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GLOBALFOUNDRIES joins top-20 semiconductor suppliers in Q1 2012 on Elpida bankruptcy

May 14, 2012

May 14, 2012 — The top 20 semiconductor suppliers in Q1 2012, compiled in IC Insights’ May Update to The McClean Report, show Intel’s firm hold on the top of the rankings, registering a 68% higher sales level than Samsung in Q1 (compared to a 48% margin for all of 2011).

See the 2011 top semiconductor suppliers rankings here.

Table 1. Q1 2012 Top 20 semiconductor sales leaders ($M, includes foundries). SOURCE: IC Insights.

Q1 2012 rank	2011 rank	Company	HQ	2011 total semi	Q1 2011 total semi	Q1 2012 total semi	Q1 Y/Y % change
1	1	Intel	US	49697	11819	11874	0
2	2	Samsung	S. Korea	33483	8215	7067	-14
3	3	TSMC*	Taiwan	14600	3600	3568	-1
4	5	Toshiba	Japan	12745	3435	3232	-6
5	7	Qualcomm**	US	9828	1962	3059	56%
6	4	TI	US	12900	3167	2934	-7
7	6	Renesas	Japan	10653	2897	2344	-19
8	10	Micron	US	8571	2218	2120	-4
9	9	SK Hynix	S. Korea	9403	2499	2115	-15
10	8	ST	Europe	9631	2523	1997	-21
11	11	Broadcom**	US	7160	1752	1770	1
12	12	AMD**	US	6568	1613	1585	-2
13	13	Sony	Japan	6093	1520	1514	0
14	14	Infineon	Europe	5599	1362	1297	-5
15	15	Fujitsu	Japan	4430	1148	1216	6
16	17	NXP	Europe	4147	1071	1071	0
17	18	Nvidia**	US	3939	936	935	0
18	16	Freescale	US	4391	1155	912	-21
19	21	GLOBALFOUNDRIES*	US	3480	845	840	-1
20	20	UMC*	Taiwan	3760	995	834	-16
Top 10 Total				171511	42335	40310	-5
Top 20 Total				221078	54732	52284	-4

*foundry

**fabless

GLOBALFOUNDRIES replaced bankrupt Elpida on the top 20 charts. Elpida dropped 34% in year over year (Y/Y) sales. If Micron, the forerunner for Elpida’s assets, takes over the bankrupt DRAM maker, it could jump 1 or 2 positions in the rankings.

With the addition of GLOBALFOUNDRIES, 3 pure-play foundries are now in the top 20 ranking. They squeezed out Sharp, Marvell, and Rohm from the top-20 ranks.

Q1 sales from the top 20 semiconductor suppliers were “generally disappointing,” says IC Insights. The quarter had a 4% decline Y/Y, which is well below IC Insights’ total-year 2012 forecast of 6-7%. IC Insights expects much improved sequential quarterly sales performance starting in 2Q12, based on company reports and analysis. Expect a 6% increase from Q1 to Q2, and even stronger growth Q2 to Q3.

Table 2. Q1 2012 Top 20 semiconductor sales leaders by growth rate ($M, includes foundries). SOURCE: IC Insights.

Q1 2012 rank	Company	HQ	2011 total semi	Q1 2011 total semi	Q1 2012 total semi	Q1 Y/Y % change
1	Qualcomm**	US	9828	1962	3059	56%
2	Fujitsu	Japan	4430	1148	1216	6
3	Broadcom**	US	7160	1752	1770	1
4	Intel	US	49697	11819	11874	0
5	NXP	Europe	4147	1071	1071	0
6	Nvidia**	US	3939	936	935	0
7	Sony	Japan	6093	1520	1514	0
8	GLOBALFOUNDRIES*	US	3480	845	840	-1
9	TSMC*	Taiwan	14600	3600	3568	-1
10	AMD**	US	6568	1613	1585	-2
11	Micron	US	8571	2218	2120	-4
12	Infineon	Europe	5599	1362	1297	-5
13	Toshiba	Japan	12745	3435	3232	-6
14	TI	US	12900	3167	2934	-7
15	Samsung	S. Korea	33483	8215	7067	-14
16	SK Hynix	S. Korea	9403	2499	2115	-15
17	UMC*	Taiwan	3760	995	834	-16
18	Renesas	Japan	10653	2897	2344	-19
19	ST	Europe	9631	2523	1997	-21
20	Freescale	US	4391	1155	912	-21

