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Smart technologies have gripped the world’s imagination with their promise to revolutionize the way we live and work. With the semiconductor supply chain central to these advances, SEMI Japan in October hosted 200 members for SEMI Japan Members Day as speakers from three of the world’s top device manufacturers – Denso, Sony and Kioxia – offered their perspectives on the strides the semiconductor industry needs to make in three key areas: automotive, smart manufacturing and 3D flash memory manufacturing technology. Automotive Evolution and Electronics – DensoThe automotive industry is re-inventing itself to innovate across connectivity, autonomy, sharing and electric (CASE) and ensure safe, comfortable and environmentally friendly autonomous driving, said Nobuaki Kawahara, executive fellow and director of the Advanced Research and Innovation Center at Denso. Key focus areas of Denso in CASE innovation are Extraordinary Safety and Everyday Confidence. The company’s goal is to minimize damage to vehicles involved in collisions or one-car accidents by making it easier for drivers to detect and steer clear of objects in their path.To improve automobile safety and security, the company is developing advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS) and autonomous driving technologies as it promotes the confluence of four areas of technology – HMI (Human Machine Interface), environmental recognition, vehicle control assistance, and information and communications. One use case Denso sees as a significant opportunity is deploying sensors such as millimeter-wave radar, cameras and LiDAR to monitor a vehicle’s surroundings, using GPS and precision mapping to pinpoint its location and determine the best route for safety and distance, and then transmitting that information to a motion-control system.Denso is also out to solve the hard challenges associated with autonomous driving in dynamic road conditions. Kawahara pointed out that road conditions vary and that rules for "driving at certain intervals in a certain lane" vary depending on the time of day. Also, on public roads in Abashiri, Hokkaido, where the company is currently conducting field tests, snowfall makes it difficult to recognize road images and gather sensor information. In Asia, it is also common for motorcycles and automobiles to speed along with very little space between them.Image Sensors to Accelerate Development of Smart Manufacturing – SonyTo fulfill the promise of smart manufacturing, the semiconductor supply chain must continue to invest in sensor and imaging technology innovation, said Shigeo Ohba, deputy senior general manager of the Imaging System Business Division at Sony Semiconductor Solutions. For its part, Sony is developing imaging sensors that help network and automate factories to achieve new production and cost efficiencies. For example, the company plans to design devices to increase equipment uptime through predictive maintenance, reduce defect rates and drive other manufacturing efficiencies. The challenge with today’s factory lines that produce a number of different devices is that they are highly complex to manage and therefore prone to human error, undercutting manufacturing efficiency. In the future, AI-powered machines will leverage data analysis to help streamline operations. Adapting an image sensor with AI to machine vision applications can simplify key processes such as measurement and inspection processes while reducing safety and security costs.Of the vast amount of information on all machines connected to the cloud, only essential details will be processed at the edge since edge data processing offers stronger security and reduces data transfer time. Ohba said image sensors will evolve based on edge AI, adding that "AI will be a paradigm shift for image sensors if it’s economically feasible."3D Flash Memory Manufacturing Technology Challenges – KioxiaIncreasing connectivity in factories for smarter, more efficient operations places huge demands on memory since networked devices typically store duplicate data, said Hideshi Miyajima, head of the Advanced Memory Development Center (AMDC) at Kioxia. To meet demand for higher networking speed and capacity, 2d NAND flash memory is moving to 3D and, in particular, three 3D techniques: multivalued memory, cell partitioning and layer stacking.To increase storage capacity, the third-generation 64-layer BiCS FLASH™ stacks layers to form nearly two trillion holes with a diameter of 100nm and a depth of 5μm on a wafer and places a uniform 2-3nm thin film on the inner wall of each 5-μm hole. For its BiCS FLASH™, Kioxia uses a dry etching technique that forms a straight, elongated through-hole and atomic layer deposition (ALD) technology, which creates a uniform laminate atomic layer on the wafer surface to grow materials uniformly and with high precision on large, complex substrates.In order to meet the cost expectations of high-volume 3D flash memory manufacturers, outlays across fabs must be reduced by better monitoring plasma control, enhancing yield through particle control, speeding film formation, and reducing gas, power and water usage, Miyajima said.SMART Transportation and SMART Manufacturing in the Spotlight at SEMICON JapanPlease join us at SEMICON Japan 2019, December 11-13 at Tokyo Big Sight, for the latest developments and trends in SMART Transportation and Smart Manufacturing. There are also a few other great reasons to attend. We look forward to seeing you in Tokyo!Jim Hamajima is president of SEMI Japan.

