Following the footsteps of Samsung, the LG Innotek has started the development of the Under Panel Camera (UPC). According to industry sources, LG is working at advanced stages to eliminate the issue of low light in under-display cameras. They have even applied for several patents to resolve the issues. LG seems to be preparing the UPC for Apple iPhones, which are slated to launch in 2026.

UPC refers to the Under display Camera, which is not visible to the users normally, allowing users to enjoy the full display view without any distraction. It elevates the immersive display experience, as the punch hole is only visible when using the front camera, otherwise, it remains invisible. However, there are certain disadvantages too, including less light reaching the camera lens which may deteriorate the overall captured image quality. The Under Display camera fails to impress advanced photography users who often tend to shoot high-resolution photos.

LG FreeForm Optic Lens to Compensate Light Loss in UPC

LG is working on these bottlenecks and is preparing a special lens called the “Freeform Optic” lens which will overcome the insufficient light limitation. The new module has multiple lenses including a “free curve” shape lens which brings in more light suitable for quality photography. LG Innotek applied for a similar patent in 2021 describing the Optical module and other aspects of the new Freeform lens technique. As per patent specifications, “As the front (full) display of smartphones is required, we are applying a UPC that hides the front camera under the display (omitted),” but also added, “If the camera is placed under the display, there is a loss of light due to the display panel. There are problems such as deterioration in camera module image quality, reduction in brightness, and occurrence of ghosts and flares. As the brightness drops to 20% of the existing level, a new structural optical system is required that compensates for the brightness or supports improved resolution and illuminance regardless of the camera position.”  (Translated)

The patent details a solution for the problem, and describes, “By applying a freeform lens, the thickness of the peripheral lens can be controlled, thereby reducing the aberration of the optical system and optical module (a phenomenon in which images are blurred due to the shape of the lens, etc.), and increasing the light ratio around the optical system and optical module. The image quality of the area can be improved.” (Translated)

LG Display started the UPC development and will further improve the light transmission through the lens by 20% by 2023 and by 40% in 2024. The company will use a transparent PI substrate instead of the normal PI substrate for UPC.

Such advancements are required as Apple plans to bring its Face ID to Under Panel Cameras by 2026. LG is diligently working to improve the UPC quality that will improve its competition with Samsung Display which already developed such modules. Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 and Galaxy Z Fold 5 are using the Under Panel Cameras.

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• Microsoft patents Logo shaped under display camera tech for Surface devices

(source)

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LG Innotek and Corning are jointly working on a new project. This collaboration between the brands is for the research on a new liquid lens technology, which could potentially bring benefits for the photography aspect of smartphones.

According to TheElec report, the news arrives from patent filings that were recently spotted. Both brands have 50-50 stakes in the nine patents that are related to the liquid lens technology. The core technologies listed in these patents include a liquid lens system, how to control a camera lens (which features the liquid lens), and lens curvature varying instrument. The liquid lens has a vinyl bag shaped lens with liquid material. So, the lens is capable of going in and out of focus depending on the curvature of the liquid that can be changed with a current of voltage.

To put things simply, unlike a conventional lens, the liquid lens does not have to move to control focal length. This would enable smartphone makers to make thinner camera modules since the liquid lens changes as per the requirements and does not physically move. Furthermore, it could even bring various improvements in the camera performance of smartphones as well.

The new technology could potentially offer faster and more accurate focusing abilities, which is useful in video captures. On the other hand, the technology could also enable OEMs to develop better stabilization for cameras, which, in turn, would lead to clearer low light images as well. Unfortunately, this technology has yet to be adopted commercially by any brand as of right now, so stay tuned for more, as we will be providing updates when additional information is available regarding this matter.

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In 2020 LG InnoTek officially exited the LED market. However, the company still has substantial intellectual resources in its enormous trove of LED patents and physical infrastructure, which it intends to sell-off. Chinese start-up Suzhou Lekin Semiconductor, established in March 2021, is reportedly the unlikely buyer of LG’s LED patents and it seems to be on a spree of patent acquisition from LG InnoTek both in the US and elsewhere.

According to TheElec, the total number of patents acquired by Suzhou Lekin in relation to LED technology is reported to be close to 10,000 and could indicate the developmental direction of the Chinese company. According to filings from the United States Patents and Trademark Office (USPTO), up to 1,968 patents relating to LED technology have been transferred from LG InnoTek to Suzhou Lekin.

