Cover Story
HDTV in Your Palm Will Redefine the Mobile Phone
Connecting a Cell Phone to a TV to View HDTV Images Anywhere
Part 1: Future Outlook-Parts Technology Evolution Forcing Cell Phones to Become HDTV-compatible
Functions for processing HDTV video images will be incorporated into cell phones. Interfaces for exchanging high-quality video data with surrounding devices and high-speed memory cards will be embedded in cell phones. Rapid advances in parts technology will create a powerful impetus for making cell phones compatible with HDTV. This will trigger dramatic changes in cell phones, which will become more connected with surrounding devices. Functional separation in cell phones might even begin.
Part 2: Core Technologies
Processors Lead the Drive toward Developing HDTV-Compatible Cell Phones Parts manufacturers are beginning to make specific moves toward the goal of enabling the development of HDTV-compatible cell phones. 720p-compatible application processors are already here, and 1080p-compatible products will likely arrive in 2008. In 2009, HDMI connectors will be incorporated into cell phones, making it possible to send non-compressed HDTV video images to digital devices. Efforts are also underway to develop Full-Seg tuners that will make it possible to receive terrestrial digital broadcasting signals. Manufacturers of ultra-compact projectors that can be incorporated into cell phones will also try to make their products HDTV-compatible.
Special Feature
Environmental Awareness Lends Helping Hand to LEDs, Which Outperform Fluorescent Lights in Terms of Power Consumption and Cost
Lighting consumes an average of approximately 19% of total electricity consumption worldwide, and approximately 18% in Japan. Within the global discussion of measures for preventing global warming by reducing CO2 emissions, there are strong calls for reductions in the power consumption of lighting fixtures as well. In response, the development of high-efficiency lighting fixtures is progressing at a fast pace. Fluorescent light bulbs with power conversion efficiency that has been improved by 10 to 20% have emerged for primary lighting applications, and the majority of incandescent light bulbs used in downlighting are being replaced with compact fluorescent light bulbs, which offer 4 to 5 times the efficiency. Toshiba Lighting & Technology Corporation, which makes lighting fixtures, has even announced that it will cease production of ordinary incandescent light bulbs by 2010, in order to help reduce CO2 emissions. This wave of demand for high-efficiency illumination will draw interest to lighting fixtures that use white LEDs as their light sources. LEDs have always been considered the "future" light sources for lighting fixtures. However, in reality, their popularity has not grown substantially, except in decorative lighting applications, where the use of LEDs has been steadily increasing. LEDs have been adopted only in a handful of general lighting applications such as fixtures used for illumination inside offices. According to IDEC Corporation, the market ramp-up has been slow, contrary to initial projections. However, the movement toward reducing electricity consumption that is occurring on a global scale will drastically change this situation. LED illumination is about to take center stage in lighting applications.
Mobile Phone Camera Modules-Pursuing Smaller, Thinner, Lower Cost Technologies as High End Specifications Are Transferred to Standard Products
In 2008 and 2009, a wider selection of camera modules will become available in cell phones. This is because both products with 2 to 3 million pixels targeted at mid-range products, and VGA products targeted at low-end models, smaller and embedded cameras will become substantially smaller, thinner, and lower in cost. By employing new technologies, module manufacturers are commercializing general-purpose products at a fast pace for multiple customers.
Guest Paper
Technology to Automatically Adjust the Settings of AV Equipment to Match the Media Content
Means for delivering digital media, such as movies and music, are becoming more diversified. As a result, digital home appliances used for playing back content are becoming more and more complex. Every time the content type changes, the user must manually select the proper settings in order to play back the content. But since there are so many settings and operations are cumbersome, most users are using their appliances in wrong modes or with the wrong settings. THX Ltd. has developed the THX Media Director technology, which simplifies the operation and setting of digital home appliances such as TVs. There are high hopes that this meta-data-based technology will restore simplicity to the devices used for playing back content.
Documentary
Developing Human Resources: Greenhorn Takes on Silicon Valley (First Half)
Academy 2
Part 8: From Installation to Verification
Verifying a Design using a Working Model
It is now time to link the codes generated from a model with the codes unique to a microcomputer kit, in order to verify how the model works on the microcomputer kit, as was done in Part 1.
Tutorial
How Engineers Can Utilize Patent Information (Final Part): The Mobile Phone Market’s Winning Scenario-Verifying the Scenarios Through Patent Information
This is the last in the series introducing the methodology that utilizes patent information to investigate technological trends. This issue focuses on the cell phone field. For semiconductor manufacturers, the cell phone market is attractive, but intense competition can be expected at the same time. The author has created three hypotheses that for these manufacturers to emerge as winners in this market, and will verify their validity based on patent information.
Build Your Next Company Around Robotics
The robot market can be expected to experience major growth in the future.
However, for a robot venture to be established, it is necessary to identify those areas of robot development that have the greatest needs. According to the author, inexpensive sensors, robust APIs, kits that are not too expensive, and artificial intelligence are four such promising areas.
Keyword
Human Body Communication
Key Person
International Academy of Media Arts and Sciences Associate Professor Shigeru Kobayashi: Creating a Common Language for Designers and Technicians
NE Interview
NVIDIA Corp. Chief Scientist David Kirk: We Need to Develop Software to Cope with Future Parallel Processing
As graphic processing LSIs (graphic processing units-GPUs) evolve toward being able to flexibly execute a wide variety of image-processing tasks at high speeds, they are morphing architecturally into general-purpose computation engines. The approach of using these GPUs for high-speed processing of many different types of applications, such as various kinds of physical simulations for computing the behaviors of physical objects, fluids, and electromagnetic waves, medical imaging, and financial analysis, is referred to as GPU computing. NVIDIA Corporation of the U.S., recognized as a specialized GPU manufacturer, began to use this term about a year ago. We interviewed Dr. David Kirk, who leads development efforts at the company and is a strong advocate of GPU computing.
World Report
From China: A Look into the Enigma of Chinese Consumerism-Why We Shouldn’t Expect Special Demand from the Beijing Olympics
News
- 7 Major Manufacturers Jointly Propose LTE Patent Licensing Framework
- Safe C Language for Embedded Software
- Ehime University Develops Drive Control Method Capable of Doubling the Luminousness of LEDs
- ROHM Aims to Entry into the Wi-Fi Module Market
- Variable Focus Gel Lens Developed to Enhance Mobile Phone Camera Zooming