Wedged among four major tectonic plates, Japan is at the mercy of their abrupt herculean shifts and the earthquakes and tsunamis they can trigger. The fallout can be devastating. The magnitude 9 Great East Japan (Tohoku) temblor in 2011 and ensuing tsunami took nearly 20,000 lives, destroyed 138,000 buildings and cost $360 billion in economic damage.Factories including silicon wafer production facilities owned by Shin-Etsu Chemical and MEMC Electronic Materials – together accounting for 25 percent of the global silicon wafer production – sustained heavy damage. Operations were suspended. The Kumamoto earthquake in 2016 also caused significant damage. The economic cost: as much as $7.5 billion.With disaster risk rising on a global scale, these calamities offer valuable lessons in disaster preparedness and how companies can draw from their experiences to strengthen business continuity planning (BCP).Earthquake experiences and lessons in BCP were the focus of the recent SEMI Japan Members Day as speakers from five semiconductor device and equipment manufacturers offered their BCP strategies to about 150 SEMI members. Following are key takeaways from their presentations. Renesas: Create a robust production plant that is hard to break and easy to fixRenesas Semiconductor Manufacturing’s Naka plant took about 80 days to resume production while its ability to deliver semiconductors was delayed even longer as it recovered from damage caused by the Tohoku earthquake, said Yoshiyuki Miyamoto, Representative Director and President at Renesas. Operations at the company’s Kawajiri plant were disrupted by the Kumamoto earthquake.A key lesson from both earthquakes: The company needed to promote risk visualization from top-to-bottom in the supply chain. With the goal of making its plants easy to repair but hard to break down, Renesas implemented a risk management plan for earthquake preparedness plan to ensure stronger production line resistance and a stable supply to customers. The company ran simulations of multiple earthquake scenarios including aftershocks, enabling it to develop new BCP training and preparedness measures. Sony: Staying transparent about the disaster, sharing and interacting with related companiesYukihide Keigo, a representative from the Sony Semiconductor Manufacturing, showed footage taken the day the Kumamoto earthquake damaged a production line at its Kumamoto Technology Center. Sony is the top manufacturer of imaging sensors worldwide, and the Kumamoto plant is the backbone of that production. The magnitude of the foreshock fell within levels Sony had accounted for in its BCP at that time, and the line was expected to return to full production within a week. However, the magnitude of the earthquake that followed outstripped expectations, and the company’s BCP didn’t hold up. Three and a half months later, the plant had finally fully recovered. The protracted recovery prompted Sony to develop an earthquake preparedness plan using a model that assumed double the magnitude of expectations. For full restoration, the company identified challenges to returning to full operation at each stage of the production line. Then it went even further, developing in-house diagnostics, implementing critical path methods and strengthening earthquake resistance of equipment that manages bottlenecks for the restart of the plant. The revision of its BCP plan led to the establishment of a system to shorten the resumption of production after a major earthquake to just two months.Sony shared the contents of its BCP review with other companies to solicit help identifying any gaps and highlighted its partnership with Renesas in the Semiconductor Industry Association in Japan (JSIA), a committee of the Japan Electronics and Information Technology Industries Association (JEITA), to share materials procurement resources for the purposes of disaster preparedness and business continuity. HORIBA STEC: Steady daily practices protect hundreds of millions of yen worth of products HORIBA STEC’s Aso plant, near the epicenter of the Kumamoto earthquake, suffered heavy damage that cut off electricity and the water supply, yet production in its clean room resumed in just 10 days, said