LitePoint, a leading provider of wireless test solutions, delivered a presentation on its 5G sub-6GHz and mmWave test technologies, as well as next-generation test solutions at the 5G Forum on September 29 in Taipei.The Digitimes-organized 5G Forum was designed to bring together the leading companies in the 5G ecosystem and advance 5G applications."The opportunity to connect with the top minds in 5G Industry is invaluable," notes Richard Hsieh , vice president, World Wide Sales for LitePoint. "The 5G Forum has consistently provided LitePoint a platform to discuss technology roadmaps, connect with colleagues on progressing 5G development for wider applications and gain perspective from the world's leading 5G manufacturers."During the 5G Forum, Middle Wen, product manager, presented materials that highlight a few 5G device ecosystem updates, the physical layer changes, and the test solutions and the advantages it delivers to customers.In addition, LitePoint demonstrated IQgig-5G and its ability to support all 5G FR2 frequencies within a 23-45GHz range. IQgig-5G is a fully integrated, versatile multiband mmWave non-Signaling test solution, ideal for Beamforming Characterization, Beamforming Verification, RF Calibration and Antenna Measurements."We thank the Digitimes for again recognizing LitePoint's important contributions to 5G ecosystem and inviting us to be part of this significant meeting," said Richard in summary. "We look forward to continuing our valuable work and to enabling our customers' competitiveness."Technical detailsIQgig-5G is a fully integrated, versatile multiband mmWave non-signaling test solution, first of its kind to support all 5G FR2 frequencies within a 23-45GHz range. Its one-box design makes it simple to set up, use, maintain and trust that you will make reliable measurements when characterizing or manufacturing your 5G devices. For more information, visit www.litepoint.comLitePoint shared 5G test solutions at 5G Forum 2020

The global coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has changed the human-to-human interaction models completely. Many industrial and economic activities have also changed to new norms. As a result, remote video communication has become the most noticed topic recently. The demand of network cameras has also increased for the applications in work from home, distance meetings, or remote lecturing. With the rise of the 5G era and the proliferated development of artificial intelligence applications, the new AI ePTZ image processing solution from iCatch Technology can add intelligent person tracking function to the web-based camera, which improves the performance and efficiency of distance working.Follow the growth trend of network camera, iCatch Technology's new AI ePTZ camera solution not only can capture 4K ultra high-definition video images with ultra-wide-angle support, but also enables the "Video Auto Frame" function through the advanced NPU edge computing capability. It can detect portraits of conference speakers, lecturers on stage, or white board materials to activate zoom, pan-and-tilt and focus functions, and can quickly detect all persons in the scene. The 4X digital zoom function can enlarge the interested area of the image to twice the length and width of the normal size and keep high-quality video at the same time. This ePTZ camera solution also has dual microphone input to support the "Audio Frame" and "Audio Tracking" functions which can lock-on and track the speaker automatically.The ePTZ camera with iCatch Technology's AI imaging solution is compact in size and easy-to-use. It can be applied widely in classroom recording, remote teaching, staff training, video conferencing, and so on. The ePTZ camera solution also supports HDMI, IP network, and USB-C connections. It can be installed easily through a PC or remote control. The intelligent person tracking function can adjust the portrait to follow the movement of a speaker, which is quite useful and convenient for conference speakers, lecturers on stage, or live streaming hosts. Such solution can improve the interactiveness and effectiveness of remote video communication.iCatch Technology continues to invest in the development of solutions related to edge computing and smart image processing actively. If you are interested in iCatch Technology's smart image processing solutions or need technical services, welcome to contact us.For more product information, please refer to www.icatchtek.com. For further sales contact, please leave your request at www.icatchtek.com/RequestsiCatch Technology's new AI ePTZ camera solution not only can capture 4K ultra high-definition video images with ultra-wide-angle support, but also enables the "Video Auto Frame" function through the advanced NPU edge computing capability

With the increasing demand for the environment and high resolution of the Internet of Things, various smart scenarios (such as smart factories, smart transportation, and image recognition systems) powered and transmitted through the Ethernet switch (PoE Switch), plus the installation of surveillance security appliances such as NVR (network video recorder), greatly improve the convenience and safety of work. In order to satisfy the expandability for high specification PoE switches and NVR, high-powered PoE power supplies were created.FSP launched the FSP420-2F47-A54H dual-output open frame power supply with 14 CMF forced air cooling and a conditional maximum output power of 420W; it is suitable for PoE switch and NVR applications. FSP420-2F47-A54H adopted the Class-I design with 12V/50W and 54V/370W output, as well as built-in over-temperature protection. This product will obtain IEC 62368-1 & UL 62368 certifications.FSP continually develops dual-output PoE open frame power supplies and currently has six power supply products available for selection; you are welcome to contact us to create a dedicated customized power supply for you.For more FSP product information, please visit the official website.FSP launches 420W PoE open frame power solutionsFSP PoE open frame power supply

