Harvatek Corporation has introduced a new LED product in chip scale package (CSP). This LED has high brightness with low power dissipation and there are no wire bonding which reduces the processing time.It has a high package density with a thickness of 0.15mm which is thinner than most LED products in the market. It can be use on a variety of applications that have tight space requirements.The product has many unique features including using flip chip technology. This means the chip on the LED have low thermal resistance. CSP can provide wide viewing angle with great color uniformity. Harvatek wants to create a product that enables our customers to be more customizable with our LEDs. Therefore the product's specifications can be tailored and changed to the customer's content.Harvatek Corporation new chip scale package

NeoGene Tech has unveiled a breakthrough technology to fabricate a porous wick structure with thickness at only 10-micron, enabling ultrathin vapor chamber devices in large area with thickness of 0.15mm and even thinner.The ultrathin porous wick structure, called MagicWick, can be easily made in large area by adopting automatic Print Wick Structuring (PWS) approach, said the company, which is based in Guangzhou, China. The company said it is devoted to revolutionizing the way of making ultra-thin vapor chamber devices for 5G mobile computing applications by promoting its novel PWS approach and MagicWick-Inside Technology Platform.The 10-micron thick three dimensional porous wick structure is formed by a very tiny semiconductor crystal powder during a reactive sintering process. A proprietary Magic Paste is used in the PWS process to make the MagicWick such thinner, said the company.Heat management is crucial to smartphones with OLED displays, which are emerging as the leading phone screen technology. The world's most popular phone vendors are all shipping AMOLED smartphones.The useful life and brightness of OLED is very temperature sensitive. The brightness will decay and cannot be reversed in higher temperature operation. The design of 5G smartphone is compact and the power heating is double that of 4G devices. Integrating a large-area ultrathin vapor chamber on the backside of the AMOLED panel seems a good solution for thermal management but ultra-thin porous wick structure will be a vital issue in such application, said industry experts."It is impossible to make highly porous wick structure at such ultrathin thickness by using traditional copper mesh or copper sintered powder technology. Thanks to NeoGene Tech's revolutionary PWS and Magic Paste technology, the MagicWick structure at 10-micron thickness can be realized. It makes the ultrathin MagicWick-Inside VC devices at under 0.15 mm possible. NeoGene Tech is planning to offer this ultrathin MagicWick solution to major smartphone brands and vapor chamber manufacturers in early 2021," said Jeffrey Chen, CEO of NeoGene Tech.NeoGene Tech unveils MagicWick technology at 10-micron thickness to support ultr-thin vapor chamber devices

As high as 90% of the traffic accidents are related to driver's status, such as fatigue or distraction. Studies have shown that by monitoring driver's behavior and status, the traffic accidents can be greatly reduced by as much as 20%. Hence, the world's leading safety assessment institutions and most countries around the world are evaluating the benefit drivers can get by enforcing driver monitoring systems on all vehicles.Among all types of vehicles, commercial fleets are especially exposed to the potential threats of driver fatigue and distraction due to long driving time and distance. Global brand name customer has adopted iCatch Technology's intelligent automotive imaging SoC as the heart of fleet management dash camera to combine iCatch Technology's expertise in image processing and video recording with customer's own fleet management system and AI algorithm in the cloud. Both the front and in-cabin camera video streams are not only recorded on the local memory but also live streamed via 4G connectivity to the cloud for video backup and live review.iCatch Technology's intelligent automotive imaging SoCs can support multi-channel video recording with a total of 4Kp30 processing throughput. With the capability of supporting up to 4-channel video inputs, iCatch Technology's SoC provides various system architecture options to the customers, from one-camera front recording all the way to four camera surround recording. The built-in high performance ISP can provide state-of-the-art HDR imaging to overcome the high contrast scenes on the road. The embedded H.264/H.265 CODEC can minimize the video file size to maximize the recording time on the memory and to save data cost on video transmission via 4G.The combination of iCatch Technology's image processing and end customer's cloud integration and AI algorithm becomes a new fleet management solution to all fleets running on the road. Fleet managers have real time visibility to each driver and have the video files as evidences for driver coaching and performance review. The high-risk drivers will be identified and highlighted by end customer's advanced AI algorithm to minimize the efforts searching through the videos. This solution enables the fleet owner to take a proactive approach to improve driver behavior before costly accidents happen.For more information about iCatch Technology's products, please visit: www.icatchtek.com. For sales contact, please leave your message at: www.icatchtek.com/RequestsiCatch Technology intelligent automotive imaging SoC is widely adopted for fleet management application