Hiroyuki Koyama, a factory manager at the plant. The plant’s quick recovery stemmed from daily preventive measures implemented before the quake such as connecting freestanding shelves for greater stability, applying thick rubber bands as rails to prevent manufactured goods from falling to the floor, and placing equipment on rolling carriages instead of fixed shelves.The practices saved the Aso plant hundreds of millions of yen in products and materials that otherwise could have been lost in the earthquake. Koyama also offered the reminder that, with regulations governing factory layout and construction differing widely depending on factors such as a building’s age, companies need to tailor their BCPs to the unique characteristics of each building. THK: The key point of dampening earthquakesTHK’s ACE Division develops earthquake dampening and vibration control devices designed to absorb the vibrational energy of an earthquake, though the devices must also be designed for precise analysis of that energy, said Hidemi Murao. Murao provided an overview of the latest technologies and products for dampening earthquake vibrations and shared test results from experimental devices.Murao described how THK’s recently introduced Linear Motion (LM) Guide, an earthquake vibration dampening technology, can significantly reduce building vibrations during a temblor. In a video Murao showed to demonstrate how the guide works, a shelf loaded with equipment rests on a platform equipped with THK’s LM Guide equipment. Simulating an earthquake, the platform shakes vigorously in every direction but the shelf remains steady as the LM Guide dampens the vibrations. The platforms can be installed on floors or underground in buildings or factories to prevent shelves from toppling. Tokyo Electron: The ideal BCP management systemOne risk associated with BCP training is that it can become overly routine, dulling the response of employees in actual disasters, said Tokyo Electron Vice President Tatsuya Aso. To help keep its workers’ skills sharp, TEL held surprise drills with employees assigned to particular BCP roles to test their ability to adapt quickly to when disaster strikes. In addition, TEL has launched surveys in more than 70 overseas locations to optimize safety in these high-hazard facilities.The SEMI Japan Members Day presentations made clear that the issue of BCP transcends boundaries between individuals, manufacturers, regions, and sectors within the global electronics supply chain. Disaster preparedness requires problem-solving across the entire supply chain, with companies sharing technical knowledge, offering mutual aid, and striving for continual improvement. Collaborative is essential. At SEMICON Japan 2019, SEMI will continue to bring companies together to address BCP initiatives and share their technical knowledge with members. Jim Hamajima is president of SEMI Japan.

Five young dancers bathed in a striking rainbow of colors with their silhouettes cast in the background dazzled SEMICON Japan 2018 attendees at the opening ceremony in mid-December. Gone were the standard opening keynotes and ribbon cutting, replaced by live performance and media art set against a dramatic black backdrop. There was no mistaking the wide-eyed looks of wonder in the audience.In its sheer vibrance, the opening ceremony thrilled with an excitement that seemed to embody the extraordinary growth expectations for the global semiconductor supply chain over the next five years, with the industry poised to double sales from $2 trillion to a staggering $4 trillion – a phenomena SEMI president and CEO Ajit Manocha has called The Rebirth of the Semiconductor Industry. Driving this unprecedented growth will be SMART applications that are transforming industries and applications worldwide, powered by artificial intelligence (AI) and Internet of Things (IoT) technologies.The dramatic scene at SEMICON Japan 2018 was staged by Rhizomatiks, a media arts company that produced the Rio Olympic Games closing ceremony and is famous for its pop music spectacles. The company’s CTO, Motoi Ishibashi, the event’s first keynote speaker, described his team’s development of drones and vehicles guided by motion and precision-control