake Apple's position. He suggested that the white box tablet manufacturers should take the path of eight-three-two law; have 80% of Apple product performance, are sold at one-third of the price of Apple, and enjoy twice the white box market growth rate. Besides the Android tablets launched by brand manufacturers, there are also the low-priced US$149 Amazon Kind Fire tablets and US$199 7-inch Google Nexus7 tablets. Chen estimates that non-Apple Android tablets also have a scale of 80 million units in market share.Quite a large proportion of Google's revenue came from Internet advertisements. However, the ratio of an advertisement that has been clicked and read by mobile phones and tablets is only 10% of those clicked and read by users using notebooks or desktops. Therefore, Google and brand manufacturers have spared no effort to promote low-cost Wi-Fi Internet Chromebooks at a price range between US$299-399. In the future, there is much speculation in the market whether Android 5.0 will include Office, and whether Android 6.0 will use the multi-tasking Windows architecture.Focusing on tablets to release diversified AP processorsChen indicated that the competitive advantages of Rockchip are innovation, focus, and speed. Rockchip launched the high-speed language learning/language repeater chip in 2002, the MP4 video playback chip in 2005, and tablets and related application processors at the same time as Apple's iPad in 2010. In 2012, it was the first to adopt Globalfoundries' advanced 28nm HKMG process to manufacture high-end AP processors. Its company goal is also clear cut – focus on tablets. In terms of R&D speed, Rockchip has manufactured countless multi-project wafers (MPW) for design applications for use by up to 30 customers and provided turnkey solutions for OEMs to shorten development time. Rockchip only requires one month from the first mass production wafer to the launch of the end-product.Finally, Chen also introduced Rockchip's processor family. The RK292x adopts the 1GHz single-core ARM Cortex A9 architecture with a 400MHz quad-core Mali-400 GPU design. It supports multiple 1080p video decoding formats but only 1080p H.264 encoding. Most of the white box tablets in China use this chip.The RK3066 chip adopts a 40nm process and a 1.2GHz dual-core ARM Cortex A9 architecture with a built-in 400MHz quad-core Mali-400 GPU. It supports multiple 1080p video decoding and 1080p H.264/VP8/MVC encoding. The RK3168 adopts a 28nm process and the dual-core ARM Cortex A9 architecture. It has a working clock frequency of 1.2GHz, and its 600 MHz quad-core PowerVR SGX540 GPU supports 1080p multiple format decoding and playback, as well as the 1080p H.264/VP8/MVC video encoding.The newest RK3188 chip adopts a 28nm High K Metal Gate (HKMG) process technology and the quad-core ARM Cortex A9 architecture. It has a working clock frequency of 1.6GHz, as well as built-in 600MHz quad-core Mali-400 GPU, DDR3 and LP DDR3 memory controllers, and embedded GPS baseband. The chip supports dual LCD screen outputs with the maximum resolution of 2048 x 1536, the OpenGL ES 1.1/2.0 and Open VL 1.1 graphics standard, and the multiple format decoding and playing as well as the 1080p H.264/VP8/MVC video encoding.Rockchip has declared that its entire line of chip processors has been upgraded to support H.265/VP9 and HDPC2.0. Its 4G tablet PCs and digital TV tablet products with ISDB-T/DVB-T will be mass produced and shipped starting next month.Feng Chen, CMO of Fuzhou Rockchip

A low-cost and high-transmittance multi-touch solution is now available for 11- to 36-inch devices, ranging from ultrabooks to all-in-one (AIO) PCs running Windows 8.Eyeing US$600 portable multi-touch device marketAccording to Mark Hopgood, director of strategic marketing for Dialog Semiconductor, various research institutions have indicated that ultrabooks will start to see explosive growth in 2014. Slimmer than 21mm, ultra-slim PCs (including Ultrabooks and notebooks) will see unit sales increase from 32,000 units in 2013 to 170 million units in 2016. Shipments for AIO units will increase to 17 million units in 2013 from less than five million in 2008, a growth rate of over 300%.Because of the high costs associated with today's multi-touch solutions, they are usually used only in high-end ultrabooks or AIO PCs priced over US$1,000. But for touch-enabled Ultrabooks and AIO PCs to enter the mass market, their prices must come down to the US$600 level. To enable lower-priced touch-enabled ultrabooks and AIO PCs, cost-effective multi-touch solutions are needed, and Dialog already has such a solution.Pros and cons of various touch technologiesHopgood compared the existing resistive, acoustic, imaging, infrared, and capacitive technologies as well as the Smartwave multi-touch technology introduced by Dialog. Resistive allows users to operate the touchscreen while wearing gloves. The technology can meets ruggedized and dustproof requirements and