The top 20 semiconductor suppliers saw a wide range of Y/Y growth in Q1. Memory chip companies did not secure any of the top 10 growth rate positions. Only 3 companies registered better-than-flat Y/Y growth rates: Qualcomm, Fujitsu, and Broadcom. Fabless company Qualcomm led the way with strong sales for smartphone chips, as well as an acquisition of Atheros in May 2011. Qualcomm is on pace to register over $12 billion in sales in 2012.

Each of the big four memory suppliers in the top 20 ranking — Samsung, Toshiba, SK Hynix, and Micron — saw sales decline Y/Y, most notably Samsung and SK Hynix.

IC Insights believes that the bottom of the semiconductor market slowdown occurred, for the majority of the top 20 companies, in either Q4 2011 or Q1 2012. If the worldwide economy continues on its slow growth rate trajectory, the remainder of 2012 looks bright for the semiconductor industry and its suppliers.

IC Insights’ 2012 edition of The McClean Report comes with free monthly updates by e-mail from March-November (including a Mid-Year Report). To review additional information about IC Insights’ market research, visit www.icinsights.com.

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GaN-on-Si LED from Bridgelux, Toshiba hits performance record

May 11, 2012

May 11, 2012 – Marketwire — Bridgelux Inc., developer of light-emitting diodes (LEDs), and Toshiba Corporation, leading semiconductor manufacturer, reported a 1.1mm² LED chip fabricated on an 8" gallium nitride on silicon (GaN-on-Si) wafer, emitting 614mW, <3.1V @ 350mA. This is the best-reported GaN-on-Si LED performance on an 8” wafer, according to the companies.

Silicon is a less expensive LED substrate than the traditional sapphire materials, and benefits from use in the established, high-volume semiconductor manufacturing industry. Bridgelux has a proprietary buffer layer technology that it claims creates results comprable to sapphire-based LEDs. In August 2011, Bridgelux reported a lumens/Watt (luminous efficiency) record for GaN-on-Si LEDs.

Bridgelux and Toshiba engaged in a joint collaborative agreement earlier this year for LED chips. Further development will target commercialization of the technology, noted Makoto Hideshima, EVP of Semiconductor and Storage Products Company, CPV of Toshiba.

Now, Toshiba is also making an equity investment in Bridgelux, to jointly pursue innovative solid state lighting (SSL) technology. Toshiba’s advanced silicon process and manufacturing technologies will be put to use on Bridgelux’s GaN-on-Si LED chip technology. In October last year, Bridgelux brought in $15 million in financing, following a $50 million Series D round.

The equity investment, coupled with Toshiba and Bridgelux’s development relationship, will help the companies “drive down the cost of solid-state solutions for the general lighting market," said Bill Watkins, Bridgelux CEO.

Bridgelux develops and manufactures solid-state lighting (SSL). For more information, please visit www.bridgelux.com.

Toshiba is a diversified manufacturer and marketer of advanced electronic and electrical products spanning digital consumer products; electronic devices and components; power systems, including nuclear energy; industrial and social infrastructure systems; and home appliances. Website: www.toshiba.co.jp/index.htm.

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Intel (INTC) plans high capex and fast node shrinks, expects chipmaker consolidation

May 11, 2012

May 11, 2012 — Intel’s annual investor day took place this week in Santa Clara, CA. Capital spending will be high in 2012 and 2013, Intel said, noting that its 22nm and 14nm node capabilities are differentiators. Intel focused on its Ultrabook launches, consolidation in the chip industry, and reiterated that capex is for internal use not foundry services.