Global Unichip Corp. (GUC), the advanced ASIC leader, disclosed today that it has successfully demonstrated the silicon-proven GLink (GUC multi-die interLink) interface using TSMC 7nm process and TSMC InFO_oS advanced packaging technology for AI, HPC and networking applications to do multi-die integration for system scaling.GLink over InFO_oS is adopted due to InFO_oS cost efficiency for modular, scalable and high-yield multi-die ASICs. GLink over CoWoS is adopted by customers using multi-die ASICs with HBM memories. GLink's low area/power overhead for high throughput interconnect enables efficient multi-die InFO_oS and CoWoS solutions up to 2500mm2.Error-free communication between dies with full duplex 0.7Tbps traffic per 1mm of beachfront, consuming just 0.25pJ/bit (0.25W per 1Tbps of full duplex traffic) was demonstrated. Testing results are fully correlated with pre-silicon simulations in all process-voltage-temperature corners. Early adopting customers are provided with detailed testing reports.GLink's power consumption is 6-10 times lower than alternative solution using ultra-short reach SerDes-based communication through package substrate. For every 10Tbps of full duplex traffic it consumes 15-20W less power than alternative SerDes-based interface. GLink IP occupies twice less silicon area and it supports both InFO_oS and CoWoS die integration platforms.Next generation GLink IP supporting 1.3Tbps error-free full duplex traffic per 1mm of beachfront with the same 0.25pJ/bit power consumption is already available using TSMC 5nm process. Following generation of GLink supporting 2.7Tbps/mm error-free full duplex traffic with the same 0.25pJ/bit power consumption using TSMC 5nm and 3nm process will be available during 2021. Such low power/area and traffic per beachfront efficiency makes GLink IPs perfect for AI, HPC and networking applications.SerDes-based chips consume constant power according to absolute worst case traffic scenario. GLink-based chips consume power according to actual traffic and data pattern. SerDes-based interfaces randomize data and consume constant power according to worst case data pattern. They always consume the same amount of Watts even when traffic is reduced and data is not random. GLink parallel bus doesn't randomize data, it consumes power proportionally to actual data toggle rate and even further reduces the toggle rate using DBI. It allows our customers to consume 15-20 times less power in practical use cases than if they used SerDes-based links."Having a full set of best-in-class and silicon proven HBM2E/3 PHY/Controller, GLink, CoWoS and InFO_oS expertise, package design, electrical and thermal simulations, DFT and production test under one GUC roof allows our ASIC customers quick design cycle, fast bring up and production ramp up. Strong momentum of GLink adoption by our AI, HPC and networking customers supports our commitment to building wide IP portfolio and deepening GUC design expertise focusing on advanced packaging revolution" explains Dr. Ken Chen, president of GUC."We leveraged expertise from five generations of our HBM PHYs and Controllers in order to define a new class of high traffic density, low power, low latency, error-free GLink interfaces. We are committed to keep doubling GLink traffic density every year while keeping the same power and latency. Starting from 2021 we are going to complement HBM3 and GLink with GLink-3D bringing order of magnitude higher traffic density, order of magnitude lower latency and many times lower power using TSMC 3DFabric technology" said Igor Elkanovich, CTO of GUC.Key highlights- Error-free, full duplex 0.7Tbps traffic per 1mm of beachfront- 0.25pJ/bit (i.e., 0.25W per 1Tbps of full duplex traffic) - Testing results fully correlated with simulations in all PVT corners - PPA advantage over SerDes/Package Substrate 1. 6-10 times lower power consumption 2. For every 10Tbps of full duplex traffic it consumes 15-20W less 3. Twice less silicon area- GLink's low area/power overhead for high throughput interconnect enables efficient multi-die CoWoS and InFO_oS solutions up to 2500 mm2GLink evaluation board and InFO_oS engineering samplePhoto: Company

Digital technologies such as 5G, big data, and AIoT have driven the continuous update of displays and smart applications with reach extending to many vertical markets, one of which is the key market of transportation. During "AUO Tech Forum 2020" hosted by AU Optronics Corp, a dedicated subforum was held for "smart transportation."Huge potential in rail transportation is a new blue lake for digital commercial displaysEric Su, Director of the Public Information Display Division at AUO stated that the company has invested heavily in transportation over the years and has gradually identified a "blue lake" in rail transportation. The company will continue to develop business opportunities in relevant infrastructure and focus on working with companies dealing in passenger information systems (PIS) in the future.Eric Su emphasized that PIS is one of the fields that best exemplifies the commercial value of displays. Using the example of light boxes which were previously dominated by mono color LED, the company is seeing more and more LCD products being implemented. However, traditional LCD products attempting to enter the field of transportation face many challenges such as space restrictions, harsh environments, and high customization requirements.Despite the many challenges, these hurdles are perfect for showcasing the capabilities of AUO's display technologies such as maximum support of 2,500 nits, readability under direct sunlight, and compliance with new trends such as wide temperature range and green energy. More importantly, AUO has developed the industry leading and revolutionary technology TARTAN and the ability to offer stretched display panels as well those with special aspect ratios such as square and round shapes that can meet client requirements with diverse customizations.Dr Andy Cheng, Industrial Technology Research Institute Deputy Director of the Vehicle Information and Control Systems Group, dissected the current status and outlook of self-driving buses. He mentioned while many believe that displays are not necessary in self-driving