Digi-Key Electronics, which offers the world's largest selection of electronic components in stock for immediate shipment, announced that it has expanded its product portfolio to include certain NI software-connected test and measurement products. This initiative greatly expands Digi-Key's overall offerings in automated test.Companies continue to face the challenge of getting quality products to market with shorter timelines. Engineers using Digi-Key's global distribution channel and next day shipping will now have quick access to tools they can use to provide them with high quality, repeatable test and measurement data that will help them accelerate the verification and production of their products. The ease of set up and configuration offered by NI's PC-based products frees up engineers' time so they can focus on driving greater impact in development."Connecting engineers to the right tools when and how they need them accelerates productivity," said Jim Ramsey, vice president of the Global Partner program at NI. "Offering our products through Digi-Key allows us to meet their customers where they are through the processes they're accustomed to and gives us new avenues to equip more engineers with the tools they need.""We're very proud to be able to offer NI products to our customers," said David Stein, vice president of global supplier management at Digi-Key. "NI's automated test and measurement products will help our customers to advance their projects faster by helping them analyze the data from their systems in real time."For more information about NI and to order from their product portfolio, including USB and PCI DAQ solutions, please visit the Digi-Key website.NI's USB X series multifunction DAQ is now available through Digi-Key Electronics

Internet of Things (IoT), with the massive wireless connection technologies, the growing number of IoT devices, and the complexity of these connected things, introduces new cybersecurity challenges and risks to the marketplace. As reaching the ideal scenario of everything connected, mobile devices increasingly handle sensitive data and becoming more important than ever to ensure their security. IoT device security is even more critical now that 5G services are live. The breach of IoT devices allowing attackers to easily hijack the property poses an inherent risk to the security of enterprises which deploy the technologies. And worldwide spending on the IoT has been impacted by these worries. The cybersecurity solutions of IoT are getting more attentions than ever.GlobalPlatform is a non-profit industry association highly regarded as the international standard for enabling digital services and devices to be trusted and securely managed. On Tuesday, 25 August 2020, GlobalPlatform, with support of Primary Sponsor and Full Member Winbond Electronics Corporation, together with Arm and Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI), hosted an IoT Security and Certification Schemes Workshop at Sheraton Hsinchu Hotel in Zhubei City, Taiwan. The workshop provided the latest information about the technology dynamics of Secure Element (SE) and Trust Execution Environment (TEE). At the same time, it showed several countries' development status and government policies, plans and regulations in Europe and North America, specifically designed to support IoT device manufacturers and certification bodies to establish their own IoT device security certification schemes.Kevin Gillick, Executive Director of GlobalPlatform, in his opening remarks through remote video conferencing, thanked Winbond, Arm and ITRI teams for making this half physical and half virtual workshop possible. Responding to IoT security has built a tight collaborative relationship between industries and governments, he adds. With a mix of local on-site speakers and GlobalPlatform virtual presenters, participants shared a great opportunity to interact with subject matter experts.An estimated 75.44 billion IoT devices will be in the marketplace by 2025. This astronomical number is even posing a more serious threat to security and privacy than ever. GlobalPlatform's work brings greater trust to the IoT eco-system. To deploy the security framework of "secure enough" is an essential task to begin. The Security Evaluation Standard for IoT Platforms (SESIP) methodology will standardize security certification for IoT industries and give device makers and solution vendors the ability to demonstrate alignment with market requirements, use cases and regulations.GlobalPlatform, established 20 years ago, is driven by approximately 80 member companies. Members share a common goal to develop GlobalPlatform's specifications, which are today highly regarded as the international standard for enabling digital services and devices to be trusted. And while avoiding attack threats, it will protect services and provide end users with trusted information that is securely managed throughout the IoT products lifecycle.5G Chain of Trust framework to protect information and privacyDr. Yeali Sun, Commissioner of Taiwan National Communications Commission (NCC), in her keynote session, highlighted 5G broadband networks as a major driving force for industrial digitization and technology upgrade. 5G will deliver benefits to the nation, society, economy, industry, enterprises and individuals. 5G is playing the role of enabler to create more economic prosperity. That is the reason why the WEF (World Economic Forum) sets 5G as the forth industrial revolution. 5G networks are constructing a beneficial infrastructure for digital innovation.5G network infrastructure provides the high data speed and flexibility needed to cultivate new services and innovative applications. Leveraging software defined network and modern ICT technologies in scale, 5G network security is becoming critical for many countries. 