is suitable for 11-inch or larger displays. However, it does not support the multi-touch Windows 8, or bezel-free applications. Its transmittance is poor.Acoustic touch is characterized by good transmittance and can be applied to all devices. However, it does not support multi-touch, or work while wearing gloves. Surface dirt can affect its touch sensitivity.Imaging and infrared touch technologies use camera lenses or infrared emitters at the upper left and right corners of the screen to detect and calculate the touch coordinates as the user touches the screen and blocks the light rays passing through the surface of the screen. They allow users to work while wearing gloves, support Windows 8 multi-touch, and have high transmittance. However, they do not support bezel-free applications, and their durability and dust-proof ability are poor.Capacitive touch is the current mainstream technology for smartphones. Not only does it support multi-touch, it is also durable, dust proof, and can achieve borderless designs. However, it does not support control while wearing gloves, and transmittance depends on the thickness of the touch panel. The major issue with this technology is when it is applied to 11-inch or larger screens, yield issues will drive up production costs sharply.Dialog's Smartwave multi-touch ICDialog's DA8901 SmartWave multi-touch integrated circuit (MTIC) adopts the patented and market-proven FlatFrog Planar Scatter Detection (PSD) touch chip. It detects the subtle changes caused by users' touches to the paths of the repeatedly refracted infrared beams inside the cover lens. PSD provides natural and smooth touch responses. It can make responses corresponding to the strength and depth of a press on the screen, which lets it work as a third dimension Z-axis control to simulate real-life experiences, such as finger tapping, pressing or dragging objects.The Smartwave touch module is designed with an ultra-narrow PCB. The size of the module is similar to that of protective glass. It is suitable for 11- to 36-inch ultra-slim devices, convertible systems, tablets, AIO PCs, and monitors. The touch module does not require an internal sponge layer; the air gap is minimized; and it enables full edge-to-edge designs.The DA8901 MTIC is equipped with a 40MHz ARM Cortex M0 processor, ROM/RAM, four sets of linear transformer output lines (LDO), and standby/quick recovery energy-saving technologies. It features 12 infrared emitter and 12 analog front-end receivers, offering excellent ambient light noise elimination capabilities. The infrared emitters at the four borders emit beams 100 times per second. The system can chain up to 15 DA8901 (slaves) and support a maximum of 192 touch sensing channels. It has low-latency, and the touch resolution can reach up to 400 dpi.Cost-effective solutions for medium- to large-size touch panel applicationsHopgood stressed that the DA8901 Smartwave supports Window 8's multi-touch at a low cost and can work with gloves, styluses, and other objects. It can detect touch pressure, and is more suitable for 11-inch and larger touch-screen applications compared to capacitive touch. In addition, it does not require the ITO conductive glass layer, and therefore boasts high transmittance and reduced display module thickness. It reduces production costs and raises yield rates, and can be adopted for edge-to-edge bezel-free industrial designs.Mark Hopgood, director of strategic marketing for Dialog Semiconductor

PIXCIR Microelectronics, a company focused on capacitive and touch technologies; and Hanvon Technology, a leader in electromagnetic induction pen technology, have cooperated to promote a multi-touch capacitive pen that enables delicate pen writing applications to a variety of mobile devices.Transcending the two-dimensional applications of traditional touch controlDr. Lionel Portmann, CTO of PIXCIR, indicated that current touch screens available in the market have a surface-coated mesh of electrodes and can only provide two-dimensional (2D) finger reaction detection. Although there are independent 3D control solutions in the market that can respond to the X/Y/Z axis movements with a control distance of up to 10cm – such as Z-axis scaling, tilt/joystick input and non-contact page flipping and proximity detection – these technologies still cannot be integrated into a touch screen.In addition, the touch screen electrode can also be used for short-distance sensing applications such as access cards, access controls, and electronic payment sensor devices. The capacitive pen is controlled by the electrodes in the touch screen surface. It must also work in conjunction with the small pen tip, pressure sensor, and palm input functions.The PIX C32 Tango IC touch control chip developed by PIXCIR only requires a third-party proximity sensor and capacitive pen to provide 3D (X/Y/Z axis 8cm) control applications with a capacitive pen. The entire tablet or mobile handset only