Canon 2008 Annual Report Download - page 42

40
I
n 2008, Canon succeeded in developin
g
a portable fl at-panel di
g
ital
r
adiography (DR) system capable o
f
viewing dynamic and capturing
s
tatic X-ra
y
ima
g
es.
Canon introduced the world’s fi rst static-ima
g
e DR s
y
stem in
1
998. Today, its wide lineup o
f
systems
f
or medical use includes
p
ortable sensors essential to emer
g
enc
y
medicine.
Canon’s newl
y
developed protot
y
pe captures static X-ra
y
ima
g
es
and enables “X-ray
fl
uoroscopy,” allowing radiographers to see
d
y
namic ima
g
es of internal or
g
ans for optimal timin
g
in capturin
g
s
tatic ima
g
es. Canon hopes that this new technolo
gy
will contribute
to widening the scope o
f
medical diagnostic procedures and increas-
in
g
the speed of dia
g
nosis.
9
.6
%
PRODUCT GROUPS
Jun
j
i Ichikaw
a
C
hie
f
Executive, Optical Products Operation
s
“ In 2009, we will work tirelessly toward accelerating our
development capabilities to prepare
f
or a turnaround in
t
he econom
y
.”
O
PTI
C
AL AND
O
THER PR
O
DU
C
T
S
The market for semiconductor ex
p
osure
equipment was impacte
d
b
y severe eco-
n
o
mi
c
co
n
d
i
t
i
o
n
s
fr
o
m
t
h
e
l
atte
r h
a
lf
o
f
2008. We responded by managing produc
-
tion capacity to meet demand and also
made thorou
g
h e
ff
orts to reduce invento
-
ries while stren
g
thenin
g
new product
d
eve
l
opment to spur
d
eman
d
. In a
dd
ition,
Ca
n
o
n
co
n
t
in
ued
to
ad
v
a
n
ce
i
ts
imm
e
r
s
i
o
n
technology for realizing the further minia-
tu
riz
at
i
o
n
o
f
se
mi
co
n
ducto
r
s
. Thi
s
h
as
served to lift the quality of its immersion
ArF equipment to even higher levels. We
also improved productivity by switching
entirel
y
to the production o
f
steppers that
cater to more competitive 300mm wa
f
ers.
With re
g
ard to the market
f
or expo-
sure e
q
ui
p
ment for LCDs, conditions
were favorable as capital investment by
L
CD manufacturers was on the upswing.
W
e strengt
h
ene
d
t
h
e MPAsp-H700
l
ineu
p
of LCD ex
p
osure e
q
ui
p
ment for
e
ighth-generation panels with continu-
o
us upgrades to meet various needs
f
rom LCD manu
f
acturers.
In 2009, we expect harsh conditions
i
n the market
f
or steppers, with declin-
i
n
g
demand and further price reductions
f
or semiconductor devices. To
p
ursue
ad
v
a
n
ces
in
se
mi
co
n
ducto
r mini
atu
riz
a
-
t
ion, Canon will bolster its immersion
t
echnology through the use of double
p
atterning, a method that can signi
fi
-
c
antl
y
increase resolution. We will carr
y
o
ut development in this area throu
g
h
2
011 as well as o
f
new technolo
g
ies that
i
mprove the throu
g
hput capacit
y
of
s
te
pp
ers t
h
at use KrF.
In ex
p
osure e
q
ui
p
ment for LCDs, we
e
x
p
ect a
d
ec
l
ine in ca
p
ita
l
investment
f
rom LCD manufacturers in 2009. Des
p
ite
d
iffi cult conditions, we will work toward
t
he development o
f
the SP plat
f
orm,
w
hich
g
rew out o
f
our H700 series,
f
or
o
ur next-
g
eneration LCD exposure
e
quipment. At t
h
e same time, we wi
ll
e
ndeavor to further im
p
rove o
p
tical
p
erformance.
We regard 2009 as a signifi cant year
f
or thoroughly reinforcing the Company’s
d
evelopment capabilities. Canon aims to
i
mprove design quality to shorten equip-
m
ent installation times so customers can
s
tart up operations quickl
y
. The Compan
y
w
i
ll
a
l
so step up in-
h
ouse pro
d
uction to
f
urther accumulate technolo
g
ical know-
h
ow an
d
raise pro
d
uct qua
l
ity.
Innovative Product and Technolo
gy
—D
y
namic Ima
g
in
g
X-Ra
y
Sensor
C
anon’s dynamic imaging X-ray sensor attracted the interest of
vi
s
i
tors to RSNA 2009.