5G services rely on sufficiently trustworthy access across the network, Sun noted. There are several important topics that need to be addressed including 5G network governance, trusted hardware/software and supply chain, trusted operation and management, trusted end-to-end operation, integration of cybersecurity with operations and privacy protection.Either 5G equipment or IoT devices, these products are a complex combination of many components and involve multi-stakeholders such as hardware manufacturers, software developers, service providers, end users and data owners. To verify whether these devices are secure enough, she simply asks two questions to make things clear. First, can device owners acquire devices through a trustworthy supply chain? And second, can a device owner maintain positive control over the device?At the end of her speech she offered two major conclusions. The first, cybersecurity capability is imperative for network operators, service providers and regulatory government agencies. Second, the hardware Root of Trust (RoT) in IoT is a promising way of providing the foundation to establish a Chain of Trust (CoT) for the device to provide assertions about the device to the information.Making Taiwan a trustworthy international secure components and systems supplierIn his keynote address, Dr. Edwin Liu, President of ITRI, spoke about the fast migration towards a digital life in the post-pandemic era. This brings two major challenges and issues, which are IoT network security and supply chain management. Taking action to solve these issues will earn global trust and transform Taiwan into an important force in the global economy. He analyzed the types of cybersecurity threats to showcase participants the case studies which cause massive economic loss for global societies.Taiwan's strength in semiconductor and ICT sectors plays a central role in global IoT supply chains. Due to international customers' strict safety requirements, it is enabling Taiwan manufacturers to further invest in technology. And the fact that the number of cybersecurity attacks is increasing every day is also helping Taiwan's cybersecurity protection capabilities to rapidly upgrade. For example, based on many years of technical development, ITRI hosts several collaborative projects with various vendors for introducing systems such as a specialized supply chain monitoring system, a software based cybersecurity diagnostic system, and software and hardware tamper-resistant technologies to avoid code change while transferring data files.The same thing applies to Taiwan's PC server manufacturers as they establish the supply chain security testing standards for OT and IT networks. They are also taking actions to prevent non-authorized software or firmware from being installed into IC chips while purchasing from vendors. Meanwhile, logistics partners also provide proof of their practices to improve cybersecurity across the supply chain, thus increasing the security levels for customers.Taiwan manufacturers are providing layers of cybersecurity solutions across the entire eco-system, leveraging its strength in both IC chips and electronics manufacturing services. Through cybersecurity standards and certification, Taiwan continues to invest in its information and digital industries to take a leading position to transform Taiwan into a critical force in the global economy. ITRI is setting a goal to build a cybersecurity industry that can integrate with 5G, digital transformation, and Taiwan national security, striving to create cybersecurity systems and an industrial chain that can protect the country and earn the world's trust.Building Taiwan cybersecurity eco-system to keep the Internet of Things Safe and SecureTraditionally, people with more resources are more likely to have security concerns. In today's connected world, there is no denying that smart applications and 5G networks create immense value and opportunity. But on the other hand, cyber vulnerability is leading to a loss of consumer confidence. Consumers need reliable security to protect private data of every individual in the digital world. We believe that non-secure IoT devices pose a severe cyber-threat that must be addressed by securing technologies used for the storage of data, code, and credentials in all connected devices.The essential concept of IoT is everything connected. Compared with the more mature architecture of PC's and smartphones, the IoT cybersecurity eco-system is still in the very beginning stage. Due to the ever-growing complexity and flexibility of IoT applications, all devices are connected and becoming things in the IoT world. For this sensitive situation, there are some thoughts that matter. We need consumers with safety and cybersecurity concepts. We request industries to provide secure technologies. We expect governments to set the standards and certification processes. And we require the building of a neutral security validation mechanism in Taiwan. These are serious concerns that need to be addressed to realize the market potential of IoT.Winbond is the leading global supplier of code storage memory solutions and secure memories. And Nuvoton is a major solution provider of MCU and server ICs. Both are key components to control the operation of machines and electronics devices. To integrate upstream and downstream of IoT supply chains covering semiconductor components to electronics devices via networking connection, cloud platforms and to the end point applications, each layer needs to equip with proper cybersecurity technologies to offer a dependable solution for manufacturers of connected devices against cyber threats and attacks. Semiconductor products are the base of Root of Trust. And they are the initiation of Chain of Trust.Mr. Arthur Yu-Cheng Chiao, Winbond Chairman and CEO, gave his keynote on the topic "Catch IoT Opportunities with An Eco-system and Security Solutions", he explained that Taiwan is the global site of electronics manufacturing services with complete electronics supply chains and a strong foundation for an IoT cybersecurity eco-system. As a member of GlobalPlatform, Winbond has moved to collaborate with GlobalPlatform in promoting IoT information security and working out a set of IoT security standards that Winbond hopes to introduce as its accreditation system in Taiwan. Serving as a bridge to promote vertical division of the cybersecurity eco-system among players in different segments, and pushing for their cooperation with the government, Winbond will promote its strategy for digital safety for Taiwan in the era of Internet of Things.GlobalPlatform with support of primary sponsor Winbond hosted an IoT Security and Certification schemes workshop