requires the conductive pole of its touch screen surface and no other additional components. The operating principle is that the tablet will issue a command to locate the position of the electric pen, and then accept the pressure from the digital capacitive pen, as well as the data transmitted from the pen tip. Portmann then played a video clip that demonstrated the fairly smooth handwriting created by the capacitive pen developed by PIXCIR and Hanvon. At present, patents for PIX C32 have been approved in Europe, China, the United States, and Taiwan; and patents are still under review in Korea and Japan.PIXCIR and Hanvon create a writing miracleNext, PIXCIR CEO Hung Jiin-Wei and Beijing Hanvon Technology's vice president of R&D Xiang Guowei took the stage together. Hung used a 6-inch notebook that combined the technologies of PIXCIR and Hanvon for a writing demonstration, while Xiang indicated that Havon and PIXCIR have been in cooperation since December of 2012.PIXCIR provides the touch technology and Havon provides the pen technology; and together, they have developed a new generation of capacitive pen technology. Hanvon's wireless capacitive pen features more software features than other offered by competitors, no additional radio frequency (RF) is needed, and the antenna transceiver modules and induction coil can achieve the effect of an active capacitive pen. It supports Android and Windows systems and can provide a minimum 1mm square capacitance pen tip.Xiang mentioned that up to five million Hanvon brand pen products have been sold. The technology is also licensed to Samsung, KDDI, Moto, and Onyx's eBooks; where approximately one million units have been sold. Regarding the 21.5-inch pen displays in collaboration with EZN, the 10.1-inch pen tablets in collaboration with Viewsonic, and the 8-inch tablets in collaboration with E Ren E Ben; approximately 200 thousand units of their products have been sold. Approximately 100,000 Drawsom 8.2 inch gaming tablets created in collaboration with Ubisoft have also been shipped.Xiang also mentioned that the entire market wants to go paperless, and there is a clear trend for handwriting input devices. The pen input device is a must have for signature approval for the education, medical, industrial, and financial banking fields. The Samsung Galaxy Note pen phone that uses Hanvon's pen technology and the Microsoft Surface Pro tablet equipped with the electromagnetic induction pen (EM Pen) have also attracted quite a bit of attention. The Galaxy Note estimated that its 2014 shipments will exceed 100 million. There is also a huge market for smartphones, educational pen tablets, and POS signature devices. It is forecasted that the 2013 global pen market will reach US$1.5 billion.Xiang indicated that the emergence of certain human-machine interfaces/input devices will lead to the rise of certain work platforms, or even drive a change in the manufacturing chain. For example, in the past, keyboards created the popularity of DOS, the keyboard + mouse combination created a Windows boom, and the multi-point touch screen had driven the iOS and Android operating systems. Hanvon believes that the next application trend is the multi-touch screen + pen. Its success is dependent on factors such as promotion by powerful giants such as Samsung to design easy to use and non-awkward products, as well as develop rich pen related software, to create comfortable pen writing applications and achieve a 100% handwriting recognition rate.Xiang indicated that the electromagnetic induction pen developed by Hanvon is designed to emit positioning electromagnetic waves through the electromagnetic radio frequency (ERT) modules at the bottom layer of the screen panel. The pen does not need an induction coil and battery, can easily satisfy weight requirements, and can provide the subtle feeling of digital pressure as well as a fine handwriting width of 0.1mm. In addition to the chip and electromagnetic pen, panel manufacturers only require between US$3-5 in increased costs. Hanvon's EM pen can achieve a 5080 LPI resolution, a sensing height range of 0-30mm, 2048 digital pressure sensor bands, 60-degree inclination sensing, 1-4 buttons/knob simulation, 360-degree rotation sensing, and pen eraser rubbing simulation functions.Capacitive pen provides pen writing applications with no additional hardware costsXiang mentioned that pens have evolved from the first generation wired pens, to the second generation active analog pens, to the third generation L-type passive analog pens, to the fourth generation C-type analog pens, and then to the fifth-generation passive digital induction pens. Compared to third generation L-type pens and fourth generation C-type pens, the sensing pressure level of Havon's EM pens can reach 2048 while others can only reach the a 512-1024 level, and it has the 5g minimal force sensor, as well as the 0.2 mm positioning accuracy error rate.In terms of the features for the active capacitive pen and the passive EM pen, the only drawback of the active capacitive pen is that it needs battery and charging mechanisms, has a minimum pen diameter of 6.5 mm, a minimum hover distance of 20mm, and weaker anti-interference capabilities. However, the advantage of the capacitive pen is that it can be used with existing projected capacitive touch screen devices.Lionel Portmann, PIXCIR CTOPIXCIR creator and CEO Jiin-Wei Hung (right) and Guo-Wei Xiang, Hanvon Technology's Vice President of R&D (left)

