News

Alps Electric (Ota-ku, Tokyo; President: Toshihiro Kuriyama) in January 2015 signed a commercial sales agreement with Qualtré, Inc. (Massachusetts, U.S.A.; CEO: Edgar Masri), its partner in gyroscope development. The agreement reinforces the partnership between the two companies and enables the strengthening of Alps Electric's sensor business.

Alps Electric and Qualtré began joint development of gyroscopes and other inertial sensors in 2008. Since then, Alps Electric has made strategic investments twice, in 2013 and 2014, valued at US$3 million and US$4 million respectively, while Qualtré has stepped up the pace of sensor development. The three-axis gyroscopes completed last year have been well received by the market due to their outstanding shock and vibration immunity and low power consumption.

The commercial sales agreement between Alps Electric and Qualtré permits both companies to sell the gyroscopes under their own brands to their respective customers. Sales promotion activities are being advanced with an eye to starting mass production in 2015.

The gyroscopes are based on bulk acoustic wave (BAW) MEMS sensor technology, which employs high frequencies of several megahertz to achieve excellent device characteristics, including outstanding immunity to extraneous stimuli, low power consumption, and optimal price-to-performance. Qualtré is in charge of the sensor devices and IC design, while Alps Electric is responsible for packaging and performance testing.

The main envisaged applications of the product are in the automotive electronics and industrial systems markets, where demand for robustness is especially high. They include autonomous navigation units, robotic body control and control units for construction machinery. Alps Electric's communication modules and other sensing devices will also be integrated to meet diverse needs.