Intel’s move into 22nm and 14nm semiconductor manufacturing nodes is increasing its capital requirements, noted Stacey Smith, Intel CFO. With new fabs costing $5 billion, Intel sees its process and manufacturing expertise as effective barriers to competitive firms, noted FBR Capital Markets analysts. Intel has sustainable advantages in manufacturing, its product roadmaps, process leadership, technology leadership (high-k, 3D transistors), and scale, FBR said.

Average capital costs per silicon square inch keep increasing, said Smith, but costs per transistor keep falling, FBR notes. Intel says CPU unit costs will fall in 2012 and 2013.

With slower depreciation than fab equipment, “halls and walls” will be about 40% of Intel’s capital expenditures (capex) in 2012. Expect high capital intensity in 2013 from the company, FBR reported, likely >$13 billion. Intel’s 2013 capex predictions should enable about $8 billion or more on wafer fab equipment, with higher intensity on leading-edge fab techniques such as double-patterning lithography, added Barclays Capital.

CEO Paul Otellini forecast more consolidation among chipmakers as semiconductor manufacturing technology advances, leaving only Intel, Samsung, and a few other players. See the top chip makers of 2011 here. Barclays measures Intel’s competitive advantage at 4+ years. Consolidation is beginning now that the cost of a 300mm wafer fab is $5 billion, Otellini said, and will accelerate with 450mm fabs that cost $10 billion or more, quoted Iain Thomson of The Register (UK). Thomson notes that Gordon Moore, Intel veteran and father of Moore’s Law, had predicted consolidation in the industry once the cost of a new 200mm wafer manufacturing plant hit $1 billion. This proved, Otellini noted, a little early, but the consolidation is now upon the sector.

Barclays sees potential for Intel as a foundry services business, as it extends semiconductor manufacturing leadership beyond competition. Intel said that the company “could become a strategic foundry partner for select customers,” but stressed that this business is in a “crawl” mode today, and that current capex is purely for internal use. If Intel were to expand into foundry services, it would require higher spending.

Despite high and accelerating capex, the company is comfortable with its gross margins (60-65% estimated in 2013), said Barclays. Average unit cost will decline in 2012 and 2013 despite higher capital expenditures, Intel said. Intel’s declining cost structure should enable the company to sustain healthy operating margins in the low-40% level for 2012, added Barclays analysts.

On the product side, Intel says it has more traction for handsets than in 2011, report analysts from FBR Capital markets: “mobile handset penetration with Atom still a priority.” Management discussed ramping 32nm mobile products in 2012, 22nm in 2013, and 14nm in 2014, one new node per year for three years, FBR reported. This is on-track with Intel’s established Atom roadmap, Barclays noted.

Intel highlighted its change in NAND memory strategy, participating only in the higher-margin segments of the market (i.e. SSD), Barclays reported, noting Intel’s recent restructuring of its joint venture with Micron as a way to eliminate risk.

Ultrabooks are of major importance to Intel, with management highlighting 110+ design wins to-date, Barclays reported. Ultrabooks will be 40% of the consumer laptop sector by the end of 2012, said Otellini, who believes that the integration of Touch and Win 8 will enable Ultrabooks to cannibalize tablets, Barclays said.

PC unit growth will come from emerging markets (China, India, etc). Datacenter revenues will stay on track, with high growth in cloud and high-performance computing sectors. The server market keeps segmenting into various sub-categories of workloads, Intel noted. Tablets and smartphones are tempering growth in Intel’s core business, FBR cautioned.

Intel also highlighted the growing opportunity it sees in embedded systems (terminals, kiosk, industrial applications) for auto (in vehicle infotainment), retail (digital signage), and communications infrastructure, added Barclays.

Net, Intel’s execution and strategies in recent years have been successful and respectable and FBR sees nothing in Intel’s presentations to suggest the firm is changing course meaningfully one way or another, concluded FBR.