Silver nanowire technology can help reduce the thickness of the conductive layer on touch panels, enhancing the development of flexible panels for new-generation touch applications.Searching for materials to replace ITOJohn LeMoncheck, president and CEO of Cambrios Technologies, indicated that smartphones and tablet PCs are now common devices, and Windows 8 will drive demand for touch-enabled Ultrabooks and all-in-one (AIO) PCs. It is estimated that the touch sensor chip market will grow from 20 million units in 2011 to 85 million units in 2015.Meanwhile, the industry is searching for low-cost, bendable/flexible materials with high conductivity to replace the indium tin oxide (ITO) conductive layer on touch panels. Candidates include metal mesh, silver nanowires, carbon nanotubes and nanobuds, conducting polymers and graphene. Among them, Cambrios' ClearOhm created using silver nanowires looks the best candidate: it has high transmission (> 98%) and high conductivity of 30 ohms to150 ohms per square foot.LeMoncheck explained that silver nanowires have high conductivity and high transparency. They are low-cost and easily applied to devices. They can already be found in commercially available applications, and there are already supply chains in support of the technology.Leading manufacturers of transparent conductive materialsLeMoncheck noted that Cambrios, founded by scientists from the University of California, Santa Barbara and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, has a design and manufacturing facility in Sunnyvale, California, as well as offices in Japan and Taiwan. Its investors include Nissa Printing, Toray, and Samsung. Out of its 175 nanomaterial patent applications, 22 have been granted. Touch-enabled products such as smartphones, AIOs, and monitors that feature Cambrios' material technology already exist in the market.Cambrios uses silver nanowire materials to produce ClearOhm conductive transparent inks, which have been shipped to conductive film makers such as Okura, Hitachi Chemicals, Toray, Dai Nippon Chemical ShinEtsu, LG Electronics (LGE), Shinwha, and others in China and the United States. Related sensor components have been supplied by eTurboTouch, LGE, Nissha Printing, CNi, ShinEtsu and others. ClearOhm conductive films boast higher conductivity and faster touch response speed than ITO ones, and they are suitable for large-size touch-enabled AIO devices. Its 92% transmission means superior brightness and longer battery life compared to an ITO one-glass solution (OGS). There are no specific visible patterns or moire patterns. The ClearOhm technology can create 27-inch touch sensors of thickness ranging from 0.2mm to 0.4mm. Adding a Corning Gorilla Glass cover will only increase the thickness by 0.05 mm. It is cost-effective and can support any touch application and design of any size.So far, products that have adopted the ClearOhm technology include smartphones such as Huawei's Ascend available through Sprint in the United States, and the NEC Medias X N-07D available in Japan through NTT DoCoMo. Other products include LG's 23-inch AIO PC, GVision's 15-inch POS monitor, and Intel's 13.3-inch Ultrabook reference design. In terms of production process and material costs, ClearOhm supports roll-to-roll (R2R) manufacturing to significantly reduce coating costs. The built-in resistors, optical adhesive (OCA) and nanowires can reduce the costs for laser engraving or the Hitachi Chemical TCTF process. Assembly can be done on transparent plastic films using the GF1 and GF2 structures without OCA optical adhesive.Touch screens using metal mesh technology will have different metal line layouts depending on the resolution of the display. However, the ClearOhm sliver nanowire solution can be applied to 1080p, 900p, or 768p displays, which reduces costs for system design, back-end panel testing and assembly, and supply chain inventory management.New conductive coating technology to enable flexible displaysJohn LeMoncheck noted that the transparent conductive transfer film (TCFT) co-developed by Cambrios and Hitachi Chemical is a two-layered PET film structure formed by a layer of Hitachi's dry resist of only 5μm in thickness, and another layer of ClearOhm nano-conductive ink that is only 0.1μm thick. This TCFT adopts low-temperature bonding technology that allows a matrix of X- and Y-axis electrodes to be only 10μm in thickness. These electrodes