Sharp will commercialize a mobile phone equipped with a solar cell module for the Chinese market from this February. Sharp SH6230C will be the first solar-powered mobile phone by Sharp for the overseas markets. The SH6230C is equipped with advanced technology originally developed in Japan, including Sharp’s proprietary solar cell module, a large 2.9-inch LCD screen, and a 5-megapixel autofocus camera. Given the increasing demand for the solar charging function, Sharp will bring the solar-powered mobile phones to the global markets.
Honda began operation of a next generation solar hydrogen station prototype at the Los Angeles Center of Honda R&D America. Designed as a single, integrated unit to fit in the user's garage, Honda's next generation Solar Hydrogen Station reduces the size of the system, while producing enough hydrogen (0.5kg) via an 8-hour overnight fill for daily commuting (10,000 miles per year) for a fuel cell electric vehicle. Compatible with a Smart Grid energy system, the Honda Solar Hydrogen Station would enable users to refill their vehicle overnight without the requirement of hydrogen storage, which would lower CO2 emissions by using less expensive off-peak electrical power.
Kyocera today announced that its custom-designed ceramic vacuum chambers are being used in the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) operated by the European Organisation for Nuclear Physics (CERN) near Geneva. In the largest scientific experiment ever undertaken, protons fed into the LHC through Kyocera’s ceramic vacuum chambers quickly reach speeds of up to 299,792 km per second — just below the speed of light — in the world's largest particle accelerator. Kyocera was the only company in a position to meet CERN’s exacting specifications for the vacuum chambers.
LG today debuted its latest 385-liter bottom freezer at the MAISON & OBJET 2010 in Paris. By combining LG’s Linear Compressor technology with a smart inner structure, the new LG bottom freezer frees up approximately 50 liters more space compared with standard two meter tall bottom freezers.The Linear Compressor efficiently controls cooling power and reduces internal friction to help the new bottom freezer achieve an A++ rating for energy consumption, making it up to 45 percent more efficient than a regular A-rated refrigerator. The new bottom freezer remains totally frost-free for a perfectly clean interior. The new refrigerator includes an Opti Temp Zone to optimize the temperature depending on food type.
Mazda will hold the global premiere of the all-new Mazda5 (known as the Mazda Premacy in Japan) at the 2010 Geneva Motor Show. Embracing dynamic and elegant Nagare design, the new Mazda5 emits approximately 15 percent less CO2 than the current model thanks to Mazda’s i-stop idling stop system, a direct injection gasoline engine and other technologies. The new Mazda5 features an emotional design that blends elegance with a dynamic spirit. It will be the first Mazda production model to fully adopt Mazda’s Nagare (meaning “flow” in Japanese) design language, which finds inspiration in the beauty of flows found in nature.
NTT DoCoMo today unveiled its docomo Smartphone Xperia known as the Xperia X10 in markets outside Japan. Manufactured by Sony Ericsson Smartphone Xperia is scheduled to go on sale in Japan this April. Built on the open Android operating system and powered by a fast 1GHz CPU, the docomo Smartphone Xperia with 4.0-inch touchscreen is a brand-new entertainment machine for enjoying intelligent mobile communication, web browsing, music and other media (see attachment). The docomo Smartphone Xperia features Mediascape, a Sony Ericsson signature application for intuitive organization of music, photos and videos. If the infinite button is pressed while playing a song, Mediascape searches for all content related to the artist across a broad range of media, both in-phone and online, such as music, videos and information. The docomo Smartphone Xperia intelligently recognizes up to five faces from photos stored in the phonebook and automatically tags faces in photos taken with the handset's 8.1-megapixel camera. The user can make phone calls or send emails to an individual by simply touching their tag in a photo.
Mitsubishi will premiere its ASX all-new compact crossover 2010 at the 80th Geneva International Motor Show to be held at the Geneva Palexpo in Switzerland. The Mitsubishi ASX is the European-spec version of the Japanese RVR, which is slated to go on sale in Japan from February 2010. Mitsubishi Motors new compact crossover will seat 5 and will be sequentially introduced in European countries from late spring 2010.
The STHV748 provides four independent channels, each of which generates precisely controlled high-voltage pulses to drive piezoelectric crystals or other transducers. By integrating the transmit/receive switch, the STHV748 minimizes the number of external components required in applications such as stationary and portable ultrasound scanners, allowing further miniaturization and cost reduction. The ultrasound scanner works on the same principles as radar. A piezoelectric transducer emits a burst of ultrasound waves when stimulated by a high-voltage electrical signal and, in turn, generates a low-voltage electrical signal in response to the echoed reflections of ultrasound waves from, for example, soft body tissues. The role of the STHV748 is to provide the accurately timed high-voltage pulses that generate the ultrasound burst and switch to receive mode to detect the echoed signals.