The rapidly growing of Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) and 5G technologies have brought diverse applications and use cases to change people's everyday life. Beyond data speed improvement, 5G and IIoT with massive connection to push the mission-critical services, it will also open the new windows for widespread cyber-attacks. Recent security research shows that most companies have unprotected data and poor cybersecurity practices in place, making them vulnerable to data loss. In light of this, there is a need for governments to setup wide-ranging rules, regulations and standards to prevent devices from becoming an endpoint into a network or a platform for attacks.On September 11, 2020, Bureau Veritas Consumer Product Service, Electrical & Electronic, Automotive, Wireless (BV CPS E.A.W.), Electrical & Electronic, Automotive, Wireless Taiwan hosted IoT Security and Certification in Taipei City. In this event, BV provided the latest information about the technology dynamics of Cybersecurity and Certification Services. Eva Hsiao, Taiwan Sales Director of Bureau Veritas CPS E.A.W, gave her opening remarks to welcome audiences to attend the event.Cybersecurity is an essential element to address the security concerns in diverse IIoT landscapes. The technology of cybersecurity will strengthen the robustness of connected devices and cloud services. For protecting the confidentiality and integrity of software program and data in IIoT devices, these flexible solutions will fit the requirements and growing demand of IIoT security and cybersecurity certification. How to effectively implement the cybersecurity to end devices, connectivity of networking and cloud applications will be the key for all manufacturers to scale up the business opportunities.One stop service for Cybersecurity certification and testing to help manufacturers facing cybersecurity threats and Regulation ConformityJim Chiu, Senior Manager of Bureau Veritas CPS E.A.W Taiwan, BV IoT & Professional Electronic Sales Departments, talked about industrial testing and certification services of BV Consumer Product Services. There were two major highlights in his presentation to showcase series of various certification programs: the first part, product testing solution for industrial internet of Things, and the second, cybersecurity solutions for industrial products.BV provides testing and certification services in industrial sectors. In 2020, there are several key technology topics including 5G, Industrial IoT, V2X connected car, Intelligent Transportation System, next generation of WLAN and Cybersecurity. At the same time, Chiu showed several countries' development status and government policies, plans and regulations in Europe, North America and Japan, specifically designed to support IIoT device makers and certification bodies to establish their own IoT device security certification schemes.Product testing solutions for IIoT fast engaging the business with industriesThe complete offerings of BV one-stop services indicate industrial test, security testing, regulation testing, performance & conformance testing, industrial approval & certification testing. For the booming carrier's services, BV is leveraging its subsidiaries and aligning them with laboratories to drive consistency in product testing, evaluation and validation of telecom services to support Vodafone, AT&T, Verizon, DOCOMO, T-Mobile and Sigfox.Moreover, in the 5G sector, BV services are aiming to test further potential vulnerability caused by ramp up multiple smart applications in the 5G era. However, the risk of improper tracking is another key concerns while doing 5G conformance testing and certification solutions.Apart from telecom careers' conformance testing and operator network acceptance test, in the industrial applications, BV provides service listings in Smart Grid, Railway, Marine, NEBS (Network Equipment Building Systems) services testing suite of solutions design to conquer the challenges.Cybersecurity certification services for certifying products do matterIn the second part, Chiu introduced the cybersecurity solutions for industrial products. This is focusing on cybersecurity test and certification services. There are several product offerings and dedicated services providing for various regions. In US, BV provides test Labs for US State Law Requirements for cybersecurity and CTIA security test. In Japan, BV testing service is based on Japan Telecom Law Requirements.Considering the important payment security, BV has provided EMVCO/VISA Test for certifying contact and contactless chip-enabled devices. Meanwhile, in the Information Security Certification sectors, BV provides the tests based on mainstreaming IEC 27001, ISO 27017/27018 and TISAX Certification and the getting most attention of IEC 62443 certification.In Europe, both the privacy GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) certification and EuroSmart Verification are hot topics. The services for EU regulations in IoT devices, it includes CE mark for functional safety, RED (Radio Equipment Directive) for protection from fraud, GDPR for privacy data protection and Cybersecurity Act for cybersecurity certification. BV defines 5 levels of IoT security ranging from top to bottom. They are EuroSmart IoT Substantial (highest), BV IoT Class 3, BV IoT Class 2, BV IoT Class 1, P-Scan. For fast responding the market demands, BV provides a complete set of services for customers with cybersecurity that can be