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OLED manufacturers develop new color patterning technologies for large-area fab

May 10, 2012

May 10, 2012 — Organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) emerged on the display scene recently, gaining adopters in small screen sizes like smartphones, and just moving into large-size displays like 55” televisions in recent months (LG Electronics made one in December 2011; Samsung Electronics came out with one at CES in January 2012). OLED offers better power consumption, light emission, and clarity than liquid crystal displays (LCDs)

As OLED adoption ramps up, mass production technology for large-area OLED is increasingly an issue that could prohibit OLED from gaining market share on LCD. In current OLED manufacturing, color patterning is achieved by fine metal mask (FMM) using thermal evaporation, and laser-induced thermal imaging (LITI), which can be limited to small-size panels. Manufacturers are now looking for color patterning technologies — from solution-based printing to laser imaging and layering white OLEDs with filters — that suit display production at Gen-8 fabs or larger.

Also read: OLED trends: Materials, color patterning advances and the display race

Samsung Mobile Display (SMD) is developing small mask scanning (SMS) technology, which improves FMM color patterning. Hybrid patterning system (HPS) technology combines LITI and FMM, and is currently under development. LG is working on a method that combines white OLEDs with color filters (WOLED+C/F).

Displaybank issued a Korean patent analysis report regarding the OLED color patterning technology, comprising research and analysis about the patents of foreign companies in Korea as well as the key patents of Korea-based companies. 495 patents relating to OLED color patterning technology were selected in the primary screening among a total of 2,532 raw data disclosed or registered by December 2011. 52 key patents regarding SMS, HPS, Ink-jet, and WOLED+C/F technology were then analyzed as large-area OLED color patterning technologies. Learn more at http://www.displaybank.com/_eng/research/report_view.html?id=855&cate=2

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STâs MEMS revenues jump 82% in 2011, but TI holds onto #1 spot

May 9, 2012

May 9, 2012 — Texas Instruments Inc. (TI, TXN) remained the top manufacturer of micro electro mechanical systems (MEMS) in 2011 with $779.0 million in MEMS revenues, fending off runners-up Hewlett Packard Co. and Bosch in tough competition for market share, according to an IHS iSuppli MEMS Market Brief report.

The top 10 MEMS players had combined revenue of $4.7 billion, up 12% from $4.2 billion in 2010. TI was followed by Hewlett-Packard (HP), Bosch, STMicroelectronics (ST, STM), Canon, Panasonic, Denso, Knowles Electronics, Analog Devices Inc. (ADI), and Epson.

Table. Worldwide revenue forecast for MEMS IDM and fabless manufacturers, excluding foundries ($M). SOURCE: IHS iSuppli Research, May 2012.

Rank	Company	2011 Revenue	2010 Revenue	Y/Y Growth (Decline) %
1	Texas Instruments	779.0	810.5	-4%
2	HP	748.4	782.1	-4%
3	Bosch	742.2	643.0	15%
4	STMicroelectronics	651.6	357.5	82%
5	Canon	368.7	354.7	4%
6	Panasonic	310.1	285.7	9%
7	Denso	286.4	262.5	9%
8	Knowles	270.9	191.5	41%
9	Analog Devices	250.2	204.2	22%
10	Epson	247.7	264.7	-6%
Total for Top 10		4,655.1	4,156.4	12.0%
Share of Total MEMS market		59.0%	58.5%

Bosch and ST had much larger revenue jumps than the 2 top suppliers, which could indicate more competition for #1 in the near future.

Freescale Semiconductor, a former member of the top 10 MEMS makers, fell out of the rankings to #11.

TI’s MEMS revenue fell 4% from 2010 to 2011, owing in part to supply chain disruptions caused by the 3/11 Japan earthquake. Sales of digital light processing (DLP) MEMS chips kept TI on top in 2011, said Jérémie Bouchaud, director and senior principal analyst for MEMS & sensors at IHS. The DLP business was what helped propel TI to the top spot in 2010, rebounding in the business and education front-projector segment. “Sales are especially strong in China and India,” Bouchard notes, where DLP-based projectors have taken market share from liquid crystal displays (LCD). While front-projection designs are growing, rear-projection DLP TVs have virtually disappeared. From 2004 to 2009, this trend erased 31% of TI’s MEMS revenue.

TI also found success in pico-projectors, a still relatively small portion of its MEMS business at <$50 million of MEMS revenues. The company is the top supplier of pico-projectors for both accessory and embedded projectors such as those found in the Beam handset from Samsung Electronics. The product segment will be a main growth driver at TI over the next 5 years.

