Cover Story
Direction of the Wireless Market to be Determined by Antennas
Part 1: Analysis of Current Status
Arrival of MIMO Necessitates Adoption of the Many New Antenna Technologies
Antenna technologies for portable devices, which previously excited little interest, are now coming into the limelight. In addition to existing antenna manufacturers, semiconductor and instrument manufacturers themselves have also begun developing new antenna technologies. Once the MIMO (Multiple-input and Multiple-output) technology becomes the standard in consumer-use wireless systems, conventional antennas will become a major bottleneck in instrument design and performance. To solve this problem, some companies are using either so-called "metamaterials," materials and designs that cannot be found in nature, while others are adopting adaptive smart antenna technologies in their terminals.
Part 2: Antenna Technologies
Major Advances being made in Antenna Technologies in Preparation for the Arrival of the MIMO Era
As the era approaches when multiple wireless methods will use MIMO, technologies for making ultra-small antenna elements are beginning to emerge. The smart antenna technology, which has been around for a long time but had limited applications, is also poised to become widely commercialized overnight. A methodology that corrects the limitations of compact antenna elements by adaptively and autonomously changing their characteristics will likely become the standard.
Part 3: RF Analog Circuits
Software Defined Radio (SDR) becoming a Reality, with Parts Innovations improving Characteristics
In the near future, software defined radio (SDR) will become the standard in wireless systems. SDR is now becoming necessary in many areas, including technology, telecommunication business, and radio frequency resources. RF analog circuit integration technologies are maturing. Software radio terminals are expected to become a reality in several years, thanks to improvements in the performance of the key parts of architectures that use the reconfigurable RF technology, including antennas. Japanese government institutions have also begun researching cognitive radio technologies.
Special Feature
SID2008--OLED Increase in Size, while LCD Counter with Performance Improvements
As mass production of organic EL panels begins and LCD panels are incorporated into all types of devices, the FPD industry appears to be nearing maturity. Against this background, many new technologies that, while not flashy, can reliably solve existing problems were announced at the Society for Information Display (SID) 2008. Organic EL panels are increasing in size and decreasing in cost, while LCD panels are improving in performance. Therefore, it seems premature to call this a mature market.
10,000 Asian Students to Ease Japan's Engineer Shortage
Students from other Asian countries, such as China, Korea, and Vietnam, who have just graduated from local universities, are landing in Japan in droves. Their goal is to find jobs at Japanese corporations. All these young people speak some Japanese and have mastered some elements of the Japanese corporate culture, such as "reporting-communicating-consulting" and "teamwork." Will these Asian engineers who may be more "Japanese" than the Japanese young people of today be able to help solve Japan's serious engineer shortage?
Battle for Control of the In-vehicle Lithium-ion Rechargeable Battery Market Has Begun
It has now become clear that lithium-ion rechargeable batteries will be installed in cars in 2009, as one automaker after another has announced plans to launch hybrid vehicles and electric vehicles using them. To cope with the tightening restrictions on CO2 emissions worldwide, automakers have no choice but to move toward electric vehicles that use lithium-ion rechargeable batteries. With many manufacturers vying for market share, the battle for control of the in-vehicle lithium-ion rechargeable battery market has now begun.
Academy
Development of a software product line (Part 9 – Special Report)
Reassessing design with an eye toward reuse
Documentary
Origin of Innovation: Development of Matsushita Electric Industrial's UniPhier (Part 1)
What are you going to do with a recorder then?
Tutorial
The Measurement Instruments that Support the Development, Certification, and Manufacturing of WiMAX Devices
WiMAX is a promising new wireless transmission technology. Since new wireless communication technologies are beginning to be adopted, i.e., OFDM (Orthogonal Frequency-Division Multiplexing), OFDMA (Orthogonal Frequency-Division Multiple Access), and MIMO (Multiple Input/Multiple Output), developing new devices that support these technologies will require new functions that differ from those available in conventional measurement instruments.
Image Recognition: Use of Video Cameras with Analysis Functions Spreading Outside Factories
Applications for video cameras with image analysis functions are expanding. Whereas video cameras were once used primarily for monitoring products in factories, they are becoming available in cell phones and are beginning to be used for surveillance in public facilities in the U.S.
Keyword
Image Recognition
Key Person
Zooomr CTO, Kristopher Andrew Tate: Aiming for IPO in the “Golden Country”
NE Interview
E Ink Corp. Asia Pacific Region Vice President, Ryosuke Kuwada: This is the Year for Achieving the Venture Company’s Goal
Many devices are being developed that use electronic paper, including electronic books, cell phones, and watches. E Ink Corporation is a venture company that is supplying the e-paper used in most of these devices. Ryosuke Kuwada, who directs the company's market development efforts, talks about the future of e-paper and E Ink, as well as the project with Sony that helped E Ink achieve its current market position.
World Seport
From Italy: Why haven't mobile TVs become popular in Europe?
News
- Apple Holds Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC), with Focus on iPhone
- Evolution in PoP, with Dual-Faced Electrode Improving the Degree of Freedom in Stacking
- NEC Electronics Develops Circuit for Improving the Quality of Output Images on a Real-time Basis
- Toshiba Information Systems Develops an IP Core for Eigenvalue Decomposition
- National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology Develops Carbon-Nanotube Wafer
