APPLE reveals the latest 12.9-inch iPad Pro product of 2020, which is equipped with a LiDAR scanner for world facing 3D sensing solution. The product can be regarded as an outpost for full 3D sensing iPhones scheduled in September 2020. 3D sensing has been equipped with rear camera to provide features like rangefinder, blur photo effect (background removal included), 3D object recognition, spatial modeling and augmented reality. 3D sensing combining 5G transmission and AR function with gesture control is expected to realize interactive augmented reality, leading to ...

Despite the coronavirus pandemic, the progress of Micro LED technology continues to go on. After AIXTRON reported that it has received orders from the Konka Group for Micro LED pilot production, another equipment supplier, CyperOptics, who specialized in high precision 3D sensing technology, also announced orders for Micro LED production. Based in Minnesota, USA, CyberOptics develops and manufactures 3D sensing technology solutions for inspection and metrology in the SMT and semiconductor markets to improve yields and productivity. (Image: CyberO...

Many businesses are updating their outlook of the year as the global business has been affected by the continuously spreading coronavirus across the world. Osram announced on March 18 the withdrawal of the guidance for its fiscal 2020 as the German photonics company thinks it is unlikely to achieve its corporate targets due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. (Image: Pixabay) Osram noted that the unprecedented operational and financial challenges posed by the spread of COVID-19 and the uncertain developments in the coming weeks are leading to economic impact on the...

AU Optronics (AUO), the Taiwan-based panel manufacturer, held an annual press event displaying its new products and applications in 2020 including 8K TVs, Micro LED automotive displays, Mini LED backlit displays. (Image: LEDinside) The wide range of displays target diverse fields covering medical applications, gaming displays, public information displays, automotive displays and more. AUO noted that orders for medical and educational applications such as electronic whiteboards and digital X-ray panels have increased with rising needs in home education and med...

The COVID-19 coronavirus outbreaks across the world has forced the industry to take actions as impacts brought the epidemic continue to expand. In the U.S., equipment provider Veeco said that the epidemic is inevitably affecting its business for 1Q20 and thus withdrew its guidance for the first quarter. LiDAR maker Velodyne also noted that its offices in Bay Area, San Francisco are closed, following the mandatory “shelter-in-place” order in the area. (Image: Pixabay) Veeco said that it puts the health and well-being of its employees, customers, suppli...

Sensor solution provider AMS debuted a new IR flood illuminator module, Merano Hybrid, which integrates the laser emitter, laser driver, optical stack and eye-safety monitoring to enhance 3D sensing capabilities for mobile products. (Image: AMS) The highly power-efficient 2W Merano-Hybrid is suitable for use in the latest 3D sensing technologies, including the Time-of-Flight and Structured Light methods. Applications such as face recognition, augmented reality, 3D object scanning and 3D image rendering, as well as other industrial and automotive applications, w...

AIXTRON announced that Konka Group has ordered multiple AIX G5+ C and AIX 2800G4-TM MOCVD systems to build its own volume production of GaN-based (gallium nitride) and AsP-based (Arsenide-Phosphide) Mini- and Micro LEDs. Konka, which recently announced its plans to enter the North American consumer electronics market in 2020, established its Micro LED initiative as a joint venture with Chongqing Liangshan Industrial Investment. The company also increase an investment of over US$210 million for Micro LED development. Most recently, ...

UV light exposure not only kills microorganism, it can also assess meat quality. A research team with scientists of Sechenov University in Russia, Macquarie University and University of New South Wales in Australia proposed a method incorporating UV light emission to classify meat into standard quality categories. The study was published in Journal of Biophotonics under the title “Autofluorescence excitation-emission matrices as a quantitative tool for the assessment of meat quality.” Conventionally, to evaluate the quality of beef, specialists pay attentio...

Korea’s LED company, Seoul Semiconductor, announced that its former R&D employee (“Kim”, age of 40) was found guilty and sentenced to imprisonment as he divulged key LED technology from the company. At the end of February, the Incheon Criminal District Court sentenced eight months in prison, two years of probation and 120 hours of community service to a former R&D employee of Seoul Semiconductor, who resigned in December 2014, charged with the Act on Prevention of Divulgence and Protection of Industrial Technology. The Court sa...

85,000 lights points in the city of Cologne, Germany, are connected with Signify’s Interact City lighting management system to make the city smarter. The installation is expected to increase the city’s energy efficiency and reduce costs while improve the safety and quality of life of the citizens. The system can also accommodate the integration of sensors into the luminaires, providing data that offer environmental benefits that go beyond lighting. RheinEnergie, which is responsible for the city’s lighting, will replace all the light points with connected luminaire...