vehicles, the opposite is true; as self-driving vehicles cannot be entirely driver-less when initially entering roads, accompanying staff require display panels to keep up to date with dynamic vehicle information.In the field of self-driving vehicles, buses have great potential due to their fixed routes, which can reduce environmental complexity. Therefore, the Industrial Technology Research Institute delved into self-driving buses in specific Level 4 areas and began closed testing in the first half of the year; Soon, they will work with the Hsinchu County Government in Taiwan to launch self-driving shuttle buses from Hsinchu THSR station to Sheraton Hsinchu Hotel and perform the nation's first self-driving tests on open road environments.Smart Internet of Vehicles greatly enhances operation efficiency of fleetsADLINK Director of Internet Communications and Infrastructure Business Dr. Henry Hu gave a talk about "Self-driving Vehicles are Simple." He mentioned that based on U.S. statistics, traffic consumes the amount of time equal to the lifespans of 162 people making it clear that traffic has a significant impact on a country's competitiveness and that self-driving cars can ease this issue; he points out that self-driving technology is not far away in the future but already present in everyday life. Farmers in the U.S. and Japan use driver-less vehicles to harvest crops, spray pesticides, and turn soil while closer to home, the MRT Wenhu line in Taipei has also been self-driving since 2016.Many in the public believe that self-driving technology is challenging mainly because while Waymo, a self-driving technology company obtained their license for driver-less vehicles in 2012, there has been no massive commercial conversion; on the other hand, the driver of a renowned electric vehicle brand activated the autopilot function on the freeway and crashed into a truck that was laying on its side, showing that even with Level 2 self-driving there are many challenging aspects. Dr Henry Hu believes that if we choose "limited areas" and reduce complicated variables, such as dedicated lanes for self-driving buses, it's possible to massively reduce the obstacles to viability.ADLINK purchased a company specializing in IoT data distribution service (DDS) and made the technology open source. This became the communication architecture for the robot operating system ROS 2.0 while Autoware, the world's largest open source software for self-driving vehicles is also based on ROS architecture. ADLINK has forged a series of ecosystem partners in self-driving technology and can provide comprehensive hardware/software integration to help clients compete for self-driving opportunities in limited areas.Sintrones Sales Manager Derek Ho introduced in-vehicle computing solutions. The development of in-vehicle computing is closely related to internet technology. The 3G era saw computers integrated with 3G, GPS, and Wi-Fi with support for diverse applications; during the 4G era, we began to receive video that satisfied requirements for surveillance and recording; as we enter the 5G era, we can not only capture video but also combine them with AI modules for inferential analysis.The key to self-driving technology, whether we're between Levels 2~5, is data collection. When looking at the 3 major fields of application in C-V2X, this defines the data collection requirements before, during, and after an accident; this requires in-vehicle computing to connect with radar, cameras, GPS, or 4/5G data to ensure there are no communication obstacles between the driver, vehicle, networks, and mobile base stations.AUO Senior Director of Transportation Solutions Jackson Weng provided details on the value of AUO's internet-of-vehicles solutions. He pointed out that network connectivity makes vehicles smarter and increases operational benefits. AUO is currently developing an AIoV total solution package for internet-of-vehicles that encompasses cloud-to-ground, software and hardware, AI and vertical applications that provides the level of customization that satisfies the management requirements of vehicle operators.The AIoV cloud platform provides a wealth of management tools and AI added-value functionality that can connect the vehicle, dashboard, PIS, sensors, cameras, and CAN bus. The system is supported by high brightness AUO vehicle displays with support for TARTAN technology, providing operators with 5 major benefits including monitoring and optimization, fuel or battery consumption, and reducing operating costs; the platform collects driving records for different periods and routes to use as a basis for analysis for load efficiency or fuel consumption; monitor emergency braking activity performed by the driver and activate remote control at any time; monitor health status of sensors and parts for early repair; enhance safety by monitoring driver activities such as use of smartphones or falling asleep to reduce the costs of insurance and traffic tickets.Looking towards the future, the opportunities of self-driving vehicles, buses, rail transportation, and internet-of-vehicles will inevitably grow with limitless potential; For this end, AUO has provided advanced vehicle display technologies, forged alliances, and called on our partners in various fields to collaborate and satisfy the demand for application development in smart transportation.AUO TARTAN displays are available in diverse ratios and sizes and can be applied in the display of transportation informationAUO and ADLINK demonstrate AIoV and self-driving solutionsAUO Director of Public Information Display Division Eric Su explains how display technology is one of the keys of smart transportation systems