compared, cover the coming regulations, state compliance with existing guidelines.There are currently several states focusing on security laws that will require reasonable security in IoT products. Considering the products requiring high and substantial level of security, Chiou highlighted, BV offers certifications based on worldwide recognized certification schemes. And for consumer electronics products, BV defines its own certification scheme based on recognized standards and guidelines. The last slide, he showed baseline security named IoT ioXt to establish ioXt Alliance to step forward to help define clear cybersecurity specification and how to verify it through strong collaboration among industries and build a safer IoT world.Regulatory requirement updates for 5G IIoT manufacturersEllis Wu, Director of BV CPS E.A.W. Taiwan, Technical Service Division, spoke on the subject of "Regulatory requirement for IIoT manufacturers to follow-up." He talked about 5G technologies from 3GPP R16 standards to drive URLLC and TSN for IIoT expansion addressing new verticals and deployment scenarios. There are several major regulatory information updates for IIoT devices including FCC, CE and Japan, Korea, Taiwan regional updates for responding FCC regulations.The US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has released new updates to further clarify the Pre-Approval Guidance (PAG) procedure. The 388624 D02 Pre-Approval Guidance Procedures v16r09 was just released on August 28, 2020. As a leading testing, inspection and certification solution provider, BV takes bold steps to invest massive testing capacity of 5G NR frequency band of n257, n258, n260 and n261 which comply with FCC Part 30 latest standard requirement. And furthermore, one recent news release highlighted its laboratory in Taiwan has successfully supported client in obtaining the first global 5G NR 39GHz mmWave FCC Grant.In the EU, there are several new regulations of Radio Equipment Directive (RED) for 5G NR User Equipment released in 2021. They are coming the new regulations of EN 301 908-1 and EN 301 908-25. Both target publish date will be Sep 22 2021 and Jan 15 2022. BV is supporting with advisory or gap analysis service to identify impact.Carrier approval and conformance Requirement for IoT IndustryEric Chu, Director of BV CPS E.A.W. Taiwan, Wireless Testing Operation Division, presented "Carrier approval & conformance Requirement for IoT Industry." Today, there are 17 locations with 9 laboratories to support BV customers in Asia region for providing the services for wireless devices. The services are ranging from conformance, OTA performance, regulatory and interoperability test.5G NR is heading towards a new generation of cellular network. As 5G enables a platform for multiple wireless technologies to collaborate, suppliers of 5G technologies have to overcome a bunch of challenges including signal spectrum, transmission protocol, network compatibility, MIMO technology, device-to-device communication and potential network security and privacy issues that may arise.In the presentation, he highlighted BV Carriers Service Scope to support major global telecom companies including Vodafone, AT&T, Verizon, DOCOMO, T-Mobile and Sigfox. The service of 5G RF/RRM and carrier acceptance inspection tests, BV provides GCF and PTCRB conformance testing using Anritsu's New Radio RF Conformance Test System ME7873NR and CATR OTA chambers for testing FR2 bands. In the 5G protocol tests, leveraging Anritsu's ME7834NR test system, BV facilitates the growth of the 5G NR conformance test market and commercial rollout of 5G NR communications services.EU Cybersecurity Act and IEC 62443: BV brings more added values to customersKenny Lee, Technical Manager of Bureau Veritas CPS E.A.W. Taiwan, Technical Service Division talked about "The Most Significant Cybersecurity Standard- IEC 62443 and the EU Cybersecurity Act." In his presentation, he said IIoT device makers are struggling to keep up with rapid changes in techniques and global standards. For protecting the confidentiality and integrity of data in IIoT devices, manufacturers and service providers have to overcome the challenging from more sophisticated and complex attacks and complying with varied safety and security regulations from different countries around the world.For instance, the EU Cybersecurity Act, published on June 27, 2019, is one of the key actions to respond cybersecurity concerns and address existing certification fragmentation in the certification landscape to reduce costs and administrative burdens for companies and strengthen the digital market. The Act is expected to be effective in 2021.Eurosmart, a trade association in the field of Digital Security, has been developing its own certification scheme named "Eurosmart IoT Security Certification Scheme" with a focus on the substantial security assurance level. Based on this scheme, it builds up to be fully compliant with the European Cybersecurity Certification Framework. BV is also a member of the Eurosmart. Importantly, at the highest level of Substantial Advanced on the Rating System which is able to provide Eurosmart certificates in order to assist manufacturers faster enter target EU market and make product safer and more transparent to consumers.The IEC 62443 standard for the security of Industrial Control Systems is suitable for implementing the requirements of the EU Cybersecurity Act. With decades of professional experiences in testing and certification services, BV has developed a complete set of services for cyber certification of products supporting clients by faster solving cybersecurity related problems in order to strength the market competitiveness. Talking about IoT product certification process, BV is combining the process flow of Eurosmart and IEC 62443 4-1 process. Once passed the process flow, BV's customer will grant IECEE and Eurosmart certificates at the same time. The one effort wining double certificates is most welcomed by customers.Taiwan is the global site of electronics manufacturing services with complete electronics supply chains and a strong foundation of IoT cybersecurity eco-system. This EU Cybersecurity Act will bring a certain impact on Taiwan ICT device makers who want to sell the products to Europe. Taiwan needs its products to meet wide-ranging certification standards implemented by regional markets around the world, which is exactly BV's expertise. BV is now well positioned to support clients with a complete IoT cybersecurity test and certification services aim to help both manufacturers and developers to improve the security of their solutions and products. A complete service for cybersecurity certification, 5G RF/RRM and carrier acceptance inspection testing from BV is ready. These flexible solutions and services will fit the requirements and growing demand of IIoT security and Cybersecurity certification.BV