LED suppliers in Taiwan are seizing their opportunity in Mini LED with their production capacities in Taiwan which are less impacted by the coronavirus epidemic and free from tariffs. With Apple reportedly to launch iPad and MacBook based on Mini LED backlight technology, many expect that demands for Mini LED will surge. Seeing the trends, industry players in Taiwan believes that they can take the advantages in both technology development and production. Many Taiwan-based companies own capacity in Taiwan, China and also other countries. Since the trade disp...

A multi-departmental research team at Taiwan’s National Chi Nan University (NCNU) collaborated with local famers and developed a LED lighting system for water bamboo (Zizania latifolia) cultivation to improve the growth with a new design of LED lenses. The advanced technology tackled the existing issues and proved to benefit the harvest. The results were published Applied Sciences in February 2020, titled “Optimized LED-Integrated Agricultural Facilities for Adjusting the Growth of Water Bamboo (Zizania latifolia).” The optimized LED...

LightFair International, originally scheduled to take place during May 3-7, 2020, in Las Vegas, was postponed due to the spreading coronavirus epidemic. Also, Prolight + Sound, which was postponed to May 26-29, has been cancelled. (Image: LightFair) On March 13, LightFair announced the postponement of the trade show and conference. The fair will be moved to late summer or early fall pending on the conditions. Dan Darby, the show director, addressed that safety and wellbeing of all LightFair attendees is the first priority and postponing the show is the most res...

Signify launched new Philips IoT sensor bundles that collect and deliver data via the Interact Office connected lighting system and Environmental monitoring API’s. The new sensors that are being launched enable businesses to monitor their office environment and optimize conditions for employee health and wellbeing. (Image: Signify) The new sensor bundles can monitor occupancy, the number of people, temperature (at room and at desk level), noise levels, daylight levels, relative humidity and are Bluetooth enabled, to provide indoor positioning and navigation capabil...

Micro LED technology builder VerLASE introduced a novel mass transfer technique for Micro LED display production based on its “Large Area Assembly Platform” (LAAP), which the company revealed in June, 2019. With similar concept, the company transfer the technology into a simpler, semiconductor-fab compatible solution based on Photo-Mechanical Actuation (PMA). According to VerLASE, the solution uses a novel formulation comprising of fab compatible chemistries and transfer stamp architecture in a unique way to deterministically pick-up a large ...

Velodyne Lidar announced a multi-year sales agreement with NAVYA, an autonomous driving system provider. NAYVA is a French company expert in autonomous driving system. The company has put into service autonomous mobility solutions in 2015 and used Velodyne’s LiDAR sensors in production for its autonomous shuttle fleet that provides mobility services to cities and private sites. (Image: Velodyne Lidar/NAVYA) With the sales agreement, NAVYA plans to pursue the worldwide expansion of its shuttle with Velodyne’s sensors for precise real-time...

The coronavirus has now declared a worldwide pandemic by the World Health Organization and the infected numbers continues to rise all over the world. Products used for preventing infection thus became bestsellers everywhere. Featuring disinfecting function, UVC LED embedded products are also drawing attentions in the market. LED companies who have been progressing UV LED technologies now leverage their strengths to launch UV LED products for meeting the surging demands for disinfection applications. (Image: Pixabay) Lextar, the vertical integrated LED ...

ON Semiconductor revealed the Connected Lighting Platform, leveraging the company's expertise in Power over Ethernet (PoE) and ultra-low-power Bluetooth® Low Energy connectivity, along with AC/DC and DC/DC power conversion design. The prototyping platform enables engineering teams to explore and innovate in the connected lighting sector, where light fittings become part of the Internet of Things (IoT). The Connected Lighting Platform features multiple forms of connectivity for LED control, including secured Bluetooth Low Energy, provided by th...

Mitsubishi Electric announced that it has developed a compact LiDAR solution incorporating a micro-electromechanical system (MEMS) that achieves an extra-wide horizontal scanning angle to accurately detect the shapes and distances of objects ahead in autonomous driving systems. The new LiDAR solution irradiates objects by laser and uses a dual-axis (horizontal and vertical) MEMS mirror to scan for the reflected light, generating three-dimensional images of vehicles and pedestrians. Mitsubishi Electric expects this compact, low-cost solution to contribute to th...

A new type of light emitting textile may enable innovative wearable applications. Researchers at the University of Windsor in Canada published their development in the journal Matters, revealing a stretchable, lighting emitting fabric based on typical ultrasheer pantyhose coated in a thin gold film. (Image: Matters) The new development tackled some of the limitations of existing light-emitting fabrics and use the textile structure as an integral part of the wearable device design. With effective power sources, the light emitting fabric could be further developed into more fun...