Lekin may trade on the acquired patents within China and beyond. This could yield significant returns on their investment in LED-related patents. The company could also deploy the needed technology to bring some of these patents to life by creating products that could use some of these innovations.

LG InnoTek is expected to share some of the dividends from the huge sale of its intellectual property with its employees responsible for the patents. The patent regime is well regulated in South Korea, and companies are mandated to share some of the gains from the sale of the patents with the staff responsible for such innovations.

Both companies have not made any official statements at this time concerning the patent deal. The financial details of the sale of patents are also not available. Apart from the patents, LG Innotek still has LED production facilities in South Korea and China, which it intends to sell.

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LG Innotek, a company that makes smartphone parts such as mini vibration motors, LCD modules, light-emitting diode (LED), camera modules, protection circuit modules, and more is selling patents and equipment related to its LED business to a China-based LED company, reports The Elec.

As per the report, the South Korean company will clean out equipment related to LED at its Paju pant within one month. The company will be handing over more than 10,000 patents related to LED to the Chinese firm.

By selling the patents, the company will not only receive money but will also be saving around 1 billion won in maintaining those patents. It is being said that LG initiated talks to sell its LED patents and equipment for 100 billion won in a turn-key fashion.

On the other hand, the Chinese company will be making profits in the LED business given that it can rely on subsidies given by the local government. It will also be able to offer more products in the market.

LG had invested heavily in the LED business, especially in the Ultraviolet (UV) LED area which is likely the reason for the deal to go through. Experts believe that LG could have licensed the UV LED patents instead of selling them.

For those who are unaware, South Korea-based LG Innotek had decided to exit the LED business in October 2019 and had attempted to sell its LED facilities in China and South Korea in the second quarter of 2020 but those business talks were delayed mainly because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

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LG InnoTek is raising its expenditure to ramp up the production of camera modules for Apple. The optical unit of the South Korean tech giant made the announcement earlier this week, raising investment to 547.8 billion won (roughly 496 million US Dollars) to secure and strengthen its production capacity.

According to TheElec report, the company announced that it will be raising its spending for its optical solutions arm near the start of every year. Back in 2019, its business spending was 282.1 billion won (roughly 255 million US Dollars), which was then raised to 479.8 billion won (roughly 434 million US Dollars) last year. This marks a 14 percent rise of expenditure over 2020. As per the report, the move from the company is likely due to the recent changes in the Cupertino based giant’s camera module supply chain.

For those unaware, Apple currently has two camera module suppliers, down from three. Chinese supplier O’Film was removed from its supply chain due to allegations of human rights violations against Uighur people. In other words, the O’Film orders have now been taken over by InnoTek and Sharp. At the moment, LG InnoTek primarily supplies camera modules for the higher end iPhone models. But now, the company will also be responsible for the cameras in the lower end models as well.

The South Korean supplier held a 50 percent market share in Apple’s camera module supplyu chain, which is now expected further rise now. Meanwhile, Sharp’s market share in the same category is expected to rise to 40 percent, up from mid 30 percent. Furthermore, three out of the four upcoming 2021 iPhone will feature the new sensor technology.

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LG‘s Innotek sure sounds like “Innovation” and in the same light, the electronic component manufacturing company is known for innovative technologies are designed for Safe, Convenient and Enjoyable Future. The company is out with yet another innovative product – a new Bluetooth low energy (BLE) module for IoT.

This isn’t the first Bluetooth low energy (BLE) module to hit the market but what makes this spectacular is that it happens to be the smallest ever made. The module measures a minuscule 6mm x 4mm which is  just 75-per cent of the size of the previous model.

The reduction in size doesn’t translate to a reduced performance. LG Innotek has been able to optimise the performance as the new chip offers a 30-percent increase in performance over existing products. The improvement in performance is due to LG’s differentiated RF signal design technology. The technology afforded LG the leverage to cram over 20 components inside the confined space. The components includes communication chips, resistors, inductors, and more.

LG says this design will also aid the elimination of signal interference regardless of obstacles between a smartphone and the IoT device.

In addition, the new chip uses low-power technology to enable more room for developers and manufacturers to work with across the board. That’s from smart lighting, home audio, and healthcare, all the way through to automobiles and combination Wi-Fi Bluetooth modules in home appliances.

UP NEXT: The mid-range OnePlus Nord was inevitable and Here’s Why!