offer excellent conductivity, and they can be patterned on any film substrates or tempered glass. It supports roll-to-roll manufacturing.The conventional ITO process involves the deposit layer, resist formation, patterning, etching, and stripping. The Hitachi TCFT process involves the substrate, TCT film lamination, patterning, TCT film lamination, and engraving. It means part of the ITO processing can be adapted for TCFT.LeMoncheck played a video clip showing the co-development of flexible e-paper by Cambrios and AU Optronics (AUO). An e-paper with a ClearOhm film, after being rolled up more than 50,000 times at a radius of 5mm, will see its resistance value increase to only 28.79 ohms per square foot from the original 19.25 ohms. Its transmission and conductivity remains high. In addition to touch panels, the ClearOhm technology can also offer material solutions for flexible 3D LCD displays, OLED displays, OLED light, solar PV panels (with a conversion rate of 12%), and automotive applications.John LeMoncheck, president and CEO of Cambrios Technologies

Two HD connectivity standards, MHL (Mobile High-Definition Link) and 60Hz WirelessHD, are revolutionizing the mobile productivity and gaming experience, unleashing the full potential of today's mobile devices.Mobile connectivity solutions enhance productivity and gaming applicationsDavid Kuo, senior director of marketing for mobile products at Silicon Image, cited market analyst data indicating that total shipments of mobile devices, such as smartphones and tablet PCs, will reach 1.8 billion units globally by 2016. Mobile technologies have seen dramatic shifts, such as 4- to 8-core CPUs, 60 GPU cores and 3G and 4G communication standards, as well as mobile multimedia playback on any platform. Meanwhile, the screen resolution is moving from standard definition to QXGA (2048 x 1536), with Ultra HD (4096 x 2160) coming soon.Not only can smartphones be connected to desktop or laptop displays to provide a PC experience, but mobile gaming is also growing in popularity. There are currently 1.5 billion gamers worldwide; 96% of them play mobile games at least once a day at home and 57% of them have chosen to use a mobile device as their primary gaming platform. MediaTek is working with game developer GameLoft to preload games to mobile devices; Samsung is collaborating with Electronic Arts (EA) to release EA games to Samsung's app store; and gaming accessory manufacturers such as Nyko, Moga, and Green Throttle are focusing on developments for mobile accessories.With both MHL and WirelessHD connectivity, consumers can enjoy an immersive mobile HD experienceKuo indicated that given the latest advancements in mobile applications processors, mobile devices are capable of supporting functions similar to PCs, gaming consoles, TVs, and infotainment systems in automobiles. Smartphone architecture and performance are no longer an issue and the only limitation is their small screen size. Even with the oversized 5.5- to 6-inch smartphones (such as Samsung Galaxy Note 2), their screens are still too small for productivity work (such as using Office), multimedia playback, gaming, or even on-board GPS information display. Therefore, connectivity technologies such as the Mobile High-Definition Link (MHL) is needed to allow mobile devices to be connected to larger external screens.The MHL Consortium, founded by Nokia, Samsung, Silicon Image, Sony and Toshiba, has developed the MHL standard for connecting mobile devices to large displays. MHL delivers 1080p, 60Hz uncompressed video with up to eight channels of digital audio while charging the mobile device. Using the existing connections on the mobile device, DTV or monitor makes it simple for consumers to "plug and play" their HD content. Consumers can also use the DTV remote control to control the mobile device.So far, four out of five major smartphone brands have adopted MHL. It is estimated that as of the first quarter of 2013, the accumulated number of devices with MHL support reached more than 220 million for smartphones and tablets, and more than 40 million for TVs, monitors and adapters. There are over 300 device models supporting MHL.The MHL standard challenges traditional usage models by enabling new applications for PC/productivity, gaming and entertainment. Kuo indicated that MHL technology is being incorporated in the newest TV sticks. MHL-enabled TV sticks developed by Roku offer customized video streaming services. Dell has developed the Ophelia terminal PC stick, which converts an MHL-enabled TV into an Android-based smart PC client. PlayJam has also launched the GameStick that turns a TV into a game console through the MHL connection.MHL technology is connector agnostic, using the most popular connectors on a mobile device and display to transmit video/audio as well as EDID/HDCP/remote control and power signals. For this technology to work, the mobile phone must be equipped with an MHL