Spotlight On
Peratech works to deliver solutions within the development cycle specified by their customers
from the technology, the adaptability of that component to be used in a variety of application solutions, and finally the ability to implement the technology solution at a cost the customer is willing to bear. Peratech's Quantum Tunnelling Composite (QTC) technology solutions excite me because not only do the composites themselves offer a number of unique capabilities, but when we integrate QTC-based solutions with other materials and human interface technologies, we enable designers to create a wide range of compelling user experiences they were not able to before. One of the reasons we think our technology works so well is that it works a lot like human skin. There are a lot of different touch-sensing parallels we can make between QTC-based sensors and skin, but the main similarities are how our sensors mimic how our finger tips sense touch. Like fingertips, QTC-based sensors are the most sensitive at the lightest forces. Also, both QTC sensors and fingertips sense force in an analogue manner - progressively, as opposed to a
digital manner - where things are either on or off, with no in-between. It’s these similarities that allow us to design such intuitive solutions for such a wide range of applications well beyond the smartphone. Also, QTC-based force-touch sensors not only survive exposure to but operate in demanding temperature and humidity conditions. Peratech force touch sensors have met customer requirements for operations in temperatures from -40ºC to 100ºC, something that other sensors have struggled to achieve.
Combine these characteristics and you have a sensor that emulates true human touch experience in some very extreme conditions.
How have you adapted your business model and what benefits does it offer your customers?
When I came to Peratech, it had just come out of administration, and that was largely due to a business model that
didn’t put the technology in the hands of its customers in a way they could readily use it. Today we use a “rocket launch” business model; one that starts with the customer’s product launch and works backwards to ensure everything we do is focused on the force touch objectives of that launch - ensuring that our solutions successfully integrate in the device to create the desired value.
A top global smartphone company, for example, might expect to sell 10 to 20 million units on day one, in as many as 20 to 30 countries worldwide. As we start from the launch and work backwards to concept and design, we need to consider all the things we need to do to help them progress from great user experience idea to millions of sub- assemblies that are easily installed into a smartphone at very high yield, in a cost effective way.
Having a strategy that’s tuned to our customers’ product launch success helps us make win–win decisions very early in the product development lifecycle. Owning the process of getting a new technology into a
product takes a lot of work, so it is in our best interest and the customer’s best interest to know if our solutions aren't going to work so we can both stop working on them as soon as possible. The key, and another source of competitive advantage, is being able to answer the appropriate go/no-go questions as fast and as inexpensively as we can. We get very positive customer feedback regardless of outcomes because ultimately, as a solutions company, we continually help our customers make force-sensing decisions better, faster and cheaper.
Can you share some innovations and applications for printed sensor technology that you envisage having an impact in the future?
I think we're going to see an evolution in electronics in the same way that we saw in the print industry. It used to be that to get something professionally printed, you had to go to a publishing house and have it printed on a big machine that had to run miles of paper to make it financially worthwhile for the producer to make. Then, as printing technology changed, that professional capability became affordable in our own homes through inkjet and laser jet printers. Today we have printing techniques that are essentially an industrial version of the home-based laser jet. I think personalised printing enables a whole new realm of custom human-machine interfaces. We also recognise that mass production will never go away, but it will fundamentally shift to more efficient and cost effective modes. Specifically, I think inkjet or aerosol jetting for 3D printing have a lot of potential to deposit material onto already curved and formed surfaces. I think that's going to be a big advantage for materials companies that can fully leverage this capability to integrate sensing of any kind.
And finally, what do you do to relax?
I enjoy skiing and stand up paddle boarding. Sometimes colleagues will come out for a “board meeting” along the California coast, and one day, we hope to do the same on the slopes as well. I love to go on mini adventures with my family - wherever we are, whatever the weather, we always seem to have fun making the most of it.
Because QTC sensors are so adaptable, we can use force touch sensing to take automotive interfaces to the next level
www.cieonline.co.uk www.peratech.com Components in Electronics November 2016 31
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