TI also introduced a MEMS temperature sensor, or thermopile, in 2011, targeting new handsets and tablets. Thermopiles monitor the temperature of the case to help optimize processor operation. Thermopiles will start to contribute to TI’s MEMS business in 2012 or 2013.

Hewlett-Packard also lost 4% of revenues from 2010 to 2011, coming in with $748.4 million from its MEMS business. HP held the #1 rank from 2005 to 2009, but suffers from price erosion in its MEMS thermal actuators, used in inkjet printheads. HP has lower shipments of disposable printheads as well, since it started migrating to permanent ones in 2005.

The Bosch Group GmbH held onto #3 with revenue of $742.2 million, shooting up 15% from 2010. Bosch saw growth in automotive MEMS as new vehicle safety products ramp up with inertial and pressure sensors. The vehicle airbag market grew rapidly in China as well, and side airbag applications rose in the United States.

STMicroelectronics saw 82% revenue growth in MEMS — the largest of any in the rankings — to $651.6 million. ST maintained its historical lead in accelerometers, with 50% of all consumer accelerometer revenue in 2011 for such applications as handsets, tablets, laptops and gaming. As consumer accelerometers start to slow, STMicroelectronics is expected to focus on other MEMS devices, including 3-axis gyroscopes, MEMS microphones, and pressure sensors. In 2011, gyroscopes accounted for 55% of MEMS revenue at STM, up from 32% in 2010 and <1% in 2009.

Canon saw a 4% increase in revenues with $368.7 million, the only major inkjet head manufacturer to see a revenue increase in 2011.

Access the IHS iSuppli MEMS Market Brief report.

IHS (NYSE: IHS) provides information, insight and analytics in critical areas that shape today’s business landscape. For more information, visit www.ihs.com.

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President Obama speaks at Albany Nano-Tech Complex today

May 8, 2012

May 8, 2012 — US President Barack Obama toured the University at Albany – State University of New York (SUNY) – Albany Nano-Tech Complex at 12EST today, speaking about the economy in the College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering’s (CNSE) NanoFab Extension Building.

Semiconductor foundry GLOBALFOUNDRIES will help host the presidential visit, which had to move from GLOBALFOUNDRIES’ new Fab 8 to the college for logistical reasons. CNSE is a global education, research, development and technology deployment resource dedicated to preparing the next generation of scientists and researchers in nanotechnology. It hosts myriad private-public partnerships with academia and research organizations partnering with global semiconductor equipment and materials suppliers, as well as chip makers. Also read: A day at Albany CNSE: Leading-edge techs, innovation vs. efficiency

GLOBALFOUNDRIES CEO Ajit Manocha will speak during the event as well. Since breaking ground on Fab 8 in 2009, GLOBALFOUNDRIES has created more than 1,300 new direct jobs with the project, drawn from local talent in the region and national and international sources. In addition, the project has created an additional 4,300 construction related jobs and established the largest private Project Labor Agreement in history, generating hundreds of millions of dollars of economic development throughout upstate New York. Fab 8 began production in January 2012, and should ramp to volume production this year.

In January, President Obama visited Intel’s Ocotillo semiconductor manufacturing location in Chandler, AZ, touring Fab 42, which is under construction. The visit carried a similar theme as today’s — advanced manufacturing jobs in America, and improving education to develop future technological leaders from America. Obama is emphasizing the connection between education, innovation, and manufacturing in supporting investment and bringing jobs back to the US, which the administration touts as "insourcing."

"The true engine of job creation in this country is the private sector. There are steps we can take as a nation to make it easier for companies to grow and to hire — to create platforms of success," said Obama at CNSE (via @Obama2012 on twitter). He listed ways to accelerate the US economy, including tax breaks for clean-energy companies and small business owners, support for veterans in the job market, and encouraging US-based manufacturing and exports. "American manufacturers are creating new jobs for the first time since the 1990s," he said, and asserted that half of America’s largest companies are considering moving manufacturing operations from China to the US. "Even when we can’t make things cheaper than other countries, we can always make them better."

