Coretronic Corporation subsidiary - Coretronic MEMS Corporation (CMC) released a new Jupiter industrial equipment monitoring solution at 2020 SEMICON Taiwan Exhibition. The vibration sensor of this solution is developed by MEMS thin-film piezoelectric technology and has the advantages of small size, instrument-level precision, and anti-interference to temperature/stress. Combined with edge computing and AI algorithm, Jupiter solution can provide the early warning and predictive maintenance task of the production line.Vibration signal is an early index of equipment health diagnosis which can detect early abnormalities of equipment. But it is not easy to acquire vibration signals of equipment health status. First, the sensor must be able to detect tiny changes of equipment status and be close to the vibration source. Moreover, the traditional monitoring approaches require complicated steps included of installation of sensors, deployment of PC, development of upper and lower limit indicators and AI modeling.The false alarms often occur due to variation of equipment conditions. These deployment challenges happen in the industrial predictive diagnostic applications frequently. The Jupiter of CMC is an unprecedented solution because of small size, flexible installation, and effective vibration sensing. Especially, the AI training of Jupiter solutions is performed by edge computing. The deployment can be accomplished within a few hours and doesn't require PC or uploading confidential information to the cloud. Users can execute predictive diagnosis on the device side directly and provide health index trend of equipment. Jupiter can providing the real-time status of the equipment, early warning, predicting the machine Longevity, reduction of the down-time, and saving maintenance cost. This solution can be applied to vibration detection such as pumps, motor, robot in the semiconductor industry.Coretronic MEMS Corporation's Jupiter industrial equipment monitoring solutionPhoto: Company
Smart manufacturing has been the most important trend in the manufacturing industry in recent years. Compared to the focus on individual equipment efficiency in traditional production lines, smart manufacturing focuses more on overall solutions. However, JPC believes that industrial systems are not only complex because of multiple brands coexisting on the market, but also require much higher system stability than other industries. Therefore, when building industrial manufacturing systems, special attention must be paid to the compatibility between communication protocols of different brands and the quality of first-line equipment and components, so that the system can meet the needs of clients.In the face of increasing competition and difficulty recruiting workers due to Taiwan's sub-replacement fertility levels, transitioning to smart manufacturing through new technology and new ideas has become essential for the sustainable survival of the manufacturing industry. However, the fact that manufacturing systems involve a massive range of components and that smart manufacturing is a novel concept means that for companies, the transitioning task is a daunting effort with no apparent starting point.In response, JPC stated that it has an extensive record in the industry and that its main business is to provide connectors and related parts and components. However, the company has also established itself in the fields of cloud networking, Internet of things (IoT) systems, and new energy vehicles (NEV). Especially for industrial manufacturing IoT systems, not only does the company have a comprehensive product line and IoT team, but its factories have also accumulated considerable experience in smart manufacturing. These two factors define the company as a system designer in service to manufacturers. JPC can help clients identify process pain points and create the most optimized systems.JPC pointed out that the topology of industrial IoT networks can be divided into the three layers: Device Layer (Control Layer), Communication Layer (SCADA Layer) and Application Layer (Cloud Layer), with each layer having corresponding components and products. First, the Device Layer is comprised of various sensors in charge of detecting operational data from first-line equipment. Second, the Communication Layer is responsible for aggregating the detected data and sending it to the processing system higher up in the topology. Lastly, the Application Layer will then store and analyze the data it has received to help managers accurately control and monitor the manufacturing status and to set production strategies accordingly.JPC already has a complete product line for components and devices used in industrial IoT networks. At present, Modbus and Ethernet are still the mainstream communication standard in industrial equipment, while NB-IoT, UWB, and other wireless communication technologies are also becoming increasingly common in manufacturing. In this regard, JPC offers high-quality solutions. The company is also an authorized dealer of Yamaha, a major Japanese brand, for products related to the hallmark equipment of automated factories - robotic arms. These products make JPC able to provide a one-stop shop for manufacturers.In addition to possessing comprehensive solutions for industrial IoT networks, JPC is also actively collaborating with other companies, pointing out that such cross-field cooperation