Solution case studies

Protecting camera sensors from heat
using solutions beyond the reach of trading companies.

Background

Background to the solution

Toray products × Unique added value.
Solutions that were only possible because the products are in-house.

With about 1,000 layers of film stacked within a thickness of just 0.1 mm, Toray’s PICASUS™ nano-laminated film is characterized by its wavelength selectivity, which is achieved by precisely designing the thickness of each film. For example, by making it possible to achieve a metallic gloss without using metal, it contributes to achieving both aesthetic design and electromagnetic wave permeability. With its excellent electromagnetic wave permeability and moldability, it is used for functional decorative applications in a wide range of genres such as smartphones, PCs, home appliances, and automobiles. Toray International has combined its original solution with the products of the PICASUS™ lineup, each of which has different characteristics. We offer our products as high value-added in-house products and contribute to solving our customers' issues beyond the framework of a trading company.

Our Solution

Solution proposed by Toray International

From procurement to quality assurance. We poured all of our knowledge
into this camera sensor solution.

PICASUS™ IR, from the PICASUS™ lineup. The film draws on the company’s innovative nano-multilayer technology to deliver a transparency that is comparable to that of glass