From the White House: "The President’s visit to the College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering at SUNY-Albany demonstrates the important role that partnerships between universities and companies can play in accelerating education, innovation and U.S. manufacturing investment."

The President has proposed a $1 billion investment for a "National Network for Manufacturing Innovation consisting of up to fifteen institutes, each serving as a hub that will help to make US manufacturing facilities and enterprises more competitive and encourage investment in the United States." The White House says that these "hubs," like CNSE, will bring large companies, small and medium enterprises, research organizations and universities, federal agencies, and states together to advance key manufacturing technologies with broad applications. In March, the Administration announced that it "will invest $45 million in existing resources to launch a single pilot institute through a competitive award to be announced later this year."

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David McCann of GLOBALFOUNDRIES to speak at The ConFab 2012

May 3, 2012

Solid State Technology is proud to announce that David McCann will speak at The ConFab 2012. The event will be held June 3-6, 2012 at The Encore at The Wynn in Las Vegas. David McCann is Sr Director for Packaging R&D at GLOBALFOUNDRIES in Malta, New York. In this role, Dave is responsible for Packaging R&D and back-end strategy and implementation.

David will speak on the evolution toward silicon-based interconnect and packaging, which is having profound impact on how we think about technology development and the supply chain. “Previously, companies in incremental steps of the supply chain could develop products relatively independently,” he notes in his abstract. “Now they must work together to create solutions, or fail their common customers. Although the shortest path to market may be for the foundry to do everything in-house, the path to the best solutions that will enable competitive costs and high volume adaption will be flexible supply chains with collaborative partnering, flexibility, and transparency.”

In a session focused on advanced packaging and progress in 3D Integration, David will be joined by fellow presenters Sandeep Bharathi, vice president of engineering, Xilinx; Ron Huemoeller, senior vice president, 3DAmkor; and Bill Chen, ASE Fellow and Sr. Technical Adviser, ASE Inc. The chair of the session is Abe Yee, Dir. Adv.Technology & Package Development, Nvidia Corp.

Prior to GLOBALFOUNDRIES, David worked at Amkor Technology for 11 years, most recently leading the BGA, Flip Chip and MEMS product groups. He was responsible for extensions of package technology, bump, applications, and business performance. Prior to this, Dave was responsible for the fcBGA and fcCSP business group at Amkor. He led cross-functional teams in various areas including networking product strategy, mobile product development, large die/lead free flip chip development, and wafer level product strategy. David worked closely with Amkor factories in Asia.

Prior to Amkor, David worked at Biotronik, GmbH in Portland, OR. Biotronik is a developer and manufacturer of implanted medical devices including defibrillators and pacemakers. David worked at Biotronik for 9 years and had various roles in Production, Process Engineering, Product Engineering, and Flip Chip implementation. His last role at Biotronik was leading the assembly, interconnect, and product transition from wire bond to flip chip.

David has supported the Electronic Component and Technology Conference for more than 10 years. This year he is Conference General Chair.

Semiconductor sales grew incrementally in March 2012

May 2, 2012

May 2, 2012 — Global semiconductor sales hit $23.3 billion in March 2012, up 1.5% from February 2012 and down 7.9% from March 2011, reports the Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA). “Sequential growth resumed across all regions, especially in Europe and Japan, in March,” said Brian Toohey, SIA president. Sales in Europe grew 3.8% in March; Japan increased 1.2%. There were “pockets of relative out-performance,” noted Barclays Capital analysts, such as DSP, MCU, MPU, and NOR Flash. NAND and Logic saw less promising numbers.

Figure. Worldwide semiconductor revenues (year-over-year % change). SOURCE: SIA.

Table 1. March 2012 month-to-month semiconductor sales ($B)
Market	Last Month	Current Month	% Change
Americas	4.41	4.46	1.0%
Europe	2.72	2.83	3.8%
Japan	3.38	3.42	1.2%
Asia Pacific	12.44	12.60	1.3%
Total	22.95	23.31	1.5%

Q1 chip sales reached $69.9 billion, declining 2.2% from Q4 2011 and down 7.9% from Q1 2011 ($75.9 billion). Seasonal moderate growth is expected to continue in Q2, with momentum in chip sales building as 2012 progresses, Toohey said, warning that macroeconomic and geopolitical uncertainties could flare and disrupt forecasts. Generally improved macroeconomic conditions are supporting the current outlook, along with increasing semiconductor content in diverse applications, and recovery in the semiconductor/electronics supply chain after Thailand’s late-2011 floods.

