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The full MEMS Journal archive — 107 articles across two decades of sensors, MEMS, and microtechnology.
Omnitron Sensors raises $2.4 million to build next-generation MEMS based capacitive and optical sensors
Omnitron Sensors has successfully closed an over-subscribed $2.4 million Seed round , coming soon after being highlighted by TechCrunch and this year’s Demo Day at 500 Startups. The round was led by Corriente Advisors , with participation from Emerging Ventures, Stratminds, and Break Off, as well as others. “We are…
MEMS timing device maker SiTime files to go public to raise $100 million
SiTime, a market leader in MEMS timing devices , announced last week that it has publicly filed a registration statement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) relating to a proposed initial public offering (IPO) of its common stock. SiTime had revenues of $101 million in 2017 and $85 million in…
MEMS and sensors CAE startup OnScale raises $3 million, emerges from stealth mode
Emerging from stealth mode this week, OnScale announced $3 million in strategic seed funding and unveiled the industry's first solver-as-a-service platform that gives engineers the power to accelerate innovation in the $40 billion MEMS, sensors, 5G, biomedical, IoT, and automated car markets. OnScale was co-founded…
Next big applications for MEMS and sensors: robotics, wellness, and smart factories
In this detailed interview, Dr. Peter Hartwell , Senior Director of Advanced Technology at InvenSense , discusses current MEMS and sensors technology trends. He also highlights emerging applications such as personal robotics, health and wellness, and smart manufacturing . Dr. Hartwell discusses some of the most…
MIPI Alliance releases I3C interface specification for more seamless sensors system integration
The proliferation of sensors in mobile devices requires an increasing number of logic pins for sensor communication and control. In a typical application, multiple digital communication interfaces (e.g. SPI, I²C, UART, and others ) are used along with supporting logic signals for interrupt and sleep…
TDK to acquire MEMS maker InvenSense for $1.3 billion in cash
TDK Corporation and MEMS maker InvenSense entered into a definitive agreement this week with TDK agreeing to acquire all of the outstanding InvenSense shares for cash for a total acquisition price of $1.3 billion . The transaction has been unanimously approved by the Boards of Directors of both companies.…
SEMI and MSIG strategic partnership: what does it mean for the MEMS and sensors industry?
In September of this year SEMI and MEMS & Sensors Industry Group ( MSIG ) announced that they will be joining together in a strategic partnership starting on January 1, 2017. SEMI has 2,000 member companies and connects more than 250,000 professionals worldwide to advance the science and business of electronics…
MEMS maker InvenSense sees big opportunities for sensors in drone and virtual reality applications
With a saturated smartphone market where the number of sensor units per device appears to have peaked , MEMS product companies are pursuing new market opportunities. Two emerging sensor-rich applications are drones and virtual reality (VR) . Drones use an inertial measurement unit (IMU) for positioning,…
Sensors attract $3.4 billion in funding over past decade
Developers of innovative sensors attracted $3.4 billion , or nearly 80% of the $4.3 billion funding for sensor modules over the past decade , underlining their importance in the fast-emerging IoT market , according to Lux Research. Overall investment in innovative sensors tripled between 2006 and 2015 , reaching…
MEMS foundry Micralyne expands executive team, outlines company strategy
The MEMS foundry marketplace has been experiencing more changes in the past few years and the competitive dynamics have been shifting. Micralyne , which has been in the MEMS foundry business for more than 30 years, was acquired by FTC Technologies in January 2015 and has since been actively expanding its management…
MEMS and sensors ASIC maker ACAM acquired by AMS
Austrian company AMS , a provider of sensors and analog IC solutions, has acquired German-based ASIC maker ACAM . The acquisition should strengthen ACAM's ASIC product portfolio for sensors applications due to AMS' much larger R&D, sales, and manufacturing resources. ACAM was founded 18 years ago and its unique…
Industrial IoT applications drive demand for MEMS devices
The rapid expansion of the Internet of Things (IoT) is driving demand growth for MEMS devices in application areas such as asset tracking systems , smart grid and building automation . Worldwide market revenue for MEMS devices directly used in industrial IoT equipment applications will rise to $120 million in 2018,…
