Members’ Profiles

Alps Electric Co., Ltd.
1. Company Profile
Under the corporate philosophy “Alps creates newvalues that satisfy stakeholders and are friendly to theearth,” Alps Electric has been developing andmanufacturing products focused on five businessdivisions, while being true to its business domain of“perfecting the art of electronics.”
The Mechatronic Devices Division supports theelectronic industry with diverse product lines including
switches, potentiometers, sensors, and connectors. These
products are the result of condensing many years ofexperience in molding, machining, plating, andmechatronics technologies and have received high praise
for their performance and reliability.
By introducing advanced technologies into its
proprietary onboard electronic systems, the Automotive
Products Division has developed various devices andsystems that enhance automobile safety and comfort while
reducing environmentalR impact. These systems include
the Haptic Commander , which uses a tactile feedback
technology, as well as steering modules, and instrument
panel operation units.
Amid the dramatic changes in the communicationsindustry, the Communication Devices Division has used its
high-frequency circuit technology and other proprietary
technologies to develop tuners compatible withbroadcasting systems in various countries, communication
modules for next-generation information terminals, andtransceiver units for mobile phones. This division is also
engaged in the development of lenses and modules for
optical communications, and camera modules for mobilephones.
The Peripheral Products Division develops devices
serving as interfaces between people and equipment. Thisdivision develops input devices such as GlidePoint TM
touchpads for laptop computers, display-related devices
such as highly transparent and responsive touch panels
making use of our micromachining technology, and output
devices such as compact photo printers and thermalprinters.
The Magnetic Devices Division provides a wide arrayof products incorporating magnetic materials, drawing on
our expertise in magnetic materials and thin-film
manufacturing and processing technologies cultivatedthrough many years of developing magnetic heads. These
products include magnetic sensors incorporating magnetic
sheets developed with our proprietary Liqualloy T M
material, and high-precision magnetic elements. Thisdivision strives to develop products contributing toadvanced functions and performance in a variety ofequipment ranging from compact digital devices toautomotive products.

We have also developed capacitive pressure sensors,which are characterized by low power consumption and highsensitivity. Hence, these sensors are suitable for suchapplications as automotive Tire Pressure Monitoring Systems(TPMS) and instruments used to measure blood pressure.
The magnetic sensors use highly reliable magneticelements. Because our sensors offer a wide detection
range and low performance deviation even at highsensitivity levels, they allow greater freedom in circuitboard design and sensor layout. Moreover, with their low
power consumption and stable operating temperature,these sensors expand the application possibilities in suchbroad fields as cell phones, personal computers,household appliances, and automobiles.
Piezoresistive sensors are suitable for compact
pressure detectors and have been used to perform highresolution detection by optimizing the digital circuit andtemperature compensation circuit. These sensors havepotential application ranging from portable navigation
devices to white goods.
Hence, Alps Electric has developed diverse sensors
with wide-ranging uses and applications. To create theseproducts, MEMS technologies will be indispensable.

3. MEMS Technologies at Alps Electric
Anticipating a future trend toward smaller and thinnerproducts having higher performance and functionality, ourinitial approach toward MEMS technology has been basedon the belief that the size and precision required inmolding technologies will evolve from millimeters tomicrometers and from micrometers to nanometers, andthat it will be necessary to dramatically increase thedegree of freedom in machining shapes. In MEMS
processing, we have pursued a fusion of MEMS processing
with precision machining cultivated through our switch
development and manufacturing. The technologies bornfrom this fusion have enabled us to form dies with a highaspect ratio and a high degree of freedom in sidewall
inclination, while allowing an extensive range of machining
dimensions (see Fig. 1). This MEMS technology is basedon the micromachining technologies we cultivated whendeveloping magnetic heads.
While to date we have developed MEMS technology as
one means of die machining, we also hope to develop
applications for MEMS in manufacturing the various
sensors described above. Using our own technologies, wehave implemented feed-through electrode formation on
glass capable of producing hermetically sealable
electrodes and hope to continue making contributions
toward meeting the compact high-performancerequirements of sensors.

2. SENSORINGTM

50

Aspect ratio

One of the product lines Alps Electric is currently
focusing its attention on is sensors. We currently develop
resistive sensors, capacitive sensors, magnetic sensors,and piezoresistive sensors. Setting our sights on thecontinually evolving sensor industry, we have begun
developing a business referred to as “SENSORING TM ”,
combining the base “sensor” with the progressive form
“ing,” expressing innovation and a desire to take on theindustry.
Resistive sensors take advantage of our company’s
expertise on resistors excelling in long lifetime androbustness that we accumulated through the developmentof potentiometers. Our resistive sensors are widely used in
not only consumer electronics, but also automobiles, inwhich high-reliability in extreme environments is essential.

Machining
DNA chip

10

MEMS processing

Future goal
5Lens array
Light-guide platesfor backlighting
Nano machining

DVD diffraction grating

1Machining
dimensions (m)nm10-9m
10-6mm
10-3Fig. 1 Machining levels targeted through the fusion ofprecision machining and MEMS technologies

MICRONANO No. 62
MICRONANO is published quarterly by Micromachine Center (MMC) to promote the international exchange ofinformation related to micromachines, R&D and other technical topics, and is circulated free of change. Please send
your comments about MICRONANO to the publisher :Keiichi Aoyagi, Executive Director, Micromachine Center (MMC)
MBR99 Bldg., 6F., 67 Kanda Sakumagashi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 101-0026, Japan
Tel : +81-3-5835-1870, Fax : +81-3-5835-1873
Internet Home Page h t t p : / / w w w . m m c . o r . j p /Date of Issue : February 15, 2008

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