Year-over-year comparisons should turn positive in May or June, commented CJ Muse at Barclays Capital. Also read: Chip sector sets up for high demand in H2

Table 2. March 2012 year-over-year semiconductor sales ($B)
Market	Last Year	Current Month	% Change
Americas	4.73	4.46	-5.7%
Europe	3.34	2.83	-15.4%
Japan	3.61	3.42	-5.2%
Asia Pacific	13.63	12.60	-7.6%
Total	25.31	23.31	-7.9%

Table 3. Three-month moving average sales ($B).
Market	Oct/Nov/Dec	Jan/Feb/Mar	% Change
Americas	4.36	4.46	2.2%
Europe	2.78	2.83	1.7%
Japan	3.59	3.42	-4.7%
Asia Pacific	13.10	12.60	-3.8%
Total	23.83	23.31	-2.2%

All monthly sales numbers represent a three-month moving average.

The Semiconductor Industry Association, SIA, represents the US semiconductor industry, with over 60 companies that account for 80% of US semiconductor production. Learn more at www.sia-online.org

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Top 50 âinternet of thingsâ applications

May 2, 2012

Since 2008, there have been more objects connected to the Internet than peeople in the world and this figure will hit 50 billion by 2020, according to Libelium, a wireless sensor networks platform provider. The company has released a list of 54 sensor applications for a smarter world, covering the most disruptive sensor and “internet of things” applications.

Their list is grouped in 12 different verticals, showing how the internet of things is becoming the next technological revolution. It includes the trendiest scenarios, such as smart cities where sensors can offer services such as smart parking – to find free parking spots in the streets– or managing the intensity of the luminosity in street lights to save energy. Climate change, environmental protection, water quality or CO₂emissions are also addressed by sensor networks.

Other sections such as industrial control, logistics or retail cover applications more focused in process efficiency like providing information for restocking the shelves and even product placement for marketing purposes. The list is completed with applications in the verticals of smart metering, security and emergencies, smart agriculture, animal farming, domotic and home automation and eHealth.

“Now we are able to collect data everywhere from our environment, infrastructures, businesses and even ourselves, and this huge amount of information is generating a new ecosystem of business opportunities around its storage, analysis and accessibility” says Libelium’s CEO Alicia Asín. “We want this document to inspire people and companies with all the opportunities around the Internet of Things era,” she added.

Smart Cities

1. Smart parking: Monitoring of parking spaces availability in the city.

2. Structural health: Monitoring of vibrations and material conditions in buildings, bridges and historical monuments.

3. Noise urban maps: Sound monitoring in bar areas and centric zones in real time.

4. Traffic congestion: Monitoring of vehicles and pedestrian levels to optimize driving and walking routes.

5. Smart lightning: Intelligent and weather adaptive lighting in street lights.

6. Waste management: Detection of rubbish levels in containers to optimize the trash collection routes.

7. Intelligent transportation systems: Smart Roads and Intelligent Highways with warning messages and diversions according to climate conditions and unexpected events like accidents or traffic jams.

Smart Environment

8. Forest fire detection: Monitoring of combustion gases and preemptive fire conditions to define alert zones.

9. Air pollution: Control of CO₂ emissions of factories, pollution emitted by cars and toxic gases generated in farms.

10. Landslide and avalanche prevention: Monitoring of soil moisture, vibrations and earth density to detect dangerous patterns in land conditions.

