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Mitsubishi Electric will be using thermal accelerometers from MEMSIC in a handset design for Vodafone Japan. The accelerometer will be used in several modes and will provide inputs for a variety of applications. In the image orientation mode, the accelerometer will sense the V401D phone position and signal the display to show the image in either portrait or landscape mode. The accelerometer will also function as a pedometer, allowing the user to count steps and measure travelled distances during anything form a slow walk to a brisk run. Future applications will include using the sensor as a game input device.
"Shock resistance in hand-held devices is a primary concern, since MEMSIC's device is stiction free and has passed 10,000g operating shock testing, it was an excellent choice for Mitsubishi Electric in this application" says MEMSIC CEO Dr Yang Zhao. "Our highly reliable thermal accelerometer product does not require special manufacturing systems, has a failures in time (FIT) rate of 0.99 and in 2003 had an overall return rate of just 6.5ppm."
Through established manufacturing partnerships in Asia with TSMC and Fujitsu, MEMSIC has reduced operational costs by outsourcing nearly 90% of its manufacturing. The company has also recently opened a new 4200m2 facility in Wuxi, China, with a manufacturing capacity of 3mn units per month.