has long become a necessity due to manufacturing systems being comprised of technologies from multiple fields. The Company has been working with FSP Group and Coretronic, among other strategic partners, in forming a smart technology 5G task force. Such extensive and strategic partnership has already given rise to many successful case stories.For example, the UWB sensors recently developed by JPC. By combining the ultra-wide band (UWB) technology and the Company's strong product development capabilities, JPC was able to create a sensor with high-precision positioning capability that can be used to locate and track the objects on a 2D or 3D plane. Unlike other object positioning systems that only function indoors, the Company's UWB sensors can be used outdoors with a detection range of up to 500 meters. JPC worked with the client to integrate UWB sensors and AI technology into their logistics operation and unmanned factory systems. The intelligent system can assist logistic companies to accurately grasp the location and route of the goods, and to effectively dispatch vehicles to optimize the efficiency of warehousing operations.While this is only a single example, it nonetheless demonstrates JPC's strong capabilities in smart manufacturing planning and integration. JPC added that their high-quality products ensure the stability and performance of its systems. With a diverse product portfolio, excellent customer relations, strategic partnerships, and integration expertise, these four key strengths have allowed JPC to stand out from traditional parts and components suppliers and successfully transition into a comprehensive solution provider for smart manufacturing systems. The Company pointed out that in the era of smart manufacturing, clients do not need isolated equipment and technology, but a customized solution that can accurately solve the client's pain points and increase their efficiency. JPC can design the most optimal infrastructure tailored to the needs of clients and assist them with the digital upgrade of their company despite resource constraints, helping clients become more competitive in the increasingly harsh ecosystem of the industry.JPC successfully transitions into a comprehensive solution provider for smart manufacturing systems
With the rise of the 5G smart manufacturing trend, the volume of equipment in factories is expanding and processes are continuously being refined, which has led to an increasing demand for power and more complex power system architecture. It is becoming more and more difficult for industrial customers to rely on a single power supplier to meet the diverse power supply needs of their factories in a stable manner, which may pose a potential problem for the progress of factory smartization.At this moment, FSP, which has always had multiple advantages such as comprehensive product lines, one-stop ordering, and high-mix low-volume (HMLV) shipment capabilities, can undoubtedly provide industrial customers and SIs with the greatest stability.Early deployment of high wattage power supplies solving industry's urgent needs in timely mannerAccording to Chu Ting-Chuan, senior manager of FSP's Product Marketing Division, FSP has accumulated decades of experience and knowledge in power supply development, and has developed thousands of standard products to date. With this foundation combined with micro-customization services, they were able to position themselves early in the field of smart manufacturing to meet the needs of industrial customers with a wide range of power solutions.In the early days, factories were based on automated production and PLCs alone were sufficient to meet computing power requirements. Now, as industries move toward Industry 4.0 and smart manufacturing, edge computing needs are also starting to be integrated. With more and more Edge Boxes and AI Boxes installed, it has caused the power demand for computing units to surge from 10-20 watts to over 150 watts. Despite the increase in demand, it has not yet reached such a large volume as several Kilowatts, which means it would not attract power supply manufacturers to invest in the development of corresponding standard products, creating a demand gap as a result.Fortunately, FSP has long been committed to meeting the HMLV demand, and the minimum order quantity (MOQ) threshold is relatively low. In addition, the company has business relationship with more than 70% of the domestic industrial computer companies and has a good understanding of the product iteration trend in the industrial sector. Therefore, FSP made planning in advance and developed high wattage power adapters, Flex ATX power supplies, and CRPS/Slim redundant power supplies, in order to meet the urgent needs of their customers in a timely manner.To date, FSP has provided external adapters for up to 330W, and as for internal power supplies, they provide Flex ATX power supplies up to 850W (a supply of the same size is suitable for 100W-500W) and redundant power supplies up to 3,000W (CRPS Redundant between 550W-2,400W have the same physical dimensions; and Slim Redundant between 80W-2,000W have the same height and width dimensions). It is clear that FSP not only has a complete range of products that is rarely seen in the industry, but also allows high and low wattage products to share the same size specifications as much as possible, which helps customers to reduce internal management