User:MaryGaulke/sandbox/Synaptics mockup marked up

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
This page is about the semiconductor manufacturer. For other uses, see Synaptic (disambiguation).
Synaptics
Company type
CFO
ProductsTouchPad trackpads
TouchStyk
ClearView display drivers
TouchView TDDI
ClearPad touch controllers
SentryPoint
PurePrint
Touchscreen Controllers
DDIC Display Drivers
Natural ID and Clear ID fingerprint sensors
AudioSmart DSPs and SOCs
VideoSmart processors
ImagingSmart processors
ForcePad
SecurePad
RevenueIncrease $1.72 billion USD (2017)[1]
Decrease $64.7 million USD (2017)[1]
Decrease $48.8 million USD (2017)[1]
Number of employees
1,763 (2016)[2]
SubsidiariesConexant
Websitewww.synaptics.com

Synaptics is a publicly owned

smart home devices and automotives. Synaptics primarily sells its products to original equipment manufacturers
(OEMs) and display manufacturers.

Since its founding in 1986, the company's notable innovations include the first ever computer touchpad, touch technology for the

optical fingerprint sensing
in late 2016.

History

1986-1998: Founding and launch of first touchpad

Synaptics was founded in 1986 by scientists and engineers

portmanteau, blending synapse and electronics.[6] In 1991, Synaptics patented a refined "winner take all" circuit for teaching neural networks how to recognize patterns and images, so called because it uses basic physics principles in order to select the strongest signal from the array of different processors.[7]

During Synaptics' early years, the laptop industry was struggling to make devices thinner because the spherical trackballs included in them required thicker device builds.[8] Synaptics' founders recognized this issue and in 1992, used the pattern recognition techniques it developed to build the world's first touchpad, which Apple adopted in 1995.[5] By 1994, Twinhead and Epson America had adopted Synaptics' touchpad for their computers,[9] followed by Apple in 1995 and later[10]The touchpad was subsequently adopted by other leading computer manufacturers of the time, including Compaq and Dell, launching Synaptics' growth as a company and establishing touchpads as a standard feature in notebook PCs.[11]

1999-2010: Continued growth and integration with mobile devices

As integrationadoption of the touchpad grew, Synaptics continued to refine its technology, building a vision to integrate itsought to integrate the technology with other solutionsproducts and createexpand the company with a range of human interface technologies to expand the company. In 1999, Francis Lee took over as CEO.

click wheel enabled by Synaptics' capacitive touch technology, and Synaptics also provided a similar, vertical solution for the click wheel of the Creative Zen Touch portable media player.[13]

Since then, Synaptics' solutions have been adopted in various markets beyond notebook computers. In 2005, Synaptics sensors were featured in the Samsung B310, the world's first mobile phone to use

universal remote controls with capacitive-touch capabilities, which debuted in 2008 and brought capacitive-touch capabilities to universal remote controls.[18]

In 2009, Synaptics revealed the Fuse concept smartphone, which included several features that are now standard in modern smartphones, and showcased it at the Consumer Electronics Show in January 2010. The Fuse offered touch sensitivity on the back of the phone, the ability to interact with the phone by squeezing, animated icons, a user interface sensitive to the phone's orientation and tilt, and haptic gestures.[19][20][21]

2011-present: Touch and display integration, biometrics, and the Internet of things

In 2011, current CEOthe company appointed Rick Bergman was appointedto succeed Francis Lee (CEO from 1999-2011) and drive Synaptics' expansion in to new marketsas CEO.[22]

In 2012, Synaptics introduced the world's first full-function capacitive-touch product to incorporatethat used pressure recognition (AKA i.e.force sensing), enablingto allow for multi-finger and variable-force input.[23] (Apple debuted Force Touch, a similar technology, in 2014.[24]) In late 2013,The following year, Synaptics acquired Validity Sensors, a fingerprint sensor vendor, adding biometrics and fingerprint sensingcapacitive fingerprint sensing to Synaptics' portfolio of solutions.[25][26]

Synaptics acquired Renesas SP Drivers Inc., a Japanese company specializing in chips that manage LCD displays, in 2014.[27] Synaptics purchased Renesas SP for approximately JPY ($475 million) for 100% of the company. The acquisition enabled Synaptics to establish an integrated portfolio integrate offerings of touch and display driver technologies into a single "TDDI" (Touch and Display Driver Integration) chip.[28][29]

The company has sinceWith its growing portfolio of touch, display, and fingerprint offerings, in 2015 the company expanded into additional markets, including automotive, wearables and PC peripherals in 2015.[30][31] In July 2015, Synaptics debuted a unique “match-in-sensor” fingerprint authenticator for laptops and other devices that authenticates the fingerprint within the chip itself for greater security.[32][33]Synaptics in 2015 had 1600+ granted and pending patents for human interface solutions.[34] In FY15, Synaptics reported $1.703 billion in revenue and cited a +46% compound annual growth rate.[34]