transmitter chip and the TV/monitor with a receiver chip. For legacy TVs, MHL adapters can be used to connect the mobile device and large display.MediaTek's MT6589 quad-core smartphone reference design incorporates Silicon Image's SiI8338 MHL 2.0 transceiver chip. So far, seven OEMs have released MHL smartphone models based on the MediaTek/Silicon Image reference design.In addition to enabling output to large TVs and monitors, the SiI8338 MHL 2.0 chip uses media data tunneling (MDT) technology that supports touch screen, keyboard and mouse functions.WirelessHD offers a seamless and robust connectivity solutionAccording to Kuo, 60GHz Wireless HD delivers the highest-quality full HD video with near-zero latency. WirelessHD enables a high performance wireless connection for cable replacement applications between mobile devices and the large displays that are in the same room. While the 2.4GHz/5GHz dual-band Wi-Fi technology of Miracast allows multi-room transmission, it suffers from signal interference and latency issues. MHL allows optimal HD output with zero-delay, and its only limitation is that it requires a cable connection.Tests using the GLBBenchmark 2.1 Egypt software to compare Miracast's transmission technology and WirelessHD showed that the former frequently experienced signal packet losses that resulted in mosaic images during gaming due to an unstable wireless connection. The WirelessHD result presented high-quality images with ultra-low latency. In another test where a gaming session was transmitted wirelessly from a smartphone to a TV, Miracast experienced a 200ms delay, which resulted in a poor interactive gaming experience, while WirelessHD had no visible delays.Silicon Image's UltraGig 6400, the world's first single-chip 60GHz WirelessHD mobile transmitter chip in a 10mm x 7mm integrated system-in-package, offers wireless video transmission supporting up to 1080p 60Hz resolution, and the maximum power consumption is only 500mW.David Kuo, senior director of marketing for mobile products at Silicon Image

Infinet Group announces the opening of their high speed digital lab in Hsinchu in June 2013 following the operation of its first digital lab in Taipei which was launched in early 2012. Coping with the 10G high speed digital transmission interface test demands which is led by Intel in the market, Infinet Group digital lab offers a fully functional pre-compliance test and measurement environment to help the local Hsinchu region electronic research and development and manufacturing firms develop new generation IC, wireless and communications, and digital voice/video products in global market.Infinet Group high speed digital lab is equipped with abundant test capacity and technical consultation service addressing the standards for USB 3.0, HDMI, PCI Express, DisplayPort, MIPI, Ethernet, SATA, SAS, MHL, DDR, Thunderbolt as well as impedance component analysis. This lab includes Agilent leading-edge high-end digital test instruments, Wilder Technologies high performance test fixtures, and Infinet high-end RF/Microwave cable adapters to help customers catch the advanced digital application measurement and effectively verify the feasibility of each R&D projects.CEO of Infinet Group, Paul Yang, stated, "Following our 2012 investment in the first high speed digital lab in Taipei, Infinet Group now opens up a second digital lab in Hsinchu to further expand our service coverage. In addition to the high speed digital test software and hardware instruments, this lab offers global standard test fixtures by Wilder Technologies and Infinet high phase stability RF/Microwave cable adapter set. We are confident in helping customers achieve high speed transmission interface product pre-compliance tests. As we continue to offer easy access, real-time, advanced, and right testing solutions and technical services to our customers, Infinet Group will continue to invest in digital solution offerings, including: expanding our application engineering team, enhancing the test instruments in our labs, and strengthening our product portfolios."About Infinet GroupInfinet Group is a professional sales channel delivering leading test and measurement solutions in Greater China (Taiwan and China). Established in early 2000, Infinet Group has built a well-established organization in the region with strong sales, engineering, operation management, customer services, logistics, and marketing functions. Infinet Group includes Infinet-Taiwan, Shanghai Infinet Technology, and ATeam Scientific. Infinet Group is a subsidiary of Spirox Corporation (Taiwan Stock Exchange: #3055). More info of Infinet Group-ATeam Scientific digital lab is available at: www.ateams.com.tw

