Cover Story
Recycling Problems Coming in 2011
The unexpected obstacles encountered in the recycling of home appliances have left many affected companies stumped for solutions. Three major "2011 Problems" have surfaced surrounding end-of-life CRT TVs that actually provide an excellent opportunity for device developers to face the issue of recycling head-on.
Reality
The Three Recently Surfaced Problems must be Verified and Urgent Industry-wide Action Taken
What is actually happening at recycling sites? We decided to investigate.
Suggestion
Good Opportunity to Reassess the Situation; May Also lead to Real Cost Reduction
The "2011 Recycling Problems" surrounding CRT TVs will provide appliance manufacturers with an excellent opportunity to reassess their approach to recycling. Until now, recycling has only been touted as an environmentally conscientious step.More recently, however, it has become clear that recycling can also lead to cost reduction if done properly. Leading the industry in recycling would not only improve corporate image, but could also enhance a company's competitiveness
Information Section
Current Recycling Status of Major Devices
Mobile phones, cars, PCs, copiers, and multi-function devices
Special Feature
Post-One-Seg: Going Beyond TV
Competition Heating Up in Preparation for Analog Broadcasting Stoppage in 3 Years
New broadcasting services targeting portable devices are about to start. 1seg broadcasting service, which began in 2004, was a success, with receiver shipments exceeding 30 million units. However, 1seg merely encouraged consumers to replace their receivers, without creating market value as a new medium. Now that 1seg has helped users become used to the idea of receiving broadcasting signals on their mobile phones, mobile phone service providers have begun to offer new broadcasting services.
Human Body Communication Taking Off Toward Commercialization
Scenes like walking through an automatic ticket-checking machine or paying for purchases by simply touching a device with one's hand may become commonplace in the near future. The technology that could soon make such scenes a reality is called human body communication, which uses the human body as the medium to transmit a signal when it approaches a device. Full-scale commercial use of this technology is about to begin.
Testing and Analysis Outsourcing Service: Preventing Product Accidents by Integrating Testing and Analysis
Suppose a new device that you introduce into the market bursts into flames. When such accidents happen, subcontracting services are available that offer testing and analysis. For example, such services can identify the defect cause from charred parts and can even conduct tests that would reproduce the accident. In addition to analyzing accidents involving fire, some services also specialize in creating quality evaluation standards for parts to be procured from overseas. This article describes the current status of testing and analysis services, which can be convenient tools for device and parts manufacturers, as well as how to effectively employ such services.
Guest Paper
Toshiba's Next-Generation SoC "Venezia" Adopts Homogeneous Multicore
Developed with Expanded Use in Various Devices in Mind
Toshiba Semiconductor Company has developed a next-generation SoC architecture, "Venezia." Assuming that software will be used in the future in a wide range of applications, including mobile phones, cars and in-vehicle devices, the company switched from its conventional architecture based on hard-wired circuits to one that uses software to process many of the required functions. Toshiba adopted a so-called homogeneous multicore, which contains multiple CPU cores of the same type and distributes the processing load among these cores, thereby increasing software reusability. We interviewed the designer of the Venezia architecture, which the company plans to commercialize before the end of 2009, about the concept behind the development, details of the enabling technologies, and characteristic evaluation results of a prototype chip, as well as future issues and technical directions.
Documentary
Origin of Innovation: Development of Matsushita Electric Industrial’s UniPhier (Part 2)
There is no way we are going to work on a 2-Chip BD!
Matsushita Electric Industrial's UniPhier concept unifies the platforms for all of the company's digital consumer appliances. Satoru Fujikawa (currently Director of the PanasonicStrategicSemiconductorDevelopmentCenter), who is directing this project, seized the opportunity to unify the company's platforms when developing a first-generation Blu-ray Disc (BD) recorder in 2002. The Recorder Division decided to import a massive number of digital broadcasting software assets from the TV Division.
Academy
Session 1: Microprocessor as the Foundation of Everything
"Embedding Tutorial" is a column teaching the basics of embedded systems, using practice tests for the Embedded Technology Engineer Certification test (ETEC) administered by the Japan Embedded Systems Technology Association.
Tutorial
Technology Trends in Switching Power Supplies for Flat-Panel TVs (Part 1): All Types of Technologies Being Used in Switching Power Supplies for Consumer Applications
This is the first of a series of articles describing the basics of the switching power supply technologies and methods designed for LCD TVs and PDP TVs which use flat panel displays (FPDs). This article describes the historical trends behind the various types of switching power supply technologies.
Introduction to CMOS RF Circuitry Design (Part 6): High-Frequency Characteristics of Si Substrate and On-Chip Inductor
In the previous five installments, we have explained wireless system architectures suitable to CMOS technologies, as well as wireless output and noise evaluation methods (circuit design). With this installment, we will begin explaining the practical issues involved in designing various electronic circuits on an actual Si substrate. Specifically, this article covers the characteristics of Si substrates and the design of on-chip inductors.
Keyword
Flash
Key Person
Japan National Science Museum, Kazuyoshi Suzuki: "I Want to Make Japan's Strengths More Widely Known by Showcasing its Hidden Technologies"
NE Interview
Quanta Computer Inc., Senior VP, Alan Tsai: "We Cannot Claim to Be No. 1 Based Solely on Shipment Volume"
Taiwan's Quanta Computer, Inc. is a giant corporation that manufactures 1 out of every 3 laptop PCs sold in the world. The company does OEM design and manufacturing for the world's top 10 laptop companies, excluding only Taiwan's ASUSTeK Computer, Inc. Quanta is also manufacturing other information devices, including the iPod Touch, the personal navigation device (PND) of Holland's TomTom N.V., Matsushita Electric Industrial's car navigation systems, and Sharp's UMPC (Ultra-Mobile PC) called "WILLCOM D4."
The company's consolidated sales revenue jumped by an astonishing 45% year-on-year in 2007 to approximately 2.79 trillion yen, while its operating income increased by 2.5%, up 0.6 percentage points from the previous year.
Mr. Alan Tsai, whom we interviewed, is No. 3 at Quanta and is reputed to be the leading director responsible for technology. He manages half of the company's laptop PC business, as well as its PND and small portable device business. We asked Mr. Tsai to talk about his view of the PC market and Quanta's direction.
World Seport
From Poland: Central and Eastern Europe Becoming Center of Flat-Panel TV Industry
News
- Sony and OmniVision Do About-Face on CMOS Sensor Structure and Adopt BSI
- Toshiba Verifies Safety of Lithium-Ion Rechargeable Battery that Uses Lithium Titanium Oxide (LTO)
- Omron Develops 0.59-mm Thick Backlight for LCD Panels
- Audience Develops Noise-Reduction IC Based on Human Auditory Information Processing
- Mitsubishi Chemical Enters the Plant Factory Industry