11. Earthquake early detection: Distributed control in specific places of tremors.

Smart Water

12. Water quality: Study of water suitability in rivers and the sea for fauna and eligibility for drinkable use.

13. Water leakages: Detection of liquid presence outside tanks and pressure variations along pipes.

14. River floods: Monitoring of water level variations in rivers, dams and reservoirs.

Smart Metering

15. Smart grid: Energy consumption monitoring and management.

16. Tank level: Monitoring of water, oil and gas levels in storage tanks and cisterns.

17. Photovoltaic installations: Monitoring and optimization of performance in solar energy plants.

18. Water flow: Measurement of water pressure in water transportation systems.

19. Silos stock calculation: Measurement of emptiness level and weight of the goods.

Security and Emergencies

20. Perimeter access control: Access control to restricted areas and detection of people in non-authorized areas.

21. Liquid presence: Liquid detection in data centers, warehouses and sensitive building grounds to prevent break downs and corrosion.

22. Radiation levels: Distributed measurement of radiation levels in nuclear power stations surroundings to generate leakage alerts.

23. Explosive and hazardous gases: Detection of gas levels and leakages in industrial environments, surroundings of chemical factories and inside mines.

Retail

24. Supply chain control: Monitoring of storage conditions along the supply chain and product tracking for traceability purposes.

25. NFC payment: Payment processing based in location or activity duration for public transport, gyms, theme parks, etc.

26. Intelligent shopping applications: Getting advices in the point of sale according to customer habits, preferences, presence of allergic components for them or expiring dates.

27. Smart product management
Control of rotation of products in shelves and warehouses to automate restocking processes.

Logistics

28. Quality of shipment conditions: Monitoring of vibrations, strokes, container openings or cold chain maintenance for insurance purposes.

29. Item location: Search of individual items in big surfaces like warehouses or harbours.

30. Storage incompatibility detection: Warning emission on containers storing inflammable goods closed to others containing explosive material.

31. Fleet tracking: Control of routes followed for delicate goods like medical drugs, jewels or dangerous merchandises.

Industrial Control

32. M2M applications: Machine auto-diagnosis and assets control.

33. Indoor air quality: Monitoring of toxic gas and oxygen levels inside chemical plants to ensure workers and goods safety.

34. Temperature monitoring: Control of temperature inside industrial and medical fridges with sensitive merchandise.

35. Ozone presence: Monitoring of ozone levels during the drying meat process in food factories.

36. Indoor location: Asset indoor location by using active (ZigBee) and passive tags (RFID/NFC).

37. Vehicle auto-diagnosis: Information collection from CanBus to send real time alarms to emergencies or provide advice to drivers.

Smart Agriculture

38. Wine quality enhancing: Monitoring soil moisture and trunk diameter in vineyards to control the amount of sugar in grapes and grapevine health.

39. Green houses: Control micro-climate conditions to maximize the production of fruits and vegetables and its quality.

40. Golf courses: Selective irrigation in dry zones to reduce the water resources required in the green.

41. Meteorological station network: Study of weather conditions in fields to forecast ice formation, rain, drought, snow or wind changes.

42. Compost: Control of humidity and temperature levels in alfalfa, hay, straw, etc. to prevent fungus and other microbial contaminants.

Smart Animal Farming

43. Offspring care: Control of growing conditions of the offspring in animal farms to ensure its survival and health.

44. Animal tracking: Location and identification of animals grazing in open pastures or location in big stables.

45. Toxic gas levels: Study of ventilation and air quality in farms and detection of harmful gases from excrements.

Domotic and Home Automation

46. Energy and water use: Energy and water supply consumption monitoring to obtain advice on how to save cost and resources.

47. Remote control appliances: Switching on and off remotely appliances to avoid accidents and save energy.

48. Intrusion detection systems: Detection of windows and doors openings and violations to prevent intruders.

49. Art and goods preservation: Monitoring of conditions inside museums and art warehouses.

eHealth

50. Fall detection: Assistance for elderly or disabled people living independent.

51. Medical fridges: Control of conditions inside freezers storing vaccines, medicines and organic elements.

52. Sportsmen care: Vital signs monitoring in high performance centers and fields.

53. Patients surveillance: Monitoring of conditions of patients inside hospitals and in old people’s home.

54. Ultraviolet radiation: Measurement of UV sun rays to warn people not to be exposed in certain hours.