WiFi technology has become the mainstream for mobile data processing. Industry players have added 60GHz ultra-high frequency wireless transmission under the existing 2.4/5GHz frequency band to meet the wireless connectivity requirements from I/O, to video, to networking.WiFi driving the mobile revolutionTal Tamir, CEO of Wilocity, indicated that WiFi has become the mainstay of mobile data traffic processing. However, the WiFi technology has to be improved because the transmission capacity or architecture it needs to handle is even more demanding than that handled by wired connectivity. From mobile devices, PCs, digital home devices (such as TVs) to networking infrastructure (such as base stations) - going wireless is the trend.Most mobile devices do not come with docking stations. But statistics gathered by Wilocity indicates that over 30% of the computing platforms require new docking solutions. Access points (APs) have become personal wireless hotspots. In the past, people usually stored their data in their PCs' built-in or external hard drives. Today, data can be stored in the Cloud and accessed through a variety of platforms, which are now more mobile-centric than PC-centric. Data transmission now serves a much wider array of e-content, such as videos, pictures and music than just texts.WiFi faces challenges from massive surge in mobile data trafficThe networking infrastructure was primarily based on wired connectivity in the past. But large-scale outdoor base stations needed in the past have been replaced by small-cell wireless backhauls. Such changes in applications and deployments are expected to bring the accumulated number of WiFi devices to more than 2.1 billion by 2014, and more than 30 billion by 2020. Video content accounts for 66% of mobile data, and 60% of this traffic is offloaded to the backend WiFi devices during transmission. It is estimated that by 2017, wireless devices will account for 55% of the transmission traffic, exceeding the volume handled by wired devices. This has raised concerns about whether the existing WiFi specifications can handle the surge in mobile traffic.Tal Tamir pointed out that at present, 802.11g is capable of transmission speeds up to 54 Mbps, 802.11n up to 600 Mbps, 802.11ac up to 1.7Gbps, and the new 802.11ad up to 7 Gbps. According to analysis by the IEEE HEW group, the network traffic jam in 2015 will be worse than that in today's environment, which is primarily based on the 2.4 GHz frequency band. For example, for a 3,600-square foot office with 48 work areas connected by the traditional Gbps Ethernet, the total bandwidth amounts to 48 Gbps. If the 60GHz 802.11ad is adopted for wireless deployment, the total transmission capacity can reach up to 138 Gbps/3,600 sqft when 50% of the users are using the network.Addressing concerns over 60GHz being short-distance transmission, Tal Tamir explained that smaller antenna can be designed for the 60GHz technology coupled with straight ray tracing and reflective transmission technology. If a 60GHz wireless AP is installed at the center of a ceiling with vertical signal reflectors at the four corners of a room, the entire room will be covered by the 60GHz 802.11ad wireless checkerboard-like signal grid. There will be little loss of signal (LOS) for a 4,000-square foot space, except for some areas where the transfer speed may be downgraded to 802.11ac/801.11n. The 1,000 square feet around the center will mostly have the full-speed 802.11ad coverage.WiGig incorporated into WiFiThe IEEE 802.11ad wireless transmission standard was finalized in December 2012. The 60GHz WiGig wireless video transmission technology promoted by the WiGig Alliance in 2009 was incorporated into the WiFi standard, and it is compatible with the existing 802.11b/g/n/ac. WiGig is characterized by bidirectional beam-formed transmission with speeds reaching up to 7Gbps. It can transmit uncompressed Full HD video at a distance of over 10 meters. At present, Wilocity is the only 802.11ad/WiGig chip provider, and a WiGig/WFA plug-fest test will be conducted in 2014 under the latest WiFi Association plan.Tal Tamir played a video showcasing a 100Gbps dense network set up by Wilocity. Over seventy-two 802.11ad/WiGig transceivers were set up in a room. Each computer/notebook is positioned only less than a meter away from a transceiver. Each network device can transmit wirelessly and play 1080p videos, and the actual file copy speed can exceed 50MB/s. According to the project leader, the total transmission bandwidth is over 100Gbps and the transmission bandwidth shared by each square meter (or 10 square feet) can reach up to 3Gbps.Wilocity's tri-band WifiWilocity is a fables IC design company founded in 2007 with the goal of achieving wireless connectivity for monitors, storage devices and peripherals within the next 5 to 10 years. It pioneered the WiGig wireless network chip that has now been incorporated by the IEEE as the 802.11ad standard. Wilocity is currently cooperating with Qualcomm and Marvell to provide 802.11n (2.4GHz), 802.11ac (5GHz) and 802.11ad (60GHz) tri-band wireless solutions, and is expected to unveil mobile 802.11ad solutions in early 2014.Tal Tamir, CEO of Wilocity