costs by eliminating the need for platform replacement. In addition, the product life cycle is more than 10 years, which is sufficient to ensure the stability of the factory's power structure.Micro-customization support to meet diverse demand modesChu Ting-Chuan emphasized that in the 5G smart manufacturing era, FSP's power supply products are expected to bring many unique advantages to customers. Firstly, FSP has the ability to meet IEC 61010 safety requirements, and can provide comprehensive power supply solutions. Secondly, FSP can provide micro-customization services to meet customers' needs, such as adjusting cable lengths, configuring specific connectors, adding specific communication interfaces, increasing surge protection, etc., and all of these needs can be met quickly.In addition, FSP has a close collaboration with many industrial computer manufacturers, so they can have access to the industrial equipment development trend in advance and develop new products to meet the trend. For example, FSP was the first to introduce power supplies that meet the new IEC 62368 safety standard and the 80 PLUS certification.More importantly, the abundant experience of FSP has enabled them to foresee that the power supply needs of smart factories will become more complex in the future, and there will be different input/output voltage forms, unlike the past when only AC input was available, where the possible integration with telecommunications power sources means that new 48Vdc input requirements may arise. In this regard, FSP has developed a product strategy that is most beneficial to their customers, confirming that the "input voltage will not be changed". By using a fixed hardware platform, different inputs can be supported through making only software configuration changes, which will allow customers to quickly meet their power supply needs for different environments.Furthermore, with an eye on the cloud and 5G development, FSP has developed the Open Frame Power Supply (OFP) early on, launching 65W-250W products for the 2"x4" architecture specification and 65W-450W products for the 3"x5" architecture specification. In addition to providing a wide range of wattage options, FSP also offers a variety of output voltage options such as 5V, 12V, 18V, 19V, 24V, and 54V. Inheriting its past strengths in car charger design, FSP also aims to develop 600W and 700W AGV/AMR chargers to meet the needs of AGV and AMR factories.Winning favor of major IPC manufacturers with comprehensive products and efficient servicesMost major international industrial computer manufacturers are customers of FSP, which gives FSP the opportunity to follow the pace of its customers and expand its deployment for smart manufacturing applications.Many major industrial computer manufacturers use FSP's power supplies in different sections of their automated factories, such as workshops, central control systems, and cloud, as well as various applications such as Panel, Gateway, and AGV. FSP was able to win the favor of a certain customer when the same production line required multiple PSUs, each with different power and form factor conditions, but FSP was able to provide comprehensive solutions, coupled with a low MOQ threshold and high ODM flexibility.Lai Chun-Hung, senior manager of FSP's Pan-Asia Pacific Business Division, said that Advantech's smart factory solutions span from data acquisition, edge computing, central control, and smart decision-making, each of which requires different power supply products, including adapters, Flex ATX/ATX built-in power supplies, and redundant power supplies. With a range from as low as 30W-40W to as high as 1,000W-2,000W, there were many matching problems, which required necessary adjustment for power supply products. Therefore, Advantech chose to work closely with FSP, because FSP can offer a full range of products that can easily meet compatibility requirements. Secondly, the professional team of PMs, FAEs, and RDs at FSP was able to quickly solve a wide range of micro-customization problems within a week.ADLINK's product portfolio covers smart manufacturing (such as smart monitoring of process water and power consumption, AI object identification and behavior analysis, real-time data collection and management, real-time equipment monitoring and fault prediction, AI optical inspection, equipment networking solutions), transportation and logistics (AMR), and control center (visual dashboard monitoring). All of which use FSP power supplies, including 300W-1,000W ATX and 100W-500W Flex ATX. ADLINK's choice was mainly due to FSP's high product line coverage and the high efficiency of micro-customization.Overall, smart manufacturing involves multiple fields and cross-disciplinary cooperation is inevitable. FSP has formed a smart 5G task force with a number of strategic partners, including ADLINK, Chenbro, Coretronic, and JPC. Such extensive and strategic partnership has already given rise to many successful case stories. The ability to provide one-stop service, comprehensive product lines, micro-customization, high product reliability, and technical expertise to help solve compatibility issues are the key advantages that have won FSP the favor of many industrial customers.Chu Ting-Chuan (from right to left), Joey Cheng and Lai Chun-Hung - managing executives of FSP