IoT application has an enormous impact in different industries nowadays. Since the pandemic COVID-19 outbreak in 2020, IoT technology becomes a necessary tool for everything. However, with many years of development, IoT technologies and solutions have gradually matured but the applications are not able to be used as everyone expected. The reason behind it is that most of the IoT solutions are often created by startup teams, which are likely to run out of resources in the early stage of development and unable to proceed to pilot production or field testing, not to mention mass production, rapid replication and application scope expansion.In order to help IoT startups overcome challenges and successfully bring their products to mass production, IoT Service Hub was launched under the organization of Institute for Information Industry (III) and with the support from Industrial Development Bureau, Ministry of Economic Affairs. IoT Service Hub has assisted more than 300 startup teams since its establishment. A success story among them is Oready Innovation Lab's O-take high-end virtual reality (VR) gloves.Before joined IoT Service Hub, O-take was made by a motorcycle glove connected to a development board without ID design to cover the exposed wires. IoT Service Hub introduced the development kit DSI5168 (RTL8711 AM chip) and brought in a service team to help with PCB design and layout (Chyi Jiunn Technic and SMTEK) and ID/mechanical design (Omima Design) to make a prototype glove with patented approved. In order to process the prototype to mass production, IoT Service Hub introduced IoT Integrated Service Center (IisC) of Industrial Technology Research Institute, which co-operation with Oready to modify the finger sensing performance, battery and ID design. Although O-take was under the modify stage to mass production, it already attracted some buyers to use it as a trial marketing strategy.Three major services bring IoT innovations to mass productionAccording to Ming-Hung Tsai, director, Digital Service Innovation Institute (DSI), III, the flourishing startup scene has given rise to a great number of incubators and accelerators in Taiwan. They mostly guide startups from the perspective of business operation and management, provide education training or free co-working space, or simply serve as matchmakers bridging startups and vendors. In contrast, IoT Service Hub is positioned as an accelerator that drives IoT solutions toward mass production and therefore offers services that are distinguished from conventional startup incubators. Its services centered on the idea of being a hub that aggregates co-working space and incubator guidance. The goal is to offer comprehensive guidance to help startups with promising potential optimize their creations toward marketable products, which are then handed over to IisC for further enhancement on functionality and performance until they can proceed to mass production. In sum, IoT Service Hub provides three major services - a project manager, IoT service team and domestically produced IC development kit.After a startup submits an application to join IoT Service Hub, a project manager will make an initial assessment to determine which stage of development the startup's product is in, for example, conceptualization, prototyping, small-volume pilot production or field testing, and what challenges or obstacles the startup needs to overcome. The project manager then finds vendors from the IoT service team that can help the startup tackle the challenges or obstacles and continue with their product development.The IoT service team now comprises more than 200 vendors across wide-ranging sectors. Capable of providing assistance in industrial / mechanical design, circuit design, firmware development, prototyping, certification and marketing, the team can help startups resolve whatever problems they run into during the product development cycle.IoT Service Hub's domestically produced IC development kit accelerates the progress to mass productionIoT Service Hub's domestically produced IC development kit combines the strength of Taiwan's IC industry and offers cost effective development toolkits to help startups to address the cost issue in the commercialization process. Tsai notes that startups tend to put efforts on developing the product without considering the pricing for the final marketable product. More often than not, they don't realize the cost goes too high until the stage of mass production. Then, they have to go back to searching for cheaper IC chips and try to reduce the cost so that their product can be made available at an affordable price acceptable to potential customers.IoT Service Hub's domestically produced IC development kit includes a development board made up of IC chips from Taiwan-based IC suppliers. Startups will be able to incorporate IC chips with a cost effectiveness right from the early stage of development. They only need to concentrate on miniaturization and exterior design when proceeding into mass production.Aside from a cost effectiveness, Tsai highlights three more advantages enabled by IoT Service Hub's IC development kit integrating domestically produced IC chips:First, the kit is based on a general-purpose ARM microcontroller featuring low power consumption as well as support for Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and NB-IoT communication to accommodate IoT application development needs targeting a diversity of fields.Second, local technical support teams offer not only real-time services but also all kinds of reference designs, including how-to guides for DSI5168, DSI2598, DSI2599 and DSI5188 development boards and prototype development example documents or videos to lower the technological barrier for product development and shorten time-to-market.Third, IDEAS Chain, an IoT data platform, provides an independent cloud space for data collection. It is open to connection by an unlimited number of devices, supports multiple sensor interfaces and provides device management, graphical user interface and workflow script editor for startups to easily meet their cloud-based data gathering and processing needs during their