Robotics & Automation News

Market trends and business perspectives

microprocessors

Samsung sets out roadmap towards 3-nanometer silicon manufacturing

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Samsung Electronics has set out its roadmap towards 3-nanometer silicon-based technology manufacturing – things like microprocessors. 

As computer chips get smaller, it’s getting increasingly difficult to control the signals that move around on the chip. If the chip is too small, the electrons can jump from one track to another. That is just one possible problem.

Some people say that silicon manufacturers have reached the limit and chips cannot be made any smaller.  [Read more…] about Samsung sets out roadmap towards 3-nanometer silicon manufacturing

Effects of artificial intelligence will surpass the industrial revolution, says SoftBank CEO

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The chief executive of telecommunications giant SoftBank says the effects of artificial intelligence will take the world much further and have a more profound effect than even the industrial revolution. 

Masayoshi_Son
An old picture of Masayoshi Son, courtesy of Wikipedia

In an article accompanying a special edition of the CBS news magazine 60 Minutes, SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son was quoted as saying the new “information revolution” is being partly driven by data collected through billions of sensors.

SoftBank has been buying up a variety of AI and robotics startups, most recently a company called Nauto, which is developing systems for driverless cars.

At the root of the technology, Son says, are microprocessors and microcontrollers. “Those who rule chips will rule the entire world,” he said. “Those who rule data will rule the entire world. That’s what people of the future will say.”

Renesas working on new products for self-driving cars

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renesas soc v3m

Renesas, one of the leading suppliers of electronics to the automotive sector, says it is developing a new range of products which it plans to launch towards the end of this year, according to a report in Automotive News. 

The company plans to market the new range of products under the label of “Renesas Autonomy”, and it will include such things as an image-recognition system which works with automotive cameras, around-view monitors and lidar systems.

The market for automotive electronics has been accelerating at a fast rate and is seeing consolidation in the chipmaking business, with Qualcomm having bought NXP, which previously bought Freescale.  [Read more…] about Renesas working on new products for self-driving cars

Connected cars: A massive new market for chipmakers

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The Benz Patent Motorwagen, invented by Carl Benz in the 1880s, is regarded as the first motor car ever made. 

It was a purely a mechanical machine with no electronics.

It wasn’t until the 1930s that electronics started playing a part in cars, which had become much more complex and more powerful since the original motorwagen.

And electronics have played an increasingly large role ever since.  [Read more…] about Connected cars: A massive new market for chipmakers

Small potatoes: A closer look at chips

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microprocessor

One of the issues with analysing the chip market, as with some others, is that the products are complex and have a huge array of applications. This often makes it difficult to compare one chip with another. 

Moreover, some people might not know the difference between a micro-processor and a micro-controller, or what a semiconductor is… and where microchips fit into all this.

So here’s an attempt at an explanation. [Read more…] about Small potatoes: A closer look at chips