The company debuted the Clear ID FS9100, its first optical-based fingerprint sensor, in December 2016,

Vivo announced the X20 Plus UD, a smartphone featuring Synaptics’ Clear ID optical fingerprint sensor. This was the world’s first full-production smartphone with fingerprint authentication directly in the OLED display.[37][38]

In JuneJuly 2017, Synaptics announced it was acquiringacquired

Marvell Technology Group's Multimedia Solutions unit, which creates video and audio processing technology, for $95 million. The two acquisitions were intended to aid Synaptics' expansion into the Internet of things market.[41]

Technology

As of July 2017, Synaptics held more than 1,900 granted or pending patents for human interface technologies.

solid state, making them more robust than resistive solutions. Synaptics also offers products based on optical sensing technology,[35] which uses light, rather than electrical current, to obtain its readings.[43] Synaptics' optical sensing technology includes fingerprint sensing.[2]

Synaptics's human interface solutions are currently based upon the following key technologies:

  • Capacitive active pen
  • Capacitive force sensing
  • Capacitive position sensing
  • Display systems and circuit
  • Fingerprint sensing
  • Mixed-signal integrated circuit
  • Multi-touch
  • Pattern recognition
  • Proprietary microcontroller
  • ThinTouch
  • Transparent capacitive position sensing

Products

Synaptics Clear ID fingerprint sensor

Synaptics' product offerings focus on human machine interface technologies, including touch, display and audio. The company also sells technologies through acquisitions, including fax/modem and imaging solutions.

Industry alliances and partnerships

Synaptics is a founding member of the

MasterCard. USI is an organization of leading OEMs, stylus and touch controller manufacturers driving industry standards to promote interoperable active styluses with touch-enabled devices such as phones, tablets and computing and entertainment platforms.[66][67] Synaptics' Senior Director of Integrated Display and Touch Products, Jeff Lukanc, is Vice President of USI. Synaptics also partners with many global ecosystem market makers, including Google, Microsoft,[68] Baidu,[69] and Amazon.[70][71]

Manufacturing and supply chain

Synaptics' manufacturing operations are based on a variable cost model in which it outsource all of its production requirements and generally drop ship its products directly to its customers from its contract manufacturers’ facilities. This eliminates the need for significant capital expenditures and allows the company to minimize its investment in inventories.

The company provides its contract manufacturers with six-month rolling forecasts and issue purchase orders based on anticipated requirements for the next 90 days. It uses two third-party wafer manufacturers to supply wafers and four third-party packaging manufacturers to package its proprietary ASICs.

In certain cases, it relies on a single source or a limited number of suppliers to provide other key components of its products.[72]


References

  1. ^ a b c "Revenue for Synaptics (SYNA)". Shareholder.com. 2015-08-03. Retrieved 2017-08-03.
  2. ^ a b "Annual Report 2016" (PDF). Investors.com. 2014-09-07. Retrieved 2016-10-18.
  3. ^ a b Takahashi, Dean (20 January 2009). "Synaptics' Francis Lee on the magic of touch". Venture Beat. Retrieved 13 March 2018.
  4. ^ Fisher, Lawrence M. (21 January 1990). "Technology; A Pioneer is Out on a Limb Again". The New York Times. Retrieved 13 March 2018.
  5. ^
    ISSN 0362-4331
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  6. ^ "Company Overview and History". Synaptics. Retrieved 13 March 2018.
  7. ^ Andrews, Edmund L. (5 October 1991). "Patents; Circuit Could Help Computers Mimic Brain". The New York Times. Retrieved 13 March 2018.
  8. ^ Walton, Andy. "Why Do Laptops Use a Touchpad Rather Than a Trackball?". Chron. Hearst Newspapers, LLC. Retrieved 20 April 2018.
  9. ^ Miner, Nicola (7 November 1994). "Synaptics introduces neural TouchPad device". InfoWorld. p. 32. Retrieved 27 March 2018.
  10. ^ a b c d Champion, Zach (19 July 2017). "Rick Bergman, CEO of Synaptics – giving tech a sense of touch". The Michigan Engineer News Center. Retrieved 13 March 2018.
  11. ^ Brown, J. (1 March 2001). "Sign Online". CIO. p. 166. Retrieved 27 March 2018.
  12. ^ Hennessey, Raymond (30 January 2002). "Synaptics Makes Strong Debut In Kick Off for 2002 IPO Market". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 14 March 2018.
  13. ^ Van Buskirk, Eliot (22 September 2004). "The secret of iPod's scroll wheel". CNET. Retrieved 13 March 2018.
  14. ^ a b Rubin, Ben Fox (31 March 2017). "Synaptics introduces a better fingerprint sensor". CNET. Retrieved 12 March 2018.
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  72. ^ http://investor.shareholder.com/synaptics/secfiling.cfm?filingID=1193125-14-318722&CIK=817720
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