August  5,  2016

Alps Electric Co., Ltd. (Ota-ku, Tokyo; President: Toshihiro Kuriyama) today announces that in July 2016  it  entered  into  a  licensing  agreement  with  Immersion  Corporation  (San  Jose,  California, U.S.A.; President and CEO: Victor Viegas) relating to force feedback technology for use in touch pads for the PC market.  

Founded  in  1948,  Alps  Electric  has  been  conducting  research  and  development  related  to products in the field of human-machine interfaces (HMI) for many years and has built up advanced technological capabilities and an extensive track record developing and manufacturing switches, TACT Switch™ products and various other input devices and integrated modules. In the latter half of the 1970s, the company led the industry applying HMI expertise accumulated in the consumer devices  market  to  the  automotive  electronics  domain.  As  well  as  assisting  integration  of electronics  into  vehicles,  Alps  Electric  has  continually  churned  out  innovative  HMI  products. In 2002, the company entered into a licensing agreement relating to force feedback technology for automotive  electronic  equipment  with  Immersion,  a  leading  developer  and  licensor  of  touch feedback  solutions,  and  went  on  to  develop  a  new  product  since  adopted  by  the  automotive market.  The  HAPTIC  COMMANDER™ allows  integrated,  intuitive  control  of  audio,  navigation, HVAC and other in-vehicle systems.     

Force  feedback  is  garnering  a  lot  of  attention  right  now  amid  rising  hopes  for  application  in electronic  devices  like  smartphones,  PCs  and  virtual  reality  (VR)  devices,  both  as  a  means  to enable intuitive, natural control of functions and as a technology for making devices smarter and more sophisticated.  
 

The  new  licensing  agreement  with  Immersion  relating  to  the  use  of  force  feedback  technology intellectual property and know-how in PC touch pads lets Alps Electric add feedback functionality to existing touch pad controls. Expected uses include confirmation of input with just a single touch pad  action  and  accompanying  click  sensation,  as  well  as  enabling  of  controls  relevant  to  an identified application-specific status.  
 

Alps  Electric  will  also  use  the  stronger  ties  with  Immersion  to  stimulate  development  of  HMI products with high added value by bolstering its lineup of HAPTIC™-associated products.  
 
 
*HAPTIC  is  registered  as  a  trademark  in  Japan,  China  and  the  European  Union (JP4619342/JP5471286,  CN4730821/CN4730822/CN4730823,  CTM4399606),  and  is  used  in commerce as a trademark in the United States, being enforceable under common law.  
 
 
About Touch Feedback Solutions and Force Feedback Technology  

Immersion’s  touch  feedback  solutions  and  Alps  Electric’s  force  feedback  technology  make  it possible  to  reproduce  physical  sensations  in  digital  device  operation,  enabling  unique  and customizable feedback effects. Besides intuitive control, the technology allows regulation of input and can therefore be used in the automotive market, for example, to help improve comfort and convenience. Not only that, the technology expands potential applications of input devices. This might include remote robot operation or simulators since realistic feedback can be reproduced even in situations where actual sounds and vision are unavailable.   About Immersion Corporation  
 

Immersion  Corporation  is  a  leading  innovator  of  touch  feedback  technology.  The  company provides technology solutions for creating immersive and realistic experiences that enhance digital interactions by engaging users' sense of touch. With more than 2,200 issued or pending patents, Immersion's  technology  has  been  adopted  in  more  than  3  billion  digital  devices,  and  provides touch  feedback  technology  in  mobile,  automotive,  advertising,  gaming,  medical  and  consumer electronics products. Immersion is headquartered in San Jose, California, with offices worldwide.
 

For more information, go to www.immersion.com.
 

About Alps Electric Co., Ltd.  
 

Since  its  founding  in  1948,  Alps  Electric  has  produced  numerous  “First  1”  and  “Number  1” products  in  keeping  with  its  devotion  to  components.  The  company  maintains  a  philosophy  of creating “new value that satisfies stakeholders and is friendly to the Earth” and has so far supplied over 40,000 different components to about 2,000 companies all over the world.  
 

Alps Electric currently targets the automotive, mobile, energy, healthcare, industry and Internet of Things (IoT) domains as key markets. By “perfecting the art of electronics” through fusion and advancement  of  original  technologies  in  three  core  areas—human-machine  interfaces,  sensing and connectivity—to create products  that are even friendly to the  environment, Alps Electric is helping to enrich the lives of people everywhere.  

For more Alps Electric, go to www.alps.com

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Alps Electric News Release

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• Alps Electric to Introduce Input Device for Autonomous Cars and Other Technologies at CES 2018

  2017/12/26Alps Electric  Company / Market Trends

• Alps Electric Commences Mass Production of “SKTQ Series” TACT Switch for Automotive Use

  2017/12/22Alps Electric  Passive / Connections / mechanical parts

• Alps Electric to Exhibit at Major Chinese Trade Show ELEXCON 2017

  2017/12/15Alps Electric  Company / Market Trends

• Alps Electric Introduces D Series Spring Contacts with Insulation Coating

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