Stanley Electric is a Japanese automotive LED and UV/IR LED company, whose high-power Deep UV LEDs have attracted a great deal of attention, especially in the field of public health and disinfection. The exclusive AlN-based UV-C LED patent allows Stanley to engage in extremely high-power UV LED technologies and applications. With a production range from semiconductor substrate, chips, UV LED packages, UV LED lighting source modules and UV LED water disinfection reactors, Stanley Electric is dedicated to providing full-services for water dis...

Whilst celebrating its success from the past 25 years, Guangzhou International Lighting Exhibition (GILE) 2020 will look towards the future for the emerging trends and latest news within the lighting industry. From 9 – 12 June, at the China Import and Export Fair Complex Guangzhou, GILE will welcome global exhibitors that together, construct the growing lighting ecosystem. New technologies in IoT, wireless connectivity, cloud computing and non-visual effects of light will coincide at the fair, alongside lighting solutions and components to echo the flourishing a...

Scientist at University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley) have created a blue LED from a new semiconductor material halide perovskite, overcoming a major barrier to employing these cheap, easy-to-make materials in electronic devices. Published in Science Advances on January 24, the study demonstrates the technology breakthrough of applying the unstable material as halide perovskite changes with temperature, humidity and the chemical environment and their optical and electronic properties are thus disrupted. Making semiconductor diodes that emit blue light has always b...

Based in the heart of Silicon Valley, Violumas, the UV division of Flip Chip Opto under Cofan Group, is known as a supplier for full-service UV LED products and solutions. Their patented 3-Pad Flip Chip technology allows them to engage in UV technologies and applications with more powerful and reliable solutions. With a product range featuring epis, chips, UV LED packages, UV LED modules, and cooling solutions, Violumas is dedicated to providing full-service UV solutions from UV-A, UV-B and UV-C range (405 to 265nm). LEDinside was very honor...

Samsung Electronics unveiled its first "human-centric" LED packages, collectively known as LM302N. Engineered with carefully created light spectra, the LM302N family helps human bodies adjust melatonin levels indoors, making people feel more energetic or relaxed depending on their daily life patterns. “The benefits of using Samsung's LM302N reach beyond the basic lighting function of visual recognition, by improving the non-visual biological effects of lighting on people,” said Un Soo Kim, senior vice president of LED Business Team at Sa...

Orion Lighting highlighted its offering of specialized lighting solutions to combat bacteria, fungus, mold and mildew in high-traffic areas such as schools, healthcare, foodservice and fitness facilities, including high-risk areas such as bathrooms, waiting areas, locker rooms and other public spaces. Orion’s ISON™ LDRMH1 LED Fixture Features Britex™ Anti-Microbial Fixture Coating, Plus an Option to Add VioSafe™ Anti-Microbial Light Technology Orion’s solutions utilize a combination of proprietary technologies, including its B...

Taiwan-based LED chip maker EPISTAR announced that it has received a remarkable ruling on LED filament bulbs in the patent litigation against Lowe’s. On February 11, 2020, the United States District Court for the Central District of California granted summary judgment of infringement against Lowe’s Home Center (Lowe’s). (Image: EPISTAR) The summary judgment order found that the accused Lowe’s LED bulbs infringed claims 1-3 and 8 of United States Patent No. 7,560,738 (’738 Patent), which is entitled “Ligh...

Researchers of the Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST) develop a new material for blue light emitting LEDs which can replace gallium nitride (GaN). According to the report of BusinessKorea, the new technology breakthrough might enable Korea to reduce the dependence of Japan on LED materials. Published on Scientific Report on March 04, 2020, the study titled “Intrinsically p-type cuprous iodide semiconductor for hybrid light emitting diodes,” demonstrate the single crystal epitaxy of cuprous iodide (CuI) film grown on Si and sapphire s...

After Light + Building and ProLight + Sound postponed due to concern of the coronavirus epidemic, another lighting related event LEDucation that was scheduled from March 17 to 18, has been moved to August 18 to 19, 2020. LEDucation is a non-profit event organized by the Designers Lighting Forum of New York, serving as a platform for industry professionals to experience new technologies or advance their knowledge with series of seminars and conference arranged. The event takes place in New York City and is expecting over 400 exhibitors and more than 6000 attendees ...

Osram announced that it has decided to shut down server support for smart lamps from the Lightify lighting system. Osram and its system distributor LEDVANCE noted that customers are now using comprehensive Smart Home solutions with intelligent assistants to control smart lighting, instead of using a separate lighting control system or gateway. Osram will therefore be shutting down the cloud server for controlling the Lightify gateway on August 31, 2021. In the beginning of 2019, LEDVANCE finished selling the gateway while part of the Smart+ products are still s...