In order to meet the need for increasingly powerful functions, many terminal devices have been designed with significantly increased product computing capacity and power consumption. Power supplies that serve the purpose of providing power must also increase power wattages to meet large power supply needs. However, must products with high-wattage requirements come with large-capacity power supplies? FSP thinking outside the box of conventional design, has developed adapters with high wattages and compact sizes, thereby meeting users' portability and space-saving needs.The FSP U3 series ultra-slim adapter 90W/120W/135W is only 2/3 the height of the iPhone 12 Pro. Its size is reduced by 50% compared to products with the same wattages in the market (compared to the FSP N3 slim series), with the same power and a smaller volume, making it the adapter product with the highest power density in the market at present. Due to its powerful R&D capabilities, the product volume has been substantively reduced while achieving better performance. The U3 series adapters feature conversion efficiency exceeding 90%. Its standby power-saving mode is also in line with DoE Level 6 and CoC v5 Tier 2 specifications.The compact adapter is intended for AIO computers, gaming machines, NUC, and POS. To end consumers, the N3 product series is easy to carry. To mall businesses, it can avoid space waste; to system integrators (SI), packaging materials for parts and components and shipping costs can be reduced, thereby increasing product profits.Currently, the U3 Series adapter comes with 90W/120W/135W/150W/180W assorted wattages to select from, which are intended for terminal products applied in different fields. The full series of products have also passed multiple safety regulations, such as UL, TUV, CCC, FCC, CE, CB, etc. U3 Series is no doubt a compact and powerful adapter. FSP provides comprehensive standard item and micro-customization services. We welcome system operators to discuss cooperation opportunities with us.FSP U3 series adapter
ADLINK Technology Inc, global leader in edge computing, launched the NEON-2000-JNX series, the industry's first industrial AI smart camera that integrates the new NVIDIA Jetson Xavier NX module. The new camera's high performance, small form factor and ease of development open the door for innovative AI vision solutions in manufacturing, logistics, retail, service, agriculture, smart city, healthcare and life sciences, and other edge applications. The camera is an all-in-one solution, eliminating the traditional need for complex integration of the image sensor module, cables, and AI box PC.The NVIDIA Jetson Xavier NX provides more than 10X the performance of its widely adopted predecessor, NVIDIA® Jetson™ TX2. The NEON-2000-JNX series integrates this performance in an all-in-one rugged and compact device, designed to simplify the deployment process and speed up the time to market."Until now, a typical AI vision solution required a complex integration of the image sensor module, cables and GPU modules. This ready-to-develop edge AI smart camera reduces the effort of software/hardware integration and reliability validation, allowing AI vision developers to focus on application development. The NEON-2000-JNX series is a hassle-free, compact, reliable and powerful product for edge AI applications, and also the best match for AI software providers," said Kevin Hsu, Senior Product Manager of ADLINK's IoT Solutions and Technology business unit, ADLINK."AI-driven machine vision is reshaping entire industries from robotics and retail to healthcare, manufacturing and more," said Murali Gopalakrishna, Head of Product Management, Autonomous Machines and General Manager for Robotics at NVIDIA. "With the ADLINK smart camera kits powered by the Jetson edge AI platform, developers get an integrated, easy to deploy solution for AI vision-based embedded and industrial AIoT applications."The NEON-2000-JNX Series comes with all necessary components and an optimized OS already integrated and well validated.*Supports six sensor configurations in total between 1.2M-8M to deliver raw data and complete image detail for machine vision, including four image sensors with Basler.*Two new MIPI image sensors reduce CPU loading and support a higher operating temperature range.*An embedded Image signal Processor (ISP) provides enhanced and environment-adaptive imaging to improve AI accuracy.*Integration overcomes EMC/EDS/vibration/thermal problems, interface compatibility, image drops caused by fault camera and OS settings, and other common reliability issues.The NEON-2000-JNX series AI smart camera is pre-installed with ADLINK's new edge vision analytics software, EVA SDK (Edge Vision Analytics Software Development Kit), creating an optimized platform that reduces proof-of-concept (PoC) schedules and speeds time to market.*Wide selection of field-ready application plug-ins and ADLINK-optimized AI models guarantee AI vision quality and simplify building AI vision applications with limited coding required.*Pre-view function makes the verification of AI Inference flow and results quick and intuitive. *AI developers, even newcomers to AI, can focus on the application and training and build a proof of concept in as few as two weeks.Adlink launches industry-first Nvidia Jetson Xavier NX-based industrial AI smart camera