IoT product development.Agile and iterative development makes IoT products more in line with market needs IoT Service Hub has guided more than 300 startups. To help the teams make products that are more in line with what the market needs, IoT Service Hub launched the "Enterprises raise problems; startups propose solutions" initiative in 2020. Based on future industry development and market needs and themed on smartization for specific fields, IoT Service Hub will interview enterprises to find the problems and pain points they encounter in the field, then search for solutions from the startups' products and identify and guide teams with promising potential. Through match-making events, enterprises can spot suitable products and further verify if the products match their needs. On one hand, enterprises can reduce or eliminate the trouble of incorporating digital transformation technologies themselves. On the other hand, startups can design products with market needs in mind right from scratch and keep the costs of trial-and-error to a minimum.Tsai emphasizes that going forward, IoT Service Hub will incorporate the agile and iterative development paradigm, where in startups' products will undergo field testing so that adjustments to product functions and designs can be made to cater to field requirements and the development cycles for IoT products can be shortened. The aim is to create a diversity of complete IoT solutions, which can then be quickly customized for use in different fields. Furthermore, IoT Service Hub will also actively connect with international markets and include the challenges facing overseas channels and fields in the scope of IoT solutions to be developed while forwarding the feedback from international markets to Taiwan-based IC suppliers. It is hoped that these efforts will not only help drive startup teams' IoT innovations to mass production but also help Taiwan-based IC suppliers build up their competitive edge and global presence, enabling them to capture the rising wave of IoT opportunities.Ming-Hung Tsai, director, Digital Service Innovation Institute, Institute for Information Industry

Intelligentization has become a key global trend in every industry. AU Optronics Corp. (AUO), a company that has thrived for many years in the field of optoelectronics, recently hosted the "AUO Tech Forum 2020" which invited experts from industry, academia, and government to speak about exciting developments in 4 major fields of intelligentization.In terms of smart manufacturing, Wang Shou-tian, Director of AI Platform at Edgetech, a subsidiary of AUO, gave a talk on "Smart Industry Services Under an Oasis Sky" and introduced AUO Group's current deployment and solutions in the field. He pointed out that AUO established subsidiaries Mega Insight and Edgetech to assist manufacturers in taking the first successful step towards intelligentization by providing comprehensive AIoT solutions for smart factories.Both of the companies have defined positions within smart manufacturing. Mega Insight is a company built to help the industry sustainably develop self-driven smart ecosystems, integration methods, and industrial software that provide indispensable smart manufacturing services. Edgetech's vision is to implement AI technology solutions that are innovative, practical, and competitive by fully integrating technologies and platforms to assist businesses in building an all-encompassing manufacturing platform.Based on the goals and visions above, both companies each released smart manufacturing solutions. Mega Insight's industrial AIoT platform integrates the maturation levels of various industries with industrial software and provides professional consulting to assist manufacturers in building optimized smart manufacturing systems. Edgetech focuses on AI, allowing manufacturers to build self-learning, self-training AI systems. Combining the platforms of Mega Insight and Edgetech enables manufacturers with a comprehensive smart manufacturing architecture from cloud to edge that successfully activates their digital transformation.In order to realize the visions of intelligentization, it's imperative to identify pain points to pinpoint a company's requirements and build suitable systems. During the topic of "Next Gen Smart Factory," ADLINK IoT Solution & Technology Director Yang Jia-wei spoke about the necessary concepts needed by manufacturers in the smart era. He mentioned that 3 major factors are critical in building smart systems, including equipment data, professionalism in the manufacturing industry, and field of manufacturing; once these 3 requirements are met, it's possible to select functions according to requirements. Based on the experience of ADLINK, the basic smart manufacturing functions currently available in the market include the 5 aspects of AI imaging, inspection robots, connected equipment, advanced diagnosis for equipment, and virtual repair. These technologies are mature with many application scenarios and are suitable as the basic system for manufacturers looking to take the first step towards their smart transformation. A method that caters both stability and innovation is expanding with additional systems once the foundation is stable and benefits are observable.In addition to visions and platforms, another major issue is how to assist clients achieve smart manufacturing. During his talk on "Ubiquitous Edge AI", Vincent Tseng, General Manager of APAC Region at ADLINK shared many successful cases including details on how their company helped partners integrate software and hardware to help land smart manufacturing. For instance, designing non-invasive systems to reduce the rate of erroneous reports. By adding plug-ins to existing AOI systems, solutions can be rapidly implemented and used while also protecting a company's previous investments. The result is effectively reducing more than 90% of erroneous reports, shortening processes, and