In addition to process technology which enhances the performance of semiconductor devices by scaling, 3D and heterogeneous integration has led to the development of various new structures and new materials. Although these trends have brought increasingly severe challenges to semiconductor production equipment suppliers, more opportunities and innovations have also been created.According to Roger Chang, Executive Vice President of Tokyo Electron Taiwan, Tokyo Electron Limited with 58 years of history have developed multiple leading edge products such as Coater/Developer, Etch, Thin film deposition, Cleaning, Wafer prober. With strong position in the photoresist Coater/Developer market, TEL has taken 100% market share of Coater/Developer for EUV in high volume manufacturing as the industry moves into the new EUV era.With this advantage, TEL will continue to strengthen each product and provide integrated process solutions to meet the needs of advanced technology nodes. Furthermore, TEL has also deployed a remote service called TELeMetrics, which provides big data analysis to assist customers in optimizing the utilization of equipment. It also contributes to customers' Smart Fab initiatives to enhance productivity, profitability and yield.EUV adoption to be further expandedTalking about the development trend of semiconductor technology, Roger Chang said that logic devices will continue to be scaled. In order to strike a balance between productivity and cost, device makers will not only adopt EUV at advanced nodes but also to enhance the existing ArF immersion lithography technology. EUV technology will also be used in the manufacturing of next generation DRAM.Secondly, innovative 3D structures, such as FinFET, GAA, 3D NAND, new material such as ruthenium (Ru) considered to be promising for future advanced nodes, and EUV lithography will play a more important role in the semiconductor technology roadmap.The third trend is that with the rapid development of AI applications in order to accelerate computing, the industry has also begun to discuss more extensively about embedded memory, in-memory computing and diverse advanced packaging solutions in order to achieve more heterogeneous device integration.As a leading semiconductor equipment manufacturer, TEL has formulated a number of strategies to respond to these emerging process challenges. Roger Chang pointed out, "TEL is a long-time leader in the Coater/Developer market, and now we have acquired all of the EUV Coater/Developer market in manufacturing. Under the trend of process scaling, EUV adoption will be indispensable and further expand from Logic to DRAM manufacturing, which will definitely bring more opportunities to us."In addition to further increasing TEL's Coater/Developer market share, more importantly, it can also expand the demand for TEL's other product lines. TEL's etch, ALD and thermal CVD, diffusion furnace, prober, and cleaning equipment are all ranked No. 1 or No. 2 in the market. It can be said that the advanced semiconductor devices in the world cannot be manufactured without TEL's equipment."Since we have a long history and a wide-range of products, we are capable of providing integrated process solutions for customers' specific needs. TEL will responsibly work on new technology development to create next-generation products with high added value.Indeed, as various new technologies emerge, process challenges have become more complex. In the era of "More Moore" and "More than Moore", TEL has seen vigorous development of diverse applications in communication, medical and automotive industries. While pursuing customized designs, chip manufacturers also hope to meet the goal of ultra-efficient hyper-mass production. "For equipment manufacturers, in order to achieve this goal, it is even more important to have early engagement with customers so as to speed up the time-to-market."Roger Chang also emphasized that the latest product line for prober is contract manufactured in Taiwan, which can meet customers' customization and rapid response requirements. At the same time, a software team has been established to provide technical support for complex testing of advanced chips.TELeMetrics service availableAs manufacturing technology advances from simple automation to automation with intelligence, TEL is using AI technology to expand its service support capabilities along with strengthening of the development competences.Roger Chang said that the application of smart manufacturing has many different levels. TEL is widely adopting digital simulation technology in the design stage.On the other hand, TEL has introduced the TELeMetrics remote service. With this service, TEL can analyze equipment data from various sensors using a remote connection at customer sites and provide solutions matched to customer-specific problems such as; troubleshooting, analyzing differences between equipment, improving throughput, and enabling predictive maintenance with machine learning.Finally, Roger Chang pointed out that, the most important driving factor behind R&D enhancement and service support is the endless stream of innovation which is also instrumental in the rapid advances of 5G/AI applications.To this end, TEL has strengthened its investments in venture capital resources in recent years. TEL Venture Capital has successfully made a number of investments, with targets covering various startups for a wide range of technologies, such as emerging memory, nanostructure, quantum dot display, and so on."TEL makes use of venture capital to expand the scope of our partnerships through the entire technology supply chain, from chip design, to materials, to software development, to manufacturing and other applications. It is no longer limited to semiconductor equipment technology."Roger Chang, executive vice president of Tokyo Electron Taiwan