(via)

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Samsung Electronics and LG Innotek have shut down their factories operating in South Korea after reports confirmed that the Coronavirus infection was found in certain employees and workers.

Samsung’s smartphone factory in Gumi, a region that has the most number of confirmed Coronavirus cases has been closed until Sunday evening (1st March 2020). The company is working on disinfecting the entire floor where the workers tested positive for the virus were working on. The company stated that these floors will reopen later on Tuesday afternoon (3rd March 2020).

Furthermore, the tech giant is seeking “all necessary measures” to ensure the prevention of the virus spreading further. For those unaware, China was recently hit with an epidemic after a new strain of the virus, which originated in the Wuhan region, spread across mainland China. Reports of the virus spreading to multiple other countries have surfaced and are a cause for major alarm.

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The Gumi line being closed would be a major hit to Samsung, considering that the site is known to manufacture the Galaxy Z Flip and Galaxy S20 series of smartphones. Both models are high end flagship smartphones but are still just a small portion of their total output.

Similarly, LG Innotek, a known supplier of Apple’s camera modules, has also shut down its factory in the same region as well. The company also had to shut down its production lines when a worker tested positive for Coronavirus, according to an official. As or right now, the plant is closed for disinfection and will reopen today (2nd March 2020).

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(Via)

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Apple’s iPhone X may be the company’s biggest revolution since it began making smartphones but more is still to come. A report from South Korea says that the Cupertino-based company is working on a foldable iPhone set for 2020.

The report says that Apple is working with Korea’s LG Display to develop the foldable iPhone. LG Display will make the foldable screen for the phone, and its part making arm, LG Innotek will create the circuitry board for it.

LG Display is said to already have a flexible OLED display prototype and is working on making it better with respect to durability and yield rate.

This is not the first time LG has been linked to working with Apple. Before the release of the iPhone 8, 8 Plus and X (read ten), LG Innotek was linked as the supplier for the iPhone 8′ 3D facial recognition front camera. While that tech actually appeared in the iPhone X, there is no mention of who supplied the camera.

It is also surprising that the display is not coming from Samsung Display, the supplier for the iPhone X’s display. Samsung is also working on its own foldable smartphone set for launch next year, so it has the technology ready for market 2 years ahead of Apple. Sources however say that the reason is “due to concerns over tech leaks” at Samsung Electronics. Nevertheless, Samsung will supply the displays for next year’s iPhones.

READ MORE: Leaked Photo of ZTE Axon Multy Foldable Smartphone with Dual Screens Appear

LG will take over from Samsung in supplying displays come 2019 when it completes its new factory in Paju, Gyeonji Province. Apple is said to have offered direct investment in the plant so that it can gain its independence from Samsung Display.

(Source, via)

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It doesn’t come as a surprise that Apple might want to make the next iPhone very different from the previous ones since it coincides with the iphone’s 10th anniversary. What will surprise us are the new features the phone will launch with. Rumors coming out of Korea says Apple may equip the iPhone 8 with a 3D camera and may be working with LG on the project.

The news which is from a report in the Korea Economic Daily presumes that Apple may be working with LG to use dual-lens camera made by LG Innotek. LG Innotek is a part of the bigger LG brand that specializes in the manufacture and development of components such as LEDs, PCBs, mobiles, displays, and automotives.

The report goes on to say that Apple is currently studying how to apply its 3D technology into LG’s Innotek smartphone camera. It is also important to note that LG has its own 3D camera technology. Both companies working together will see them exchange ideas and iron out issues they might be facing with their respective technologies and birthing a more refined and functional one.

3D cameras take images that appear to have three dimensions to them unlike regular cameras that have only 2 dimensions. Using two lenses that capture the same view at the same time, the software then stitches them together into one picture or video that creates the illusion of depth.

The iPhone 8′ 3D camera may not only be used for pictures but may feature 3D depth mapping as the article says Apple-acquired firm, Linx Imaging, which is known for 3D mapping and  light enhancements is working on the project as well.

READ MORE: Knock Off AppleAirpods Go On Sale Before Originals

We have faith that whatever Apple and LG comes up with for the iPhone 8 will be awesome as we’ve seen from their partnership on the iPhone 7 Plus  which uses LG Innotek lenses.

There is also news that the iPhone 8 may use Augmented Reality in apps like the camera, maps, and games.

Source: DailyMail

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