technologies. It was some of these SMART vehicles that maneuvered the opening ceremony performers from the dance company Elevenplay onstage. Only Rhizomatiks, Ishibashi said, has this capability. In its mission to enrich people’s lives through new media arts, Rhizomatiks uses the latest virtual and mixed-reality technologies to orchestrate not only dance performances but music videos, commercials, fashion shows and festivals.Toru Nishikawa, the second keynote speaker and CEO at Preferred Networks, a leading Japan-based developer of deep learning software programs, surprised the SEMICON Japan audience with his discussion of his company’s work to develop a specialized chip for deep learning processing, joining technology giants Apple, Google, Alibaba and Microsoft in chip design. As more IT and software companies develop specialized, differentiated chips, the devices are quickly becoming the heartbeat of SMART technologies. The company’s approach has taken hold. Only four years old, Preferred Networks is enjoying rapid growth by working with global powerhouses including Toyota, NTT, Panasonic, Fanuc, NVIDIA, Intel and Microsoft. Ishibashi’s and Nishikawa’s fresh visions and the media arts extravaganza reflected the success of SEMICON Japan, held again at Tokyo Big Sight: The event’s 1,881 booths – filled by 727 exhibitors from 14 regions – was the highest count in six years. With Japan home to companies that supply about 40 percent of semiconductor equipment and materials worldwide, top suppliers historically have occupied the largest spaces on the SEMICON Japan show floor.According to IDC, personal computers and smartphones, long the largest revenue sources for the semiconductor industry, will remain top revenue drivers in the coming years. But revenue from new SMART technologies for applications such as automotive and factory automation is growing, a trend expected to continue with a 2018-2022 CAGR of 9.5 percent for automotive and 5.2 percent for manufacturing, compared to 1.1 percent for PCs and 2.9 percent for smartphones.SEMICON Japan’s new SMART Applications zone highlighted these and other new market opportunities for semiconductor growth with product and technology exhibits from companies including Bosch, IBM, Microsoft, NEC, Preferred Networks, Sony, SAS, Siemens, Tesla and Toyota. But the zone wasn’t all work and no play. The ROBOT SQUARE and SPORTS x IOT robot exhibits took visitors back to their school days, with robot anime – from Astro Boy to Gundam and Evangelion – that they could ride and control! As the World Gets Smarter, So Must SEMICON and the IndustryWe all agree the world is getting smarter at a fast pace. New cars are easier to drive – some models are almost fully autonomous on highways and streets. Your SMART speaker has gone well beyond an audio playback device and is more like a home AI platform. Almost all storefronts are equipped with video cameras. Your workplace, whether an office or a factory, is driven by automation. The reliance of these environments and devices on semiconductors is driving exponential chip and changing the world. Businesses need to adapt and so do SEMICON events. We’re doing just that as SEMICON Japan 2018 demonstrated – from an opening ceremony enabled by technology innovation to new faces of the industry to the SMART Application zone. As the SEMICON Japan presidents’ reception concluded the first day of the show, a robot from the ROBOT SQUARE suddenly appeared in the reception hall in front of about 250 executives from the global industry. Everyone at the reception was impressed and stepped forward to the stage, reflecting the overall excitement about SEMICON Japan, which for many years showcased only chip manufacturing equipment and materials. This year, to keep pace with the changing world, it was much more than that.SEMICON Japan 2019 will again take place in December at Tokyo Big Sight. However, organizers of the Tokyo Olympics will be using the East Exhibit Hall usually occupied by SEMICON Japan to prepare for the games. As a result, SEMICON Japan will be held in the West and South Halls instead. Look for more changes to the event. I hope to see you next year!Jim Hamajima is president of SEMI Japan.

