Epson 2010 Annual Report Download - page 28

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4. Research and development activities
As set forth in the “SE15” long-range corporate vision, Epson is pursuing innovation in compact, energy-saving,
high-precision technologies with the aim of becoming a “community of robust businesses.” Epson’s research and
development programs are designed to achieve this and thus are principally focused on boosting competitiveness
by concentrating management resources on areas of strength, reinforcing business foundations, and using the
technologies and other assets in Epson’s arsenal to create new businesses.
Operations division R&D develops core technologies and shared technology platforms in order to strengthen
Epson’s market position over the short- to long-term. Corporate R&D’s mission is to develop both existing and
new core technologies and shared technology platforms for creating new businesses and revolutionizing
businesses.
Total R&D spending in the year under review was ¥68,849 million. This included ¥27,403 million in the
information-related equipment segment, ¥9,279 million in the electronic devices segment, ¥2,516 million in the
precision products segment, and ¥29,649 million in the other segment and company-wide R&D projects.
The main R&D accomplishments in each business segment are described below.
Information-related equipment
In the printer business, Epson developed the world’s first water-based white ink for large-format inkjet printers
(LFP). In addition to the high-density white ink, certain of the new LFPs come with an ink set that also includes
orange and green inks. These new additions give the printers an even wider color gamut. This is especially true
in the bright and vivid green to yellow and yellow to red portions of the color space. Moreover, the
eco-considerate ink dries quickly at room temperature without the need for heating or other artificial means,
gives off very little of the odor that is particularly anathema among food packagers, and does not release volatile
organic compounds (VOC). Epson also developed new commercial and industrial inkjet printers, including
systems for fabricating liquid crystal color filters, digital textile printing, and industrial label printing. All these
printing systems share the ability to fire microdroplets at extraordinary speeds and the competitive technological
advantage of ink formulation freedom.
In the visual instruments business Epson developed a 3LCD projector that delivers 6,000 lumens of brightness
and a contrast ratio of 5,000:1 thanks to liquid crystal panels fabricated with Epson’s original C2 FineTM
inorganic alignment layer. The projector produces vivid, high-quality images that brightness alone cannot
provide.
Electronic devices
In the quartz device business, Epson developed a six-axis sensor (incorporating a three-axis gyro-sensor and a
three-axis accelerometer) with a wide dynamic range of 81 to 83 dB (200 Hz output bandwidth) to detect a wide
range of motion at both low and high speeds. The sensor, which uses only 6.1 mA of power, was developed for
high-quality camera-shake correction applications, compact high-precision navigation systems, and other
high-integrity motion tracing and motion tracking applications.
In the display business, Epson developed the ULTIMICRON series of color XGA liquid crystal panels for
electronic viewfinders, with different models being developed for use in cameras, camcorders, and
head-mounted displays (HMD). In pursuit of the ultimate high-definition experience, Epson also developed
WUXGA panels that support not only full-HD images but also the higher resolutions required by special
applications. Projectors equipped with these panels can display ultra-high definition 8K images or 4K images in
3D on a 150-inch screen.
In the semiconductor business, Epson and U.S.-based E Ink Corporation jointly developed a controller IC for E
Ink’s VizplexTM electronic paper displays (EPD). Targeting applications in the rapidly xepanding markets for
products such as eBooks and e-tablets, Epson outfitted this EPD controller with its high-performance display
engine and provided support for rich images. The controller manages this while saving space within the display
system. Epson also developed a wireless sensor network system that is resistant to water and metals. Capable of
transmitting data packets through water and soil using low-frequency band communications*1, the active radio
tags used in the system will run for approximately five to seven years on a single battery while sending data
eight times per second*2.
*1 Established as international standard IEEE 1902.1 in February 2009
*2 Equipped with an ultra-low power microcontroller and with a maximum transmission range of