IMSE for Electronics Industries
IMSE is horizontal technology that spans industries and applications. Popular IMSE uses include human machine interfaces (HMIs) with touch controls and lighting and extend to hidden parts such as wireless IoT applications. Across electronics industries - appliances, building automation & IoT devices usability, style and cnnectivity are key drivers of consumer satisfaction and demand. Consumers are bombarded by diverse interfaces and designs every day. With IMSE, designers use shape and styling to guide intuitive interactions. Easily cleaned, seamless and reliable smart surfaces simplify integration and reduce costly assembly for the electronics industry.
Brand Differentiation with HMI
IMSE is an ideal solution for creating beautiful human-machine interfaces (HMI) that look amazing and deliver intuitive usability. IMSE supports shapely designs that are impractical or impossible with traditional electronics structures.
Functional & Graphical Variants with Single Tool Set
Functional variants as well as look and feel can be easily changed between individual products or product lines to support for example multiple brand designs. Only printed layers change, and the same, single tool set can be used over and over again cost efficiently.
Functional & Graphical Variants with Single Tool Set
Reduced Complexity & Reduced Assembly
IMSE reduces part complexity and the amount of sub-assemblies significantly when comparing with conventional electro-mechanical structures. Typical sub-assemblies that are removed include PCBs with LEDs, along with all light-guides and mechanical frames that are needed to keep conventional assemblies mounted together.
Reduced Complexity & Reduced Assembly
Reliability & Durability with Encapsulated Structure
IMSE electronics are encapsulated within injection molded plastic that protects them from vibration, debris and moisture, and especially suitable for challenging conditions.
Reliability & Durability with Encapsulated Structure
IMSE for Automotive
In automotive, contemporary electronic functionality, extreme reliability and beautiful decorative surfaces are essential. Additional IMSE benefits include reducing weight, increasing integration level and efficient variant management, all while reducing greenhouse gas emissions and plastics use. With IMSE, electronics is not a distraction anymore.
Thin & Light Weight
Reducing electronics weight by 70% and assembly depth by up to 90% creates tremendous opportunities for car makers to respond to consumer demand for electronic functionality.
Thin & Light Weight
New Locations for Electronics
Decorative parts, such as vehicle door trim and cover panels, locations too thin for traditional electronic structures, can be transformed into beautiful smart surfaces with touch controls, lighting and other electronic functions.
New Locations for Electronics
Reduced Amount of Tools & Assembly
IMSE parts reduce tooling and assembly compared with traditional electronics streamlining supply chains and supporting cost-effective mass production. Cosmetic and electronic function updates are fast and inexpensive.
Reduced Amount of Tools & Assembly
Sustainability
Typical IMSE part reduces plastics use by up to 70%, and reduces the CO2eq by 35% during manufacturing. Read more about IMSE sustainability here.
Sustainability
IMSE Customers
Injection molded structural electronics is making its way in automotive and other industries. Read more about customer applications and IMSE business references.
PASSIVEBOLT
PassiveBolt was named as the winner of a CES 2020 Innovation award in the highly competitive smart home category for their Shepherd Lock. Shepherd Lock is a keyless entry system with many features integrated into the smart surface using TactoTek IMSE technology. Shepherd Lock will be commercially available in 2020.
In Shepherd Lock, the IMSE part is a smart cover - a cosmetic surface that provides both structure and electronic functions. Molded within the IMSE part are printed electronics for circuitry, a capacitive touch control, contact pads for external connectivity and in-mold LEDs for illumination to indicate lock status.
“PassiveBolt is very honored to be recognized with the CES 2020 Innovation Award. This is a great validation of the value of our keyless entry technology for homeowners that brings convenience through touch commands and enhances security through sensors and AI,” stated Kabir Maiga, PassiveBolt Co-Founder. “We worked closely with TactoTek engineers to execute on our design vision using IMSE technology and are very pleased with the result.”
To learn more about Shepherd Lock, visit www.shepherdlock.com.
CEVT & GEELY DESIGN
CEVT is developing technology for several brands in the Geely Group family, who had a combined annual volume of 2.15 million vehicles in 2018. The platform developed by CEVT, the Compact Modular Architecture (CMA), is currently shared by Lynk & Co vehicles, the Volvo XC 40 and will also be in coming Geely models. For interior design, CEVT works closely with their sister organization, Geely Design, a global organization with design centers in Sweden, the UK, Spain, the USA and China. TactoTek has developed a thin, lightweight seat control module with IMSE.
“CEVT focuses a great deal in new innovative technologies and TactoTek’s IMSE technology complements our future ambitions with light, thin, conformal electronics that are both beautiful and durable, and use up to 75% less plastic than traditional electronics assemblies,” says Didier Schreiber, SVP of Innovation at CEVT. “In addition, IMSE technology gives Geely Design new degrees of freedom to realize our design vision with innovative product design and intuitive functions”, says Andreas Nilsson, SVP of Geely Design Sweden.
To learn more about Geely Design, visit www.geelydesign.com.
NANOGATE
Nanogate adds value for their customers with intelligent surfaces for several markets, including automotive, home appliances, consumer electronics, aviation and medical. The company has a comprehensive portfolio of surface technologies, and particular expertise in metallization using physical vapor deposition (PVD) processes. Nanogate aqcuired an IMSE Builder™ license package on January 2019, and is now IMSE ready at their production facility in Austria.
“Across the markets that we serve we have strong and growing demand for integrating electronic functions with a wide variety of high quality cosmetic surfaces,” said Ralf Zastrau, CEO of Nanogate. “The partnership with TactoTek strengthens our comprehensive expertise from design to mass production delivery of intelligent surfaces—solutions that combine beautiful cosmetics with sophisticated electronic functions. IMSE technology complements our other strategic moves, including our acquisition of Nanogate heT Engineering (heT).”
To learn more about Nanogate, please visit www.nanogate.com.
LS AUTOMOTIVE
LSAT is a market-leading vehicle electronics manufacturer in Korea and around the world with strategically located manufacturing operations to serve global customers. Ls Automotive has aqcuired TactoTek's IMSE Builder™ and IMSE Designer™ packages from TactoTek.
“TactoTek’s IMSE technology enables the solutions that our customers are asking for and also supports our core company values,” noted Hyo-Cheol Lee, VP, Advanced Development at LSAT. “IMSE is cutting-edge technology that supports the design innovation that our customers want while being environmentally-friendly because it uses clean, additive manufacturing processes and significantly reduces plastics use. LSAT already has customer projects for IMSE solutions.
To learn more about LS Automotive, please visit https://lsautomotive.com/en/main.do