On June 1st, 2018, Toshiba sold Toshiba Memory, Toshiba’s memory business, to an investment group led by Bain Capital. Toshiba Memory was then owned by a consortium of American, Japanese and Korean companies.After the long and tough negotiations, Toshiba Memory moved forward at full throttle, holding a groundbreaking ceremony for its new 3D NAND fab (100,000 WPM) in Kitakami in July and, in September, celebrating the opening of Fab 6 Phase 1 (50,000 WPM). To be sure, NAND memory is a key feature of Japan’s semiconductor industry. But the sector’s reach extends well beyond memory with its rich and versatile product portfolio nourished by active investment.Born in the early 1950s, Japan’s semiconductor industry today boasts more than 30 companies with fabs. Many feature 200mm and smaller wafer lines with legacy technologies, form factors that account for the bulk of the world’s semiconductors and are the oxygen of Japan’s chip industry. Clearly, the world is not built only with the state-of-art 7nm processed chips on the latest generation 300mm lines. Japanese chipmakers are flourishing.Automotive SemiconductorsRenesas Electronics remains a giant in microcontrollers (MCU) and system on chip (SoC) devices for automotive applications. According to IHS Markit, Renesas automotive semiconductor revenue in 2017 reached $3.6 billion while Inineon Technologies and NXP Semiconductors revenues were $3.4 billion and $3.7 billion, respectively. The three companies dominate the global automotive MCU global market. The company recently acquired Integrated Device Technology (IDT), a U.S. fabless company specializing in analog/mixed signal chips, to strengthen its automotive semiconductor portfolio. Renesas operates four volume production fabs, according to the latest World Fab Forecast from SEMI. Renesas’s microcontrollers for automotive applications (Source: Renesas Electronics) Power SemiconductorsWith power semiconductors the chips of choice for boosting the efficiency and performance of motors and batteries used in equipment, demand for the devices is rapidly growing, especially for automotive applications. Power semiconductor companies in Japan are legion and include Denso, Fuji Electric, Fujitsu Semiconductor, Hitachi, Kyocera, Mitsubishi Electric, New Japan Radio, Origin Electric, Phenitec Semiconductor, Renesas, Rohm, Sanken Electric, Sansha Electric Manufacturing, Seiko NPC, Shindengen Electric Manufacturing, Sumitomo Electric Device Innovations, Toshiba and Toyota Industries. The companies account for 26% of global power semiconductor capacity and will spend $317 million for construction and equipping in 2018.CMOS SensorsSony dominates the CMOS image sensors market with 42% share in 2016, according to Yole Développment. To meet growing demand for high-end CMOS image sensors, Sony has acquired several legacy 300mm wafer fabs and retooled them for CMOS sensor manufacturing. What’s more, Sony’s May announcement of its mid-term corporate strategy includes a 1 trillion Japanese yen investment in CMOS image sensors targeted to automotive applications by March 2021.Sony’s 7.42 effective megapixel stacked CMOS image sensor for automotive cameras (Source: Sony Corporation) MEMSMEMS is perhaps the most wide-ranging device market: Every application requires different capabilities and functions. The latest World Fab Forecast report lists 17 MEMS companies in Japan, though three makers of fast-growing RF MEMS, typically known as surface acoustic wave (SAW) or bulk acoustic wave (BAW) filters, are coming to the attention of semiconductor manufacturers. All are familiar passive electronic components suppliers – Murata Manufacturing, Taiyo Yuden and TDK – and all acquired legacy semiconductor fabs to manufacture RF MEMS.Their high-performance radio wave filters make mobile phones usable around the world. Research companies like Yole expect the introduction of 5G cellular mobile communication systems to fuel another wave of growth of the RF MEMS market. Murata Manufacturing’s SAW filters for smart phones (source Murata Manufacturing) Japanese Supply Chain Meets All Different NeedsJapan’s semiconductor supply chain provides one third of the world’s semiconductor manufacturing equipment and more than half of the industry’s materials. But Japanese suppliers also work with small and midsize makers of highly versatile chips critical to enabling the explosion of smart applications.Meet these versatile Japanese suppliers at SEMICON Japan to find solutions to your unique needs and help the world get smarter. Themed “Dreams Start Here,” SEMICON Japan 2018 reflects the promise of AI (artificial intelligence), Internet of Things (IoT) and Smart technologies. Featuring more than 750 exhibitors from around the world, the event is the gathering place to connect the people, technologies and business across the electronics manufacturing supply chain, from semiconductor manufacturing to autonomous cars, robotics and other smart applications. For more information about SEMICON Japan, visit www.semiconjapan.org.Yoichiro Ando is a marketing director at SEMI Japan.