MEMS foundry Tronics seizes sub-micron MEMS opportunities
Tronics has been manufacturing MEMS devices for 15 years with an emphasis on SOI and WLP , and has focused on specialized MEMS fabrication processes. As such, the company said recently that it is capitalizing on the growing number of sub-micron MEMS devices opportunities to expand its equipment and process base.…
Wearable sensor market to expand sevenfold in five years
Driven by rising demand for fitness and health monitoring features as well as by improved user interfaces, shipments of sensors used in wearable electronic devices will rise by a factor of seven from 2013 through 2019, according to IHS Technology . The worldwide market for sensors in wearables will expand to 466…
Si-Ware developing portfolio of disruptive MEMS products
While some of the MEMS companies continue to face downward price pressures , there are many new products, devices and technologies that are in development . Many of these innovations will be launched in the marketplace in the coming months. One company that is contributing to this “new wave” of MEMS is Si-Ware…
MEMS based sensor maker InvenSense acquires Movea, Trusted Positioning for $81 million
InvenSense , a provider MEMS based sensor solutions, announced this week that it has signed definitive agreements to acquire Movea , a sensor fusion and context awareness software company, and Trusted Positioning (TPI), an indoor and outdoor location tracking software firm. InvenSense will pay approximately $81…
Automotive MEMS: an overview of the top ten suppliers
Bosch , based in Germany, was the top supplier in the world last year of automotive MEMS sensors, a market in which shipments continue to expand strongly , but where revenue was being squeezed by marked price erosion , according to a new report from IHS . With revenues of $740 million , Bosch’s total amounted to…
Silex continues to focus on TSV technologies, pure play MEMS foundry model
The marketplace for MEMS foundry services is getting increasingly more competitive and globalized . Recently, large companies such as TSMC and GLOBALFOUNDRIES have been more aggressive in the MEMS space and, perhaps, are even subsidizing some projects to get more experience with the relevant process technologies.…
MEMS makers ST, InvenSense announce settlement of pending patent litigation
STMicroelectronics and InvenSense , the leading makers of MEMS based motion sensors , announced this week that they have settled all pending proceedings between them and have entered into a patent cross license agreement. The two companies had instituted various proceedings beginning in May 2012 in the United…
iGrant competition for MEMS and microsystems attracts 90+ participating companies
The inaugural iGrant program attracted 90+ MEMS and microsystems companies from all over the world. Sustainable Valley Technology Group ( SVTG ) and Rogue Valley Microdevices , who organized the competition, narrowed the semi-final round to the top 7 companies . Out of that semi-finalist group, the top two were…
Cost-driven design of MEMS devices and smart microsystems
by Michael Niedermayer, Ph.D. Group Manager, Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration Almost unnoticed, microsystems are increasingly taking over essential tasks in our everyday lives. These very small devices assist doctors during operations, control the room climate , and improve the safety of…
Wearable electronics: huge opportunity for MEMS based sensors
Major companies such as Apple , Google , Microsoft are increasingly getting into the wearable computing business. The opportunity is huge, especially for makers of MEMS based sensors , electronics, and associated software. Philippe Kahn , who created the first camera phone in 1997, is one of the pioneers in this…
MEMS foundry Micralyne set to emerge from creditor protection
The company, based in Edmonton, Canada , announced this week that it is set to emerge from creditor protection in August 2013 . On July 9th, 2013, Micralyne held a vote with its creditors on the plan to emerge from creditor protection and the company's creditors reportedly voted overwhelmingly in support of the…
An overview of emerging trends in MEMS packaging
by Maarten Vraanes Director of Consulting Services, MEMS Journal MEMS packaging, as the entire MEMS ecosystem , is rapidly evolving. Technologies such as wafer level and 3D integration are becoming increasingly important. In this article, we outline our observations about the current and future trends of MEMS…