iPhone 3D Touch suppliers and haptics companies (updated)

TPK Holding Co

10/09/2015 03:20

(Recasts with Apple's new iPhone launch) 
    (Reuters) - Haptics - adding tactile feedback to an 
interface - is nothing new, but Apple's  AAPL.O  embrace of it 
is likely to prove a boon for many companies, including those 
developing the technology and suppliers.  ID:nL4N11G17O  
     
    TECHNOLOGY COMPANIES: 
    Haptic-related technology companies have been working on the 
field for 15 years or more. Others are more recent. They 
include: 
    * NextInput Inc: Atlanta, Georgia spin-off from Georgia 
Tech, maker of force-sensitive technology. Investors include 
Intel Corp  INTC.O  and Takata Corp  7312.T . 
    * Immersion Corp  IMMR.O  numbers among its customers mobile 
handset makers Samsung Electronics  005930.KS , LG Electronics 
Inc  066570.KS , Xiaomi  XTC.UL , Huawei Technologies  HWT.UL , 
Meizu Technology Co and Gionee. 
    * Synaptics Inc  SYNA.O : Senseg, Finland-based company, 
whose investors include NXP Semiconductors  NXPI.O . 
    * Novasentis Inc, whose investors include Samsung Ventures. 
    * Ultrahaptics, a UK start-up and spin-off from Bristol 
University, exploring using inaudible sound waves to create 
visible shapes and invisible contours in the air, a sort of 
mid-air haptics. 
    * Redux Labs, a UK-based company using sonic waves on a 
surface to create audio or haptic effects. 
    * Zrro, a crowd-funded start-up developing technology that 
would enable touch screens to sense fingers up to 3 cm away, 
allowing users to control devices without touching them. 
 
    IPHONE SUPPLIERS: 
    * Taiwan's TPK Holding Co Ltd  3673.TW  is a major supplier 
of Apple's 3D Touch, or Force Touch technology, according to 
supply chain sources. It provides touch sensors to makers of 
liquid crystal displays, which are installed inside the phone. 
    * Vibration motors are then installed during the final stage 
of product assembly. These motors are crucial in detecting 
signals from pressure sensors, which activate when a finger 
touches the screen. According to one industry source, Japan's 
Nidec Corp  6594.T  is likely to be the sole supplier of the 
motors, at least initially. 
    * Chips and components rest atop flexible printed circuit 
boards inside the phone. This industry should benefit from the 
introduction of Force Touch as it requires a new type of circuit 
board that increases its value per iPhone box, according to the 
industry. Taiwan's Zhen Ding Technology Holding Ltd  4958.TW  
and Japan's Nippon Mektron Ltd, an unlisted subsidiary of NOK 
Corp  7240.T ,will supply the majority of the flexible printed 
circuit boards for the new iPhones, sources said. 
 
 
 (Reporting by Jeremy Wagstaff in SINGAPORE, Michael Gold in 
TAIPEI and Reiji Murai in TOKYO; Editing by Ian Geoghegan) 
 ((michael.gold@thomsonreuters.com; +886225004899; Reuters 
Messaging: michael.gold.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net)) 
 
Keywords: TECH APPLE/TOUCH