As artificial intelligence’s (AI) sprawling influence reshapes industries from logistics and healthcare to automotive and manufacturing, Taiwan is poised to leverage its cutting-edge capabilities and rich history in semiconductor manufacturing to stake out a leadership position in AI. Taiwan’s semiconductor manufacturing industry accounts for a major share of the region’s GDP and, with its manufacturing prowess, the region is fertile ground for using AI to optimize and even revolutionize chip manufacturing. In an AI and Semiconductor Smart Manufacturing Forum recently hosted by SEMI Taiwan, experts from Micronix, Advantech, Nvidia and the Ministry of Science and Technology of Taiwan (MOST) shared their insights on how deep learning, data analytics and edge computing will shape the future of semiconductor manufacturing. Here are four key takeaways.1. Monitor, Forecast, and PreventToday, tier 1 foundries use AI tools to combine equipment know-how and manufacturing statistics in managing massive Fault Detection (FD) data, much in the way that a car’s tire-pressure monitoring system helps maintain safe inflation levels and prevent accidents. For example, AI enables the real-time collection and monitoring of massive amounts of processing data, then alerts system administrators of any hardware failures or other manufacturing abnormalities.AI also makes it possible to adopt Run-to-Run (R2R) control to automate manufacturing process adjustments and corrections by providing feedback that can drive higher processing efficiency. In addition, virtual metrology replaces manual sampling inspection for comprehensive quality control, enabling foundries to improve yields, reduce costs, and strengthen their competitive advantage.2. Beyond Automation: Edge Computing The evolution of IoT is giving rise to a paradigm shift in the industry as the recognition grows that smart factories must go beyond automation to focus also on intelligence. All information – from equipment status and manufacturing process statistics to on-site environmental data – needs to be collected through sensors. In highly time-critical scenarios, returning all sensor data to the cloud for processing is time-consuming and impracticable. This is where edge computing’s real-time features and lower cost than cloud computing come into play.How does edge computing work in a smart factory? First, a rich trove of data from various devices is collected and integrated via Manufacturing Execution Systems (MES). Software analysis then produces a real-time factory production status before production data is visualized through a combination of system platforms and human-machine interfaces. In the end, the data is analyzed realtime in the cloud so failures can be predicted and prevented to help increase capacity and reduce costs. The approach is even capable of Bill of Materials (BOM) predictions, allowing better collaboration between upstream and downstream suppliers.3. Deep Learning Accelerates AI Deep learning enables autonomous driving, intelligent voice assistance and many other AI breakthroughs. The heart of deep learning is its ability to automatically process and learn data in various formats such as images, video and text with no human domain knowledge. This increases predictive accuracy and efficiency in processing massive amounts of data. Deep learning also enhances the efficiency of human-machine collaboration.4. Taiwan’s Competitive Niche: Industry 3.5Industry 4.0 is not just about improving production management. It also focuses on integrating supply chains, even among competitive companies. For Industry 4.0 to thrive, rival companies must grow together. The first and third industrial revolutions centered on disruptive technologies like steam engines, transistors and digital, while the second and fourth revolutions homed in on competition among various business models, platforms and industry ecosystems.While Taiwan’s strengths include innovation, short time-to-market, low manufacturing costs, and high supply chain management efficiency, the region still lags advanced countries in basic industry and research capabilities. Squeezed by Chinese supply chains and high-end manufacturers in advanced countries, Taiwan should start by carving out an Industry 3.5 niche for the island’s manufacturers. SEMI will continue to facilitate cross-industry connection, collaboration and innovation to help manufacturers seeking higher production efficiency and lower costs incorporate AI as a core competitive advantage. At SEMICON Taiwan 2018, SEMI will unveil its Smart Manufacturing Journey, an exhibition that gathers leading AI companies such as ABB, Advantech, Nvidia, Sony and UPS to demonstrate a comprehensive roadmap for smart manufacturing technologies and applications. For more information, please visit the SEMICON Taiwan website.Emmy Yi is a marketing specialist at SEMI Taiwan.