Mitsubishi Electric announced today the launch of a 638-nanometer (nm) wavelength red laser diode (LD), ML520G72, which offers the world’s highest output power in 638 nm band LDs, making it ideal for pico projectors and other portable display systems that require a red light source with high brightness. Compared with LEDs, LDs deliver higher output power with less power consumption, enabling batteries to last longer. They also enable focus-free operation because optical systems with great depth of field can be used with laser beams. The new LD offers a higher output power of 500 mW, currently the world’s highest in 638 nm band, which helps achieve high-luminous projectors of up to 60 lumens (lm). By comparison, LED-based projectors typically offer only about 10 lm.
The new line of TeraDrive SSDs from Super Talent is designed specifically for high end enterprise and database server applications. The new TeraDrive FT2 is a SATA 3Gbps SSD based on the advanced new SandForce SF-1500 SSD processor. It delivers sequential read and write speeds up to 250MB/sec that will not degrade over time. It also supports blazing fast transaction speeds up to 30,000 IOPS, making it a formidable storage solution for database servers where random read and write speeds are critical.
VIA EPIA-T700 is the first product based on the recently announced Mobile-ITX form factor. The VIA EPIA-T700 can be used with a variety of carrier boards that can be adapted and customized to meet the needs of a range of applications and is powered by a specially miniaturized 1GHz VIA Eden ULV processor and the compact VIA VX820 MSP that together offer industry-leading I/O flexibility in the most compact of available form factors. The VIA EPIA-T700 features 512MB of DDR2 on-board system memory, meaning compatibility and reliability are guaranteed. The VIA EPIA-T700 uses two unique high density, low profile connectors on the under side of the module that can also withstand vibrations of up to 5Gs making Mobile-ITX systems suitable for in-vehicle and industrial machining applications.
Chrysler Jeep Patriot is the first American car to be covered by the Japan's eco-car subsidy program. Chrysler Jeep Patriot will be available in Japan from Feb.1. Powered by a 2.4-liter engine, Chrysler's new compact SUV has managed to clear the minimum mileage requirement for the Japanese government's subsidy system for eco-friendly cars. Improvements to the engine have improved its fuel efficiency from 10 kilometers to 10.6 kilometers per liter. The Japanese government introduced the subsidy program for eco-cars in June last year, in which up to 250,000 yen will be provided for the purchase of a vehicle with a minimum required gas mileage.
Casio announced the release of the latest addition to its G-Shock family of shock resistant watches: the GA-100/100A lineup. These five GA-100/100A lineup watches are boldly designed with a large face that features the popular three-eye design — three dials on the top half of the face — along with a traditional main analog display.These new G-Shock watches boast a variety of functions including a 1/1000-second stopwatch, a velocity indicator, and magnetic resistance compliant with the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). In addition to the main hour and minute hands, the Casio GA-100/100A lineup watches display setting functions and speeds on LCDs at the 2 o’clock and 10 o’clock positions and on the analog dial with a small hand at the 12 o’clock position.
The 19-inch wide (250x400mm) flexible e-paper is almost as big as a page of A3 sized newspaper. Approximately eight times larger than e-books of 6-inch class, the product is optimized for an e-newspaper and able to convey the feeling of reading an actual newspaper. As the e-paper measures 0.3 millimeters thin, it weighs just 130 grams despite its 19-inch size. LG Display arranged TFT on metal foil rather than glass substrate, allowing the e-paper display to recover its original shape after being bent. The use of a metal foil substrate makes the e-paper both flexible and durable while maintaining excellent display qualities.
Korean scientists have created a domestic robot-Mahru-Z that cleans up, dumps clothes in the washing machine and even heats food in the microwave. The 1.3-meter, 55-kilogram Mahru-Z an assistant robot developed by the Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST), has a human-like body with a rotating head, arms and legs, and is capable of ``seeing'' three dimensional objects and recognizing jobs that need to be done. The robot, using its moving hands, elbows and six fingers, can pick up a dirty shirt, throw it into a washing machine and push the buttons to get the laundry done. Mahru-Z could also work in tandem with its fellow maid robot, Marhu-M, an earlier KIST creation that moves on wheels, as both machines can be remote controlled through a computer server. Mahru-Z, for example, can put fruit in a basket and put it on the dinner table, while Mahru-M, which has the advantage in mobility, can locate the owner and bring him the fruits directly.