With the advent of the AIoT era, Asus has embraced new technologies and methods to develop advanced manufacturing capabilities. At the end of 2019, Asus expanded the company's AIoT business unit to be able to develop more solutions for industries, and in the process, renamed it the AIoT Business Group (AIoT BG). After consideration and planning around the three major aspects of successful manufacturing - design power, technical ability and continuous profitability - Asus transformed operations to achieve the flexibility, speed, productivity and quality required for supply-side Industry 4.0 upgrades.Detecting defects by hand is a major pain point and cause of inefficiencies in manufacturing processes. By investing in smart manufacturing solutions that utilize AI for producing metal peripherals, fans, printed circuit boards and other computer components as well as for system assembly, Asus was able to remove efficiency bottlenecks and reduce losses resulting from misjudgment of manufacturing defects by factory employees. Moving forward, Asus will continue to use artificial intelligence and big data to statistically classify different types of quality defects, determine their causes and improve processes at the source of defects to further improve and push the boundaries of manufacturing quality."Asus currently has hundreds of suppliers, and whenever we are able to improve quality-inspection processes, suppliers are receptive and willing to make changes," said Jackie Hsu, senior vice president and co-head of Open Platform BG & AIoT Business Group said. "This is a win-win situation for Asus and the entire industry, which has always attached great importance to product quality."AI visual inspection systemIn the manufacturing industry, it is a common practice to replace manual visual inspection with automatic optical inspection (AOI). However, optical inspection is inefficient for mechanical metal parts manufacturers. Manual visual inspection often requires viewing product surfaces from multiple angles to see the defects due to the reflection of light. It is extremely important to grasp the optical and component surface characteristics to obtain complete and correct defect data.Optical inspection is one of the core technologies of AIoT Business Group, which uses machine learning, deep learning and artificial neural network technologies to train the AI detection model correctly. "Automatic optical inspection accuracy in general is about 80-90%, which means that more than 10% of defects may be misjudged, and manual visual inspection accuracy is about 90%," said Albert Chang, corporate vice resident and co-head of AIoT Business Group. "At present, Asus has enabled AI to greatly improve its accuracy to 98% after learning."AI waveform detection systemFans are a key part of many computers and consumer electronics, cooling components and helping to extend product life. To ensure fan quality, manufacturers relied on inspectors who were able to detect problems with fans just by listening to them. Training highly skilled personnel for this important position took from three to six months, and inspectors would occasionally experience short- or long-term ear fatigue and other occupational factors that negatively impacted worker health and reduced the problem detection rate.To solve this difficult problem, Asus introduced the AI Wave Signature System, which analyzed the sounds of correctly operating fans and used them to develop a sound signature. This sound signature was then used to train AI models to quickly identify high quality fans. The AI Wave Signature System can be combined with testing of a product's electric current, voltage, vibration and other characteristics during inspection to ensure overall product quality. Additionally, the system can be applied to monitor production equipment in real time to avoid factory downtime. For example, by monitoring equipment motors in the factory using the AI Wave Signature System, operators will be notified immediately if a motor begins behaving abnormally. The motor can then be repaired before it fails completely, avoid production halts and accompanying losses.Reproducibility as the Asus AIoT business modelThis year, the Asus AIoT Business Group has set aggressive targets with fan and mechanical parts suppliers and is expected to acquire 30 smart-inspection projects. "The original intention and top priority of the business group is to promote common upgrades in the industry and assist the improvement of the supply chain to face international competition and continue to accumulate experience," said Hsu.Commenting on the introduction of smart manufacturing and AI detection solutions by major factories, Chang said, "In the past, AI algorithms and models were highly customized, improving the potential for AI detection solutions. Reproducibility is the goal of the next stage, enabling quick popularization and adoption along with scalability. Finally, the ultimate vision of the Asus AIoT business group is to focus on 'full quality analysis.'"The target of Asus AIoT for the next three to five years will be data analysis. By investigating causes of defects, assisting the supply chain to find fundamental solutions for high yields, creating a formula for success, and accumulating long-term value, data analysis will become an important pillar of the Asus brand.

