As a brand well recognized by the industry and consumers, DTS has been devoted to the development of high quality sound technologies for more than two decades. In December 2016, DTS was acquired by Xperi Corporation and joined FotoNation, Invensas and Tessera - leading companies mastering different technologies - in developing and delivering essential technology solutions in sound, imaging and beyond to billions of devices around the world to make product experiences smarter, faster, and more immersive than ever before.
Xperi’s subsidiaries develop and provide a variety of licensed technology solutions, including top-notch audio technology, computer imaging, computer vision, mobile computation and communication, memory, data storage and 3D semiconductor interconnecting and packaging.
Aaron Chen, general manager, business development, Taiwan and APAC at Xperi, indicated DTS exhibited four technologies - DTS Headphone:X, DTS Play-Fi, DTS:X and HD Radio - at COMPUTEX 2016, highlighting that applications of audio technologies could extend from televisions, home theaters, mobile devices, streaming services all the way to car infotainment systems to provide consumers with premium immersive sound experiences.
This year at COMPUTEX, under Xperi, a wider range of solutions will be on display, expanding from the original sound technologies to include imaging technologies, including FotoNation’s R&D achievements in biometrics and depth sensing from dual cameras for mobile and other applications.
Full-scale expansion into Asia with the new business
Chen pointed out in the brands under Xperi, DTS specializes in audio processing and FotoNation is an pioneer in digital imaging and computer vision, while Invensas and Tessera have become global leaders and innovators in semiconductor packaging and IP licensing. Looking forward, Xperi will leverage each brand’s expertise to keep introducing new creative offerings for content, devices and application scenarios in consumers’ everyday lives and thereby improve the quality and quantity of its licensing services.
More importantly, all Xperi solutions, whether for home, mobile, automobile or semiconductor applications, will be available in Asia in full scale. For example, Invensas, offering licensing services in semiconductor packaging technologies, is setting up its first branch office in the Asian Pacific region to strengthen local business promotion.
In terms of products and licensed technologies for home use, key technologies include DTS:X and DTS Play-Fi. The next-generation surround sound technology DTS:X aims to boost users’ audio experiences by adding a height element to the traditional surround sound, marking a new milestone for home theaters. The majority of AVR brands on the market have integrated DTS:X technology to their products. DTS Play-Fi is a premium whole-home wireless audio technology, available from the largest ecosystem of brands in the world. Users can stream their favorite audio content in astounding quality from smartphones, tablets and PCs. All Play-Fi products are seamlessly interoperable, so users can find the perfect speaker for every room of their home.
For mobile applications, Xperi is focused on DTS Headphone:X technology, which delivers incredibly immersive sound via headphones. Additionally, FotoNation’s expansive suite of imaging and vision solutions such as FacePower, DigitalApperture, FotoSavvy, biometrics solutions and its massive differentiator called IPU, which is a collection of IP-cores for low power and high performance capability on the mobile camera. For automobile applications, Xperi will feature HD Radio and Driver Monitoring System (DMS). For semiconductors, Xperi will highlight the licensing of its packaging technologies for DRAM and memory; and for image sensors and MEMS/RF applications, Xperi will offer licensing of ZiBond or DBI technologies.
Developing innovative solutions for five major IoT applications
Chen commented Xperi’s innovative products and solutions can be categorized into five main areas of use: mobile, IoT, AR/VR, consumer electronics and automobiles. All of its subsidiary brands, DTS, FotoNation, Invensas and Tessera, will introduce their R&D achievements for their respective areas of use. For example, in terms of IoT applications, a well-known smart speaker product in the U.S. has integrated DTS Play-Fi technology so the user can give voice commands directly to the speaker to play the songs he or she likes.
Furthermore, Xperi has identified IoT, IoV, robotics and AI as the critical technology drivers that will dictate how people live in the future. Therefore, Xperi’s product R&D efforts will closely follow the development trends of these technologies to create endless possibilities that can have consequential influences on people’s lives.
A priority for Xperi centers around FotoNation’s digital imaging technology. Keeping abreast with smartphone developments, FotoNation’s digital imaging technology provides not only face recognition and iris identification solutions but also depth sensing. Xperi is fully committed to building identity verification mechanisms with a higher level of security and working with partners to accelerate the development of innovative financial services such as mobile payment. In addition, Xperi’s DMS solution will be based on FotoNation’s leading solutions in Facial Analytics which can continuously monitor the driver and his facial expressions and eye focus to thereby determine how tired the driver, fatigued or inattentive the driver may be. DMS can enable car makers to take timely actions to ensure safety on the road.
Aaron Chen, general manager, business development Taiwan and APAC at Xperi, indicates the company will strengthen its solutions for biometrics (including face recognition and iris identification) and DoF sensing to match the trend of dual-camera smartphones.
