Sharp to Introduce PDA Featuring System LCD in November
Sanyo Electric Develops Low-Power LCD for Cellular Phone
KRI Develops Flexible Display Substrate for OEL and LCD
Hitachi to Begin Sampling of Chipset for LTPS LCD
Fujitsu to Boost Production of FRAM
Fuji Xerox Develops Material for Holographic Memory

Sharp will commercialize a PDA that is equipped with a "System LCD," an LCD-based flat panel display module that integrates peripheral circuits on the screen itself -- in November 2002. According to reports in the Japanese trade press, the LCD resolution will be improved such that content equivalent to what would appear on a notebook computer display can be accommodated on a PDA-format screen. Sharp plans to promote its new PDA as a realistic substitute for a full-fledged notebook. Another benefit of the technology is that, as it does not have peripheral circuits aside from the screen, the display module can be designed to be thin. Sharp will begin commercial production of the System LCD in October 2002 at its Tenri Plant in Nara Prefecture according to reports in Japan. Initially, the firm plans to produce 2.5 million panels (2-inch equivalents) a month. [M. Robertson, Portelligent]

Sanyo Electric has developed an LCD display technology that the company claims boasts power consumption of approximately 1/30 of existing LCD modules when displaying still images. It is suitable for cellular phones and notebook PCs, as well as applications such as electronic newspapers.

The new LCD can display both still images and video. Conventionally, an LCD uses the same circuitry to display both still images and video, but displaying video consumes more power than displaying still images. Sanyo Electric’s new display uses different circuits to display still images and video. Still images are displayed using memory incorporated in the LCD screen itself. It requires 3V to display still images with this technology, and power consumption is approximately 0.07 mW, a significant reduction compared to the 1-2mW required for existing LCDs. According to Sanyo Electric’s calculation, using a PDA with a lithium battery, the new display technology can continue to display images for two years (when the image is changed once per minute), whereas a conventional LCD can only last three days on a single battery charge. The new LCD can display 640,000 colors with video; however, it only supports 8 colors when displaying still images. Sanyo Electric predicts there will be considerable demand for the low-power consumption characteristics of the display, despite the limitation in number of colors. The company plans to commercialize the new LCD within a year and to supply modules to U.S. system manufacturers. [M. Robertson, Portelligent]

KRI (Kansai Research Institute), headquartered in Kyoto, Japan, has developed a light-weight flexible substrate for OEL (Organic Electro Luminescent) displays and for LCDs. The substrate consists of a 50-micron thick glass layer coated with organic film. The organic film, which is a compound material of an alkyl group or benzene ring, is 3 micron thick. The new substrate’s heat resistance is 300 C, which according to reports in Japan will allow it to stand up to display manufacturing processes. The substrate has only 10 percent the weight and boasts double the degree of flexibility of a conventional glass substrate used in display manufacturing.

The Kansai Research Institute plans to launch a research project with display-making firms, with the goal of commercializing the new substrate around 2004.

KRI’s English language web site is at: http://www.kansai-ri.co.jp/index_e.html [M. Robertson, Portelligent]

Hitachi will begin sample shipment of a chip-set for low-temperature poly silicon (LTPS) TFT color LCD displays in August 2002. The chip-set, which supports 256 x 320 pixels and 262,144 colors, is equipped with a high-speed video interface. It can receive video data such as MPEG-4 at high speed and display video images smoothly. The sample price is 1600 yen ($13 @ yen 120/$US 1) for a chip integrating display buffer memory and a display controller. The price for an LCD power source chip is 300 yen ($2.50). [M. Robertson, Portelligent]

Fujitsu, Ltd. has announced that it will increase its production capacity for FRAM (Ferroelectric Random Access Memory), which is used as memory in IC cards. Fujitsu plans to increase annual production volume from 30 million units in fiscal 2001 (April 2001 to March 2002) to 100 million units in the fiscal 2005 (which ends March 2006). Sales revenue from FRAM is forecast to rise to 50 billion yen ($416.67 million @ yen 120/$ US1) in fiscal 2005 from the 10 billion yen ($83.33 million) in fiscal 2001.

Fujitsu has decided to increase FRAM production capacity primarily because the IC card market is expected to expand dramatically, given such developments as the Japanese government’s "e-Japan Project" and the growing penetration of multi-functional cards.

Fujitsu began full-fledged production of FRAM in 2000. Despite the downturn in the semiconductor industry, Fujitsu’s FRAM production volume doubled to 30 million pieces in 2001, of which 30 percent was for applications in IC cards. Although Fujitsu does not expect high growth in the current fiscal year, it predicts that FRAM demand driven by IC cards will become a very significant factor beginning in fiscal 2003. The firm forecasts that 80 percent of its FRAM production will be destined for use in IC cards by fiscal 2005. Fujitsu’s FRAM devices are being produced at its Iwate Plant in Japan, which was previously a DRAM production line.

In addition to domestic sales, Fujitsu plans to strengthen FRAM sales overseas. The company plans to raise the ratio of overseas sales to at least 40 percent in fiscal 2005 from the current level of 30 percent. As further indication of this international expansion, Fujitsu established the FRAM Center in Paris, France in October 2001 for the design of FRAMs. The French design center has about 10 employees and Fujitsu plans to hire more designers as the market grows. [M. Robertson, Portelligent]

Fuji Xerox has developed a polymer material for use in holographic memory applications. When used as holographic memory, the material, which is a polyester-based polymer, supports both non-volatile data storage and re-writable capability. Fuji Xerox plans to develop a prototype of re-writable holographic memory in 2004 and to commercialize the resulting technology in 2006. If realized, one disc can record the equivalent of 200 DVD’s contents.

The polyester-based polymer Fuji Xerox has developed consists of two benzene rings bonded with Azo group compounds, with configuration as a lateral chain. A primary characteristic of this polymer material is that it grows automatically at around TGE. Irradiating light is used to write data to the disk, causing the molecules in the material to line up spontaneously. The way the molecules align themselves can be controlled by adjusting the wavelength of the impinging light source.

According to reports in the Japanese trade press, the material will support the fabrication of a storage disk with the theoretical capability to record the equivalent of 200 DVD disks. Researchers at Fuji Xerox think that, in addition to the high-density data storage properties of holographic memory based on the new polymer material, it may be possible to develop a derivative device that adds computational capabilities to the data-storage function. The firm hopes to commercialize "processable memory" (memory with a computational capability) with its holographic memory in 2008. [M. Robertson, Portelligent]