improving unit production capacity. Vincent Tseng also introduced AI anomaly detection software and a smart hearthstone vibration monitoring platform. Both systems were smart manufacturing solutions built in collaboration between ADLINK and partners that allowed existing production systems to generate significant benefits.Robotic arms have long been viewed as the representative technology in automation. Based on their long years of experience in collaborative robots, Techman Robot has risen to the world's second largest brand in industrial cobots. During the forum, Techman Robot Director Hsiao Yi-lung spoke at length on the "Vision of Robotic Manufacturing". He points out that the manufacturing industry has changed from mass production to a production model with high variation and low volume. Due to this trend, traditional robotic arms can no longer satisfy the flexibility requirements of manufacturing systems. This will give rise to cobots that are lightweight, allow human collaboration, can be used across production lines, and are simple to control; these robots will play a key role in future production lines. At the same time, he expressed that robotic arms will transform from being hardware oriented to focus on hardware software integration in the smart era to expand the diversity and value of equipment.MIRLE is one of the leading domestic companies in the field of automation; over the recent years, the company has been assertive in promoting smart manufacturing strategies. During his talk on "Intelligentization, New Logistics - Smart Factory Solutions", Marketing Director Chen Jian-sheng of MIRLE pointed out that their company began in the production of traditional manufacturing equipment before pivoting and launching excellent products in the 3 major fields of semiconductors, optoelectronics, and new logistics. In terms of logistics, he introduced the company's "Automatic Material Handling System" (AHMS) which is widely implemented in semiconductor manufacturing by assisting clients in building a material transport system that maximizes the use of space. Due to the fact that this system is closely related to the design of manufacturing sites, MIRLE provides a detailed assessment plan to help clients successfully implement the system to maximum efficiency and gain a stable foothold in their highly competitive markets.Edgetech Director of AI Platform Wang Shou-tian gave his talk "Smart Industry Services under an Oasis Sky" at AUO Tech ForumAUO subsidiaries Mega Insight and Edgetech provide comprehensive AIoT smart factory solutionsADLINK and partners demonstrate various smart manufacturing solutions

The global market has seen unprecedented changes in recent years, including trade tension between US-China, which started in 2018 and spurred a supply chain reshuffle that changed what the industry was used to; and the COVID-19 outbreak in 2020, which forced businesses to rethink their operations. However, it's not all bad news. Good things are happening. For example, US, China and Korea kicked off 5G commercial operation in 2019 with more countries following suit in 2020. 5G communication is expected to connect the last mile to smart systems and open the door to new-generation IT applications. These three major changes will reshape wireless communication technologies, said Alex Wang, Compal Broadband CEO & BOD.Founded in 2009, Compal Broadband Networks is a member of the Compal Corporate Group with a focus on home broadband communication products. For cable networks, Compal Broadband Networks provides Data Over Cable Service Interface Specification (DOCSIS) compliant products encompassing DOCSIS 3.0 all the way to DOCSIS 4.0 devices that are developed in close collaboration with communication chip suppliers. Compal Broadband's wireless communication product portfolio includes two major groups - sub 6GHz and mmWave solutions, which are the results of the company's strengthened efforts toward the 5G market, and Wi-Fi products, particularly those that support the new-generation Wi-Fi 6 and Wi-Fi 6E under development. These products are being marketed around the globe.Compal Broadband Networks started out as an electronics manufacturing service (EMS) provider and later established its own brand CBN. With market footprints throughout Europe as well as Central America, Compal Broadband Networks mainly sells products to European markets, serving almost every cable TV operator in the region. CBN enjoys a 40% share of the home broadband communication market.One-stop service creates unparalleled advantagesCompal Broadband Networks has been able to deliver such outstanding performance in just 11 years. Aside from expressing gratitude for customers' support, Wang attributes the company's success to two elements - the advantages enabled by the Compal Corporate Group's resources and Compal Broadband??s ability to provide customization services accumulated through the years. As a member of the Compal Corporate Group, which is the world's largest computer manufacturer, Compal Broadband Networks not only has a robust engineering workforce of its own but can also tap into the corporation's consolidated R&D resources. On top of that, with centralized procurement, it has absolute advantages in price negotiations with suppliers. Its long-term partnerships with leading international chip makers also enable Compal Broadband Networks to market competitive products with compelling cost-performance ratios and higher levels of technological integration. As a member of the Taiwan 5G Alliance, Compal Broadband Networks can leverage the Compal Corporate Group's advantages in 5G modules while gaining first-hand information on network communication customers' needs so it can quickly combine 5G and network communication resources and thereby introduce products with shorter time-to-market compared to its competitors. Moreover, Compal Broadband's products can work in connection with