The ATX PS2 redundant power supply has a unique evolved version of next generation! The significantly improved edge and visual computing technologies and the further upgrading of computing processing capability for server applications in recent two years have led to increasing power consumption of CPU and GPU every year. Many customers reported a significantly increased demand of hardware equipment suppliers for server and workstation based structures, and asked for an opportunity to provide the FSP ATX PS2 redundant power supply with more wattages and without increase of its current size.With the support of our outstanding R&D capability, we overcome the difficulties in the design of circuits in high power density and the cooling of heat source components, and officially introduce the 900W PS2 FSP900-50REB redundant power supply that has the same size as the 1G mechanism (compatible with most of the commercial ATX enclosures, PS2 enclosures, industrial computers, and rack-mount and 3U server chassis) and is compliant with the IEC 62368 safety specifications for new generation products. The user can upgrade the host to a server that provides edge computing capabilities or is equivalent to a workstation by upgrading the power supply. FSP900-50REB has many features as described belowSever-Equivalent 80Plus Gold Power SupplyFSP900-50REB has passed the 80Plus Gold efficiency certification. The power factor correction and the dual DC converter assure the product of stable high-efficient power and minimum ripples and noises. FSP900-50REB is capable of providing a conversion performance of up to 90% when running at 50% load. The electrical and cooling costs will be reduced effectively with the support of this high-efficient power supply.Standardized Appearance/Economic Upgrading SolutionFSP900-50REB is the ideal upgrading solution for server power supplies. The same housing is designed for all the models of the series. The user who plans to use a product of the same series with different wattages only needs to buy a power supply module for replacement and, thus, reduces the change and purchase costs substantially.High Reliability and Hot Swapping SupportBoth power supply modules use separate power supply channels. They share loads and output power stably in a high-efficient manner during normal operation. When failure occurs to any one of them, the other module takes over the entire power distribution automatically to minimize the risk of downtime due to power failure. FSP900-50REB supports hot swapping. The failed power supply can be removed and replaced with a new one without the need to shut down the machine during the troubleshooting. The product is compliant with FCC, CB, TUV, CE, UL, and CCC standards to provide upgraded reliability.Applications:*Clone Server *AI or Visual computing *Automation controller *Graphic workstation *IPC controller *Multi-function server *NVR (Network Video Recorder) *Other Features:IEC 62368 ready*230V 80PLUS Gold certified with 90% peak efficiency at 50% load *Seamlessly compatible with 80% commercial ATX enclosures *Compliant with ATX 12V and EPS 12V power supply standards *Standardized size and cost-effective upgrading *Designed with hot-swapping modules *Durable dual-bearing fan *Provided with alarm protection designs via a smart power state LED indicator *PMBus or USB Communication firmware *Full series of wattages: 400/500/600/700/900 *Integral protection functions: Overcurrent, short circuit, overvoltage, fan failure indication *Full AC input 100V-240V *Low ripples and noises *Compliant with FCC, CB, TUV, CE, UL, and CCC certifications and standardsThe unique high wattage ATX PS2 redundant power supply
ADLINK Technology Inc, a global leader in edge computing, introduces two new modules in the 6-CH EU Series digital I/O – the ECAT-4XMO motion control and trigger module, and the ECAT-TRG4 trigger modules. The new modules are a dynamic extension to ADLINK's EtherCAT System and are designed to perfectly complement the EU Series, enabling higher performance in automatic assembly, test, and inspection equipment across a multitude of applications including cell phone glass inspection, battery cell assembly, camera lens assembly and test and glue dispensing machinery, as well as inspection equipment.The ECAT-4XMO motion control and trigger module is a 4-channel control and high-speed trigger module that connects to both EtherCAT and non-EtherCAT motors, including stepper motors, linear motors, direct drive and AC. Advanced functions of the ECAT-4XMO include high precision motion interpolation, continuous contouring, axes synchronization, point table for circuit limit and 2D compensation. The superior performance of the ECAT-TRG4 includes high speed position comparison trigger (4 channels, 10 MHz linear/table), pulse outputs (12 MHZ), encode inputs (20 MHz) and support for encoder re-driver operation. The flexible expansion interface of the ECAT-TRG4 allows easy connection to cameras and air guns."Industrial automation equipment, depending on different usage conditions, needs to control pulse-type motors and communication-type motors at the same time, as well as trigger control based on different signals," said Simon You, Director, Smart Machine Business Product Center, ADLINK. "Generally, it takes separate systems to control different types of motors, which consumes larger floor space, and increases maintenance efforts and costs. With ADLINK's highly integrated and compatible EtherCAT solutions, users are allowed to control pulse motors and communication motors via a