Our Future

Cambridge Mechatronics vision is to become the world’s leading provider of electronic actuator intellectual property.

Actuators are used in countless consumer, industrial and medical products, CML believes its technology road map will provide products that reduce the size, cost or energy consumption of actuators for these and many other markets. CML continues our research in actuator development for applications which today can not be considered because of current size, cost or power considerations.

CML’s success in its current markets demonstrates the potential of these design techniques. The company’s track record for taking new actuator technology to market and the flexibility of its IPR portfolio help to attract new product development partners and licensees.

CML will continue to use its existing technology platforms Phased Array, Helimorph and SMA and apply them to new applications. The company also has several research channels for other actuation technology platforms, which will enhance even further the range of applications the company can address.

World Class Technology & Expertise

Today the company is a recognised global authority on the application and design of several actuator technologies:

• Transducer Arrays (Lowest Cost)
• Piezo-electric Ceramic (World’s Lowest Energy)
• Nickel-Titanium Shape Metal Alloy (SMA) Wire (World’s Smallest Size)

The company has a portfolio of 45 granted patents and another 60 in various stages of filing. These combined with the know-how of its 20 technical and scientific staff give the company a unique and valuable collection of intellectual property.

The above expertise and IP has enabled the company to invent and design world leading consumer electronics products such as:

• Digital Sound Projector (DSP), a stand-alone surround sound loudspeaker
  Digital Sound Projection has been successfully sold in to the Movie Theatre and Home Cinema markets. Cumulative unit sales are now in excess of 300,000 and growing, generating over $150M in market sales. During 2008 the Digital Sound Projection technology will enter the 100,000,000-unit Flat Panel TV (FPTV) market. The company envisages entry into the Karaoke, Gaming and PC markets from 2009 onwards.
• Non-magnetic auto-focus (AF) mechanisms for miniature cameras
  The auto-focus product is in the latter stages of its production. It is currently targeted at the mobile camera phone market, which offers a potential market of an estimated 700 Million units annually, and forecast to grow to 900 Million units by 2011. The auto-focus product is based on SMA (Shape Metal Alloy) wire. In developing this technology the design provides for much greater miniaturisation and therefore cost reduction than is achieveable with the more widely used magnetic auto-focus alternatives.

Technology Platforms

The company’s IP portfolio should not be seen merely as products but as technology platforms with known and as yet unknown applications into numerous consumer, automotive, industrial, and medical markets.

The company currently has three major platforms/franchises:

• The ability to precisely steer and focus sound beams cost effectively
• The world’s most energy efficient actuator based on Piezo ceramic
• The world’s smallest actuators based on precision control of SMA wire

The company already has numerous product ideas based on these platforms at various stages of maturity that can be productised given the appropriate investment.

back to home page