other repeaters to help businesses and consumers address the challenges they face.Apart from access to corporate resources, Compal Broadband Network's customization ability is also what allows the company to win customer support. Wang speaks candidly that the network communication industry has developed mature technologies and is experienced enough to quickly catch up with new standards that are constantly being released. Under such circumstances, services become the key to success. Wang gives an example in which Compal Broadband Networks was asked by Europe??s top three cable TV operators to incorporate some required functions into its home networking equipment. The Compal Broadband Networks team was able to swiftly modify the product design and add the required functions.The example fully demonstrates Compal Broadband Network's capability in product R&D and manufacturing. Most network communication device suppliers do not engage in in-house design and production but instead only design the product independently and outsource the production to OEM. To brand vendors, this business model allows them to lower operation costs but makes it difficult for them to control delivery schedule. In contrast, Compal Broadband Networks provides one-stop service including product design, manufacturing and marketing so it can more promptly respond to customer needs. According to Wang, under Compal Broadband Network's system of operation, after sales specialists understand a customer's needs, they forward the information to the engineering team to begin design work and at the same time, the manufacturing team allocates production capacity based on the customer's order. This ensures the products are delivered on schedule and on par with the required quality. Close collaborations across different Compal Broadband Networks teams have generated a wealth of success stories and are the main reason why Compal Broadband Networks is able to remain a frontrunner in the competitive home networking market.Close teamwork to meet market requirementsWang notes that Compal Broadband will maintain its market strategy going forward. He adds that 5G competition is what sparked the US-China trade war. American and European industries and governments are making every effort to grab 5G opportunities. The governments offer all types of subsidies to spur industry growth and have begun spectrum auctions over the recent two years. The industries are eyeing enormous Industry 4.0 business opportunities. In addition to telecom operators that are aggressively rolling out 5G services, market newcomers are joining the game while engaging in a diversity of cross-sector partnerships. The most iconic would be the partnerships between mobile service providers and cable network operators.Mobile service providers and cable network operators have been targeting separate market segments. It was once thought that they are to engage in competitions after 5G communication gives rise to burgeoning smart systems which have diverse communication requirements. Wang has a different opinion. In consideration of the small coverage and high density of 5G base stations, widespread cable networks become the best choice to offload 5G traffic from the backhaul network as a way to save costs. This breaks the barrier between mobile and fixed networks and spikes the demand for communication devices for such purposes. Compal Broadband already includes 5G Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) equipment in its product portfolio and plans to offer customization service tailored to customer needs going forward.As to broadband network, governments around the world are strongly pushing their broadband network build-up. American and European telecom operators and cable network operators are struggling to meet rapidly growing consumer needs for network bandwidth. Compal Broadband has established market presence in North America, Latin America and Asia for many years and has gained first-hand insight into the market trend, based on which it launched a series of home networking devices for use in different surroundings. Taking smart gateways for example, Wang points out a growing number of suppliers are forming an ecosystem to strengthen the software functionalities of smart gateways. Compal Broadband Networks has taken a step ahead and developed for customers hardware and software integrated products with customization available to suit different regions.In view of the global trend, Wang thinks broadband communication has become crucial demand in today's world so the market will only grow larger and larger. He also makes it clear that technology and service are the two keys to securing market share. Customized design service is especially what suppliers can rely on to build and maintain a competitive edge. Going forward, Compal Broadband will continue to strengthen its technology research and design capabilities and provide customers a diverse range of premium quality services.Alex Wang, Compal Broadband Networks CEO & BODPhoto: DIGITIMES

The implementation of innovative technologies and AI have changed the face of retail as companies develop various smart solutions to assist retailers with transformations. During the smart retail forum hosted by AUO, Market Intelligence & Consulting Institute (MIC) analyst Dr Liao Yan-yi pointed towards a study by the US National Retail Federation stating how 80% of corporate investments by global consumer brands and retail channels are in smart AI technologies.However, she repeatedly emphasized that "the focus of smart retail is on 'retail' as opposed to 'smart,' so any use of smart technologies must be based on the needs of retailers and consumers."Pandemic accelerates trends in smart retailAs if echoing the words of analyst Liao Yan-yi, CEO and Chairman Hank Liu of AUO subsidiary ComQi-JohnRyan pointed out that due to the impact of COVID-19, retailers have turned aggressively to smart