Size and cost of circuitry have been the major obstacles to realizing the vision of pervasive electronics. Until now. Terepac has overcome these obstacles. Terepac’s technologies enable sophisticated microelectronics to be printed on flexible substrates at a fraction of the size and cost of conventional rigid circuits. Microprocessors, memory chips, and sensors can be reduced to microchips less than a millimeter square, thinner than paper, and flexible enough to bend around a pencil – without sacrificing performance or accuracy. As a result, these tiny electronics can be embedded in settings where it was previously not thought physically or economically feasible.

This represents a significant competitive advantage for Terepac’s clients and partners, especially in applications where a product’s value to the end user is inversely related to its size – such as with mobile and medical devices.

What can we terepac for you ?

Technology

Terepac’s Photoprinted Circuit Assembly™ overcomes the limitations of conventional mechanical circuit assembly, enabling the effective production and handling of circuits and components with an unprecedented reduction in size in all dimensions. This breakthrough enables the transformation of today’s large, heavy, rigid and expensive circuits into smaller, lighter, thinner, flexible ones.

Terepac’s photoprinted circuits can be combined into Microscale Circuit Clusters™ which use printed conductive inks to make the numerous interconnects between tightly arranged ultra-thinned circuit components and chips, thereby avoiding the size limitations imposed by conventional wirebonding or solder-bump technologies. As a result, components such as sensors, transmitters, and processors can be embedded onto everyday objects, transforming them into ‘smart devices’ and making them part of the burgeoning Internet of Things.

Competitive advantages

With component and assembly costs far below any competing technique and no sacrifice in performance, Terepac’s technology introduces revolutionary advances in assembly and packaging of micro and nanoelectronics. Terepac enables:

• The effective handling and connection of components and devices down to the nanoscale. Whereas conventional mechanical circuit assembly begins to lose its effectiveness as objects dip below 0.5 millimeter, Terepac can effectively handle sub-micron sizes. Even more significant, Terepac’s proprietary technology allows these tiny components to be connected. No other existing process can manufacture or handle chips of that size.
• The configuration of electronic components or end products in forms not previously possible. Terepac’s innovations replace large, rigid conventional circuits with tiny, flexible terechips™ – enabling the design and delivery of compact and elegant end products – including those that are bendable, wearable, and unobtrusive. This represents an important competitive advantage in applications where a product’s value to the end user is inversely related to its size – such as with mobile and medical devices.
• The freedom to design new products more rap-
  idly and with less expense. Terepac’s breakthroughs enable new products, such as sensors, microprocessors, or display drivers to be configured from stock subunits, allowing immediate fabrication without lengthy and costly design cycles through IC foundries. Once a new design is satisfactory, production can be scaled up rapidly. Any type of component (e.g. analog silicon, optoelectronics, MEMS or NEMS, even delicate organic sensors) can be used in any combination on any substrate.

Applications & market

The global demand for pervasive electronics, already strong, is poised for rapid growth.

Mike Nelson, the former director of Internet Policy at IBM, said: “Trying to determine the market size for the Internet of Things is like trying to calculate the market for plastics, circa 1940. At that time, it was difficult to imagine that plastics could be in everything. If you look at information processing the same way, you begin to see the vast range of objects into which logic, processors, or actuators could be embedded.” ^[1]

Until now, chip size and device “packaging” method have been two of the primary obstacles to making pervasive electronics feasible. Terepac’s technologies remove those obstacles, making possible a vast range of made-to-order devices and end products creating new market and customer possibilities. The technology affects every market where electronics currently are as well as applications, devices, and markets where electronics had not previously been feasible.

Terepac, deploying its unique methods, develops custom products for companies wishing to transform how their electronics are configured. Terepac is currently addressing global demand for embedded electronics with initial applications including smart cards and intelligent packaging, smart buildings, wearable medical devices, and novel form factor mobile communications.

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^[1] Networked objects and smart devices, The Hammersmith Group, February 2010