single system at the same time, fulfilling the demands of many trigger control applications."In addition, ADLINK offers an all-in-one automation software (APS SDK), which serves as a uniform interface to access all ADLINK machine automation products. With APS SDK, users can operate ADLINK motion products in a simple and consistent way, minimizing the reprogramming hassles of adding or removing devices. APS Function Library also allows existing motion control users to easily upgrade to EtherCAT-based solutions without complicated program modifications or application redevelopment.The new modules feature sliding side-by-side installation and screwless design, to reduce installation costs, and support nearly all field applications in a smart factory. In test applications, the EtherCAT system delivered total cost of ownership (TCO) savings of up to 10% and up to 30% increases in productivity.ADLINK launches new EtherCAT modules, completing the EtherCAT solution for industrial automation
Coretronic Intelligent Robotics Corporation (CIRC), a subsidiary of Coretronic group, delivers a full lineup of commercial drones servicing different applications, including "Hummer" for mobile patrols, "Kestrel" for security and inspection, "Falcon" for surveying and mapping, and "Pelican" for logistics. Integrated with in-house developed fleet management platform (SkyWatch) and AI data analysis platform (Insight), CIRC has provided the total solution with intelligent information to users to realize the automation and digitalization.According to Grand View Research, commercial UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) market is expected to grow significantly in the next three to five years per accelerating the applications of Internet of Things (IoT) and Artificial Intelligence (AI), and the gradual relaxation of regulations. It is expected to reach US$129.23 billion by 2025 with the CAGR (compound annual growth rate) of 56.5%. "In recent years, countries such as Europe, the US, and Japan, have been developing their own UAV technology and industry. CIRC has designed and produced the airframe of the commercial drones, and developed the flight control system, by the teams located in Taiwan, together with the service of customized software solutions by applications. We expect to grow ourselves along with the opportunity of the commercial UAV market," said Andy Hsin, General Manager of CIRC.Furthermore, CIRC also offers Autonomous Mobile Robot (AMR) carriers and forklift trucks to serve the need of smart manufacturing and smart logistics, by successfully developing its cutting-edge AMR solution with 2D/3D LiDAR SLAM, achieving the simultaneous localization and 2D/3D mapping without any need of field re-layout by guided marks. CIRC AMR solution features precise positioning, safely obstacle avoidance, smart routing, and automatically switching the map, with the proprietary algorithm and capability of motion control to execute the missions accurately. With the feature of 3D visual recognition, CIRC AMR forklift dynamically recognizes the status of pallet and storage location to execute the task smoothly, and stacks the pallet with or without the racks. And the fleet is managed efficiently by the centralized console and/or local stations via handheld device to schedule the tasks and control the AMR vehicles with real-time monitoring. In addition, the fleet management system can be interfaced with the manufacturing and/or logistics management system (ERP/WMS/MES) to realize the smart manufacturing and smart logistics.Coretronic Intelligent Robotics Corporation (CIRC) delivers a variety of commercial drones and AMR solutions
The back-end semiconductor manufacturing process refers to the IC packaging and testing that people often hear about. Specifically, the process known as chip probing (CP) is conducted to test the electrical characteristics of each die on the wafer, so that dies with faulty electrical performance can be vetted before packaging, effectively reducing unnecessary manufacturing costs from faulty products.Once probing is complete, the second process is called sorting, which is a quality inspection process. The goal of sorting is to quickly distinguish the dies that meet the desired specifications from those that don't. For products that pass the sorting process, the manufacturer may have them further binned into levels 1, 2, 3, or even more levels to match the specifications needed in the production of various electronic components, while defective ones can then be subjected to follow-up repairs and adjustments.Ray Lin, ADLINK Smart Machine Product Center Manager, said that increasing sorting efficiency is without a doubt the main goal for semiconductor manufactures looking to speed up packaging and testing to quickly and accurately distinguish good dies from defective ones. The reality of the situation, however, is that speed and accuracy are often opposing goals, in which meeting one means sacrificing the other. This is the biggest conundrum that many manufactures have to face.To solve this, ADLINK developed a die sorting solution that integrates both image acquisition cards and motion control cards. This solution allows end users to easily achieve capabilities like multiaxial integration and rapid feedback response through a single coding process, striking the optimal balance between speed and accuracy.More units to be tested create demand for higher