technologies to solve their problems. This has resulted in many innovative applications such as unmanned stores, smart vending machines, self-driving delivery vehicles, or even logistics robots in order to maintain social distancing during this pandemic. However, any introduction of smart technologies must return to the nature of providing solutions to consumers and assisting retailers with improving operational efficiency.When there is a shortage of labor, digital information display and integration with various functions become especially important. AUO provides a comprehensive smart retail solution which at its core integrates digital signage with cloud management platforms, smart shelves, POS, and customer interaction technologies for mobilize businesses to quickly transform into smart retail in response to the challenges of this pandemic.Building smart retail that enhances customer experiencesSmart retail solutions provided by AUO has helped many Taiwanese retailers begin their smart transformations; Aeon Motor CEO Tony Lin was present at the forum to speak about how the company is a prime example. In 2019, Aeon Motor released their first electric scooter Ai-1 Sport. In order to provide an enhanced customer experience, they built a smart retail location based on solutions by AUO.Aeon Motor's smart retail experience utilized interactive displays by AUO which integrated large spliced wall displays and multimedia equipment in a cloud content management platform. One single piece of playback equipment was used to handle 3 types of spliced playback modes including full screen display, a 9-grid synchronous display, or 9-grid independent display; the wall can be toggled between the 3 modes at will.It's worth mentioning that these interactive display solutions could also be linked and streamed online to all nationwide retail locations. Aeon Motor utilized the solution's flexibility to host a nationwide online media event to attract massive public attention. This year, Aeon Motor expects to expand to 35 smart retail locations, each with large display walls, throughout Taiwan. Tony Lin stated that "traditional decor becomes dated with time, but using display walls as part of the decor allows us to keep them constantly updated."Creating new value with retail as a serviceSHUI-MU International also used AUO smart solutions to innovative their business model. SHUI-MU International, a company with 68 years of history, realized the downturn trend of traditional retail and began to make changes 4 years ago. General Manager Michelle Kuo of SHUI-MU International emphasized that "our goal was to create new value in retail services and while we fearlessly explored innovative methods, the team at AUO was the only partner willing to fully devote themselves to working with us."By utilizing smart solutions provided by AUO, SHUI-MU International created the retail as a service model to rebrand A.S.O retail locations from merely selling shoes to becoming community health stations. A.S.O expanded on this to establish posture and balance centers, sports centers to reverse aging, and released dynamic foot pressure measurement services by utilizing technologies such as displays and cloud management provided by AUO to drive A.S.O retail towards a compound operation model."In the future, we look forward to utilizing smart display solutions to provide our customers with remote consulting services," said Michelle Kuo.Integrating software/hardware solutions in concept storesYYsports, a subsidiary of Pou Sheng International (Holdings) Limited is a comprehensive sports service distribution channel that provides various sporting goods and sports experiences. With the support of AUO subsidiary Space4M, YYsports was able to create a mesmerizing concept store in Hsinchu. Space4M utilized core technologies such as a digital content playback management system through a cloud platform to provide integration of old and new hardware/software services for both online/offline and virtual/physical locations to enhance customer experiences for the brand, merchant, and site owner.YYsports General Manager Wang Wen-xin introduced the concept store's latest equipment such as a unique 270 degree fitting studio that utilized "bullet time" filming technology to capture images through 16 professional cameras to form a near panoramic image. The system helps customers make better choices by providing both frontal and rear views during fitting.Additionally, the concept store includes a running lab that allows controls for humidity, temperature, and wind speed to simulate frigid, desert, and windy environments that allow customers to test the functionality of performance wear in these scenarios.Listening to retailers to satisfy real demandsIn the final forum, Associate VP of AUO Smart Retail Division Lin Pei-hong pointed out in his conclusion that throughout the process of innovation, retailers expect their technology partners to understand their language; meanwhile, technology suppliers must assist retailers make good use of digital tools by developing solutions that meet real needs.Generally speaking, most retailers have acknowledged the necessity of smart retail innovation. Powerful technologies have opened up even more possibilities that allow retailers to crossover from product sales to integrated service models or even create lifestyles. As an "on-site solutions provider," AUO has earned the trust of our retail clients and will continue to invest the group's resources into various fields of application.ComQi chairman and CEO Hank Liu presented at AUO Tech Forum 2020Associate VP of AUO Smart Retail Division Pei-hong Lin concluded that IT companies need to assist retailers to target the retail industry's needsAUO's comprehensive smart retail solution is integrated with cloud management platforms, smart shelves, POS, and customer interaction technologies

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