STAr Technologies, a leader in parametric and reliability test systems today has launched STAr Pluto series tester to meet test needs for both Package- and Wafer-level reliability test systems. This new tester is an advanced system covering all reliability needs, including HCI, BTI, OTF, TDDB and EM. As the next generation solution that enhances measurement accuracy and efficiency for both engineering and production needs.The next generation Pluto series all-in-one reliability test system delivers two long awaiting fundamental capabilities to the world. First is the per-pin SMU with measurement speed down to one microsecond, and second is its complete HCI, GOI and EM all-in-one reliability test qualification capabilities. With a maximum of 960 per-pin SMUs supporting reliability tests for HCI/BTI with up 480 transistors, GOI with up to 960 gate oxides and EM with up to 480 interconnects in parallel. This new one-of-a-kind reliability test system surpasses all competing reliability systems in the market and achieves highest test performance and throughput at lowest cost-of-tests.Furthermore, the four-quadrant per-pins SMU has multi-ranging voltage and current source-measure capabilities enabling tests of nanometer devices with highest level of precision at shortest test time. Equipped with independent per-pin SMUs, user can create customized test algorithms for in-house needs and to support future reliability qualification tests. Pluto's SMU can support HCI/BTI and GOI with stress voltages up to 20V and measure current down to 10pA for each of the channels. EM (electromigration) with nano-ampere precision up to 400mA stress currents has micro-volt measure accuracies for nanometric interconnects with down to milli-ohm resistance.The Pluto reliability test systems can be connected to individually controlled micro-oven module for DUTs to be tested at different temperature at package/module-level. STAr also has one-of-the-best multi-DUT wafer-level probe stations, and with dozens of install-base at leading customers, it is able to integrate Pluto per-pin test instrumentation seamlessly to form the next generation wafer-level reliability qualification of down-to 3-nanometer node devices."We have listened to users who long wanted per-pin SMU reliability test system, STAr has pioneered the next generation Pluto per-pin SMU reliability test system to meet this need. Pluto supports complete range of nanometer node process and device reliability qualification and with full-flexibility for user to develop customized test programs and qualification methodologies for their own needs. This all-in-one reliability open platform test system will revolutionize the reliability test industry with highest throughput and test capabilities enabling users to mix-and-match different reliability tests in one system. STAr's Pluto reliability test system will significantly lower overall investments with increasing flexible capacity planning for all semiconductor wafer fabs," said Choon-Leong Lou, CEO of STAr Technologies.STAr Pluto all-in-one per-pin SMU reliability test system

Despite the disruptions brought about by COVID-19 globally, Automotive Technology is still progressing in leaps and bounds, especially in the electric vehicle (EV) segment. Latest research from Statista shows the adoption rates of EV projected to reach 30% of total market share by Year 2030, and driving the power electronics market with 6% CAGR till year 2023.This is a good sign for the demand in automotive components but automotive industry quality remains of utmost importance, with 100% inspection of all products as the norm, and a drive toward the goal of zero defective parts per million (zero DPPM). Current quality assurance approaches in the industry are becoming challenging, especially with the impact of COVID-19. It is currently heavily dependent on human inspection, with variations in judgement standards between human operators, not to mention factors such as fatigue, making DPPM increasingly difficult to achieve.The latest AOI system from ASM Pacific Technology Ltd. (ASMPT) can enable the automotive industry to achieve zero DPPM. The system's Optical Inspection and Quality Assurance (QA) functions provide accurate detection capability using Artificial Intelligence technology to augment the rule-based algorithms used by AOI solutions. This blends the advantages of machine accuracy and consistency with the powerful flexibility of human decision-making. In this regard, ASMPT's blended approach is unique.With a full multitude of process features available to monitor and optimize every process and piece of equipment automatically, a truly "Lights Out" production floor vision can be realized. ASMPT views these developments as part of the overall momentum in the industry toward an Industry 4.0 future, astutely marrying leading-edge equipment with intelligent, responsive software to provide a complete solution to secure the 'Holy Grail' of zero DPPM.ASM Pacific Technology