motion control efficiencyLin pointed out that several pain points exist in semiconductor sorting, with the first being the complexity of simultaneous multiaxial control. During normal sorting operations, a robotic arm will pick the die up, rotate to the destination zone, then unload the die down to the tray. This process not only involves x-axis and y-axis movements between the dies and the tray, but also z-axis movement owing to the lifting and unloading motion of the arm. Consequently, the sorting machine will have to control 6 to 8 motion axes to guide the movement of arm, the suction head, video input, and other sub-systems to integrate into different work areas. To have a traditional PLC-based control system perform these tasks would involve an extremely high level of coding complexity.Second is the fact that the commonly seen traditional PLC-based infrastructures lack flexibility and usually do not support video input. If an end user wishes to achieve fast and accurate positioning on such system, then a separate video system needs to be purchased and arduously integrated into the system, greatly ramping up development costs.Yet another issue will be caused by the demand for higher testing efficiency due to the increase in the number of units to be tested. Take this year (2021) for example, as smaller and smaller dies become more in demand, wafer manufacturing processes have also evolved, resulting in 3 to 4 times the number of dies that can be cut in comparison with that of the past. This has in turn translated into a much higher number of units to be tested. Motion control efficiency must therefore also increase to match previous production speeds, presenting a challenging task.Fusing video and motion control to easily achieve multi-work station integrationFeynman Lin, Technical Director of the ADLINK Smart Machine Product Center, said that ADLINK can provide components like image capture cards and motion control cards under a unified PC-based infrastructure to give them exceptional compatibility and usability. Furthermore, since the cards share a unified interface, end users are also much less likely to make errors during operation. More importantly, ADLINK's sorting solution is built ready-to-use and based on the premise of integrating machine vision and motion control into a single system, meaning that end users can easily perform further customization to create a single program that can coordinate between visual input and simultaneous multiaxial motion control. Not only does this help reduce development costs, but having the steps of visual location, suction loading, arm rotation, and unloading be performed as a continuous motion can contribute towards further raising packaging and testing efficiency.It is also worth noting that as the industry moves towards the age of the Internet of things (IoT), factory operations are also starting to rely on more types of ports for greater connectivity. International interface standards like USB and Ethernet jacks, are being used for connectivity to various sub-systems like machine vision, temperature sensing, and pressure detection. On this front, PC-based solutions undoubtedly provide superior flexibility and compatibility compared to traditional PLC-based industrial controllers, making PC-based solutions better at meeting clients' various needs for precision equipment.Lin stressed that ADLINK's sorting solution includes three other major functions that make it the optimal choice for solving pain points in the sorting process. First, the solution can quickly adjust itself based on real-time feedback of the detected die surface (e.g., unevenness of the surface) to reduce sorting time by 20% to 30%.Second, the solution has an "instant trigger" function that combines machine vision and multiaxial precision positioning compensation technology to swiftly sort out faulty products from non-faulty ones with a precision of up to 30nm, and separate the dies according to their levels and place them into corresponding trays. Lastly, ADLINK's sorting solution supports automated sorting processes that can be quickly adapted to different pre- and post-processing needs. For example, this solution can be made to transfer an object in the "NG die" tray to the repair station or send an object from the "Level 1 qualified die" tray to the corresponding testing machine to verify that the die truly meets Level 1 specifications. This is the main reason why ADLINK's sorting solution has been well received by end users.For the past 25 years, ADLINK has been pushing the boundaries on new solutions for the semiconductor industry as many clients have become reliant on ADLINK technologies. The Company has become the best equipment partner for major semiconductor players in the Greater China region. ADLINK's comprehensive sorting solution combines machine vision and motion control for faster, more accurate, and more productive solutions in preparation for future market demands.Ray Lin, ADLINK Smart Machinery Product Department Manager, said that increasing sorting efficiency is without a doubt the main goal for semiconductor manufactures looking to speed up packaging and testing to quickly and accurately distinguish good dies from defective ones.ADLINK can provide components like image capture cards and motion control cards under a unified PC-based infrastructure to give semiconductor exceptional compatibility and usability.
