Kyocera Participates in TactoTek Funding with €5 Million Investment and Strategic Partnership
Kyocera Corporation has strengthened its partnership with TactoTek by investing €5 million in the company’s latest funding round. This collaboration leverages TactoTek’s IMSE® technology and Kyocera’s expertise in piezoceramics to deliver innovative, tactile human-machine interfaces (HMIs) that are both lightweight and ultra-thin.
Oulu, Finland and Kyoto, Japan – January 9, 2025 – TactoTek, the global leader in In-Mold Structural Electronics (IMSE®) technology, today announced that Kyocera, a global innovation leader in fine ceramic components, electronics, and technology solutions, has joined TactoTek’s current funding round with an investment of €5 million. In addition, Kyocera is advancing their haptics solution, HAPTIVITY®*, by in-molding their piezoceramic actuators within IMSE parts, to HAPTIVITY® i.
Kyocera’s HAPTIVITY® platform is designed to combine force sensing and tactile feedback to create intuitive and user-friendly experiences. Force sensing activates capacitive touch interfaces with intent, while tactile feedback confirms actions by feel.
Kyocera’s piezoceramic actuators reflect its leadership in developing fine ceramic materials in industrial and consumer applications. As a TactoTek licensee, Kyocera has integrated its components within IMSE human-machine interface (HMI) surfaces. The result is unique HMI solutions that are thin, light, and tactile.
“With HAPTIVITY® i, Kyocera fulfills the intent of TactoTek’s licensing model—enabling our partners to combine IMSE technology with their own strengths to secure and extend their market position,” noted Jussi Harvela, CEO at TactoTek. “Kyocera’s significant investment in TactoTek’s current financing round reflects the market potential of IMSE technologies, including Kyocera’s current customers and prospects.”
TactoTek develops and validates IMSE technology that it licenses to an ecosystem of partners, including designers, manufacturers, integrators, and OEMs/brands who design, manufacture, and integrate IMSE into their product offerings. User interfaces and lighting solutions are among the prominent IMSE use cases.
“The use of capacitive touch switches in HMIs has become common, and the market demand for tactile sensation is growing. On the other hand, conventional technology has not been able to make it thinner and lighter with tactile functions." said Masafumi Ikeuchi, Executive Officer of Kyocera Corporation. "HAPTIVITY® i is the world's first technology to successfully add a tactile function to an HMI while maintaining a thin and light design by encapsulating piezo ceramics with resin using IMSE technology. IMSE also opened the possibility of integrating piezo ceramics and Kyocera's extensive product range.”
*) ”HAPTIVITY” is a registered trademark of Kyocera Corporation.
Media Contacts
TactoTek
Teija Ahola
Marketing Manager
teija.ahola@tactotek.com
Kyocera
KYOCERA Corporation (Japan) Corporate Communications
Head Office TEL: +81-(0)75-604-3416 E-mail: webmaster.pressgl@kyocera.jp
About TactoTek
TactoTek, Oy (Oulu, Finland), is the world leader in developing and licensing in-mold structural electronics (IMSE®) technologies. Automotive, aviation, connected home, industrial control and medical brands use TactoTek innovations to create next-generation user experiences that are compelling, differentiated, and more sustainable. Designers use TactoTek IP to integrate circuits and components directly into plastic parts, transforming conventional structures into smart interactive surfaces. TactoTek licenses its intellectual property, including over 280 patents and critical know-how developed over a decade of intensive R&D and quality testing, to global manufacturers who use reliable, standardized manufacturing processes to produce curved-shape and conformal electronics. Learn more at www.tactotek.com.
About Kyocera
Kyocera Corporation (TOKYO:6971, https://global.kyocera.com/), the parent and global headquarters of the Kyocera Group, was founded in 1959 as a producer of fine ceramics (also known as “advanced ceramics”). By combining these engineered materials with metals and integrating them with other technologies, Kyocera has become a leading supplier of industrial and automotive components, semiconductor packages, electronic devices, smart energy systems, printers, copiers, and mobile phones. During the year ended March 31, 2024, the company’s consolidated sales revenue totaled 2 trillion yen (approx. US$13.3 billion). Kyocera is ranked #672 on Forbes magazine’s 2023 “Global 2000” list of the world’s largest publicly traded companies, and has been named among “The World’s 100 Most Sustainably Managed Companies” by The Wall Street Journal.
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