Consumer demand for higher audiovisual quality is driving the evolution of technologies behind LCD displays. Specifically, mini-LEDs, with their superior contrast and color gradation performance, have emerged in the field of display backlights. With a strong R&D foundation in the field of mini-LED technology, Macroblock recently launched a series of mini-LED backlight driver ICs that correspond to various LCD display sizes. According to Chris Chen, Macroblock backlight product manager, the company can help clients create the most suitable products tailored to the needs of different groups in the market.Chen further stated that while the earliest backlighting in LCD displays used cold cathode fluorescent lamps (CCFL), companies later switched to LED-backlit for their purer white lights that enhance the color gamut of the display. In recent years, breakthroughs in mini-LED technology have also led to companies attempting to adapt mini-LEDs to be used as backlight despite the higher costs. The newest iPad Pro released by Apple in April 2021 also uses this technology, anchoring the status of mini-LEDs in the backlight market.By looking at the actions taken by Apple and other companies, Chen mentioned that mini-LEDs may well become the mainstream technology for LCD display backlighting, driving an increase in market demand accordingly. In response to this trend, Macroblock has released a series of backlight driver IC solutions for small- to medium-sized and medium- to large-sized LCD displays.Chen also pointed out that small- to medium-sized LCDs tend to be found on consumer products like laptops and tablets with limited interior space and shorter product development cycles. Therefore, the Macroblock MBI6322 integrates peripheral components like the built-in switch (MOSFET) into a single unit. The integration simplifies the internal PCB design, reduces the overall cost, and lowers the error rate during PCB mounting. Another benefit of a design with more integrated wiring and layering is that it cuts down on the PCB layout review time during product development. Furthermore, engineers can choose from commercially available timing control ICs or bridge ICs compatible with the MBI6322 to control the dimming signals of the mini-LED panels without the need for an MCU, keeping the small- to medium-sized LCD displays thin and elegant.Besides driver ICs with integrated MOSFETs, Macroblock also offers designs without this integration. This type of design can be further divided into two other types based on whether the driver IC itself still controls the external MOSFET. The MBI6334 and MBI6353 are two types of driver ICs that can control the external MOSFETs. The MBI6334 is the same as the MBI6322 in that they are primarily used to control the backlighting in small- to medium-sized LCD displays without the need for an external MCU, saving potential software coding time. The MBI6334 also utilizes rectangular BGA packaging and is compliant with the Video Electronics Standards Association's (VESA) recommended regulations for timing control circuit boards of laptop, making it a perfect fit for narrow PCBs. On the other hand, the MBI6353 is primarily used in medium- to large-sized LCD displays. Its high-current tolerant design makes it suitable for lighting boards with a large number of LEDs connected in parallel such as TVs, PIDs, monitors, etc.There is also the MBI6328 which has external MOSFET that is not controlled by the driver IC. The MOSFET is instead controlled by a MCU. Macroblock is currently working with various MCU manufacturers to ensure smoother product development. The MBI6328 is a driver IC suitable for medium- to large-sized LCD displays with more than 1,000 dimming zones that allow displays to provide ultra-fine HDR effects. Moreover, the high voltage tolerance of the MBI6328 allows it to be used when multiple backlight LEDs are connected in series.Lastly, Chen indicated that Macroblock not only has a strong R&D foundation regarding mini-LED backlighting, the company is also working with Elan Microelectronics to build a complete industry ecosystem. With support from partners in different fields, Macroblock plans to expand the applications of its mini-LED backlight driver ICs to areas like vehicles, laptops, and tablets. The company also provides comprehensive after-sales services to help customers shorten their development time and create high-quality LCD displays that meet market demands.Chris Chen, Macroblock backlight product manager, pointed out that mini-LEDs will become a mainstream technology for LCD display backlightingMacroblock's mini-LED backlight driver ICs are designed for various LCD display sizes and can help clients create the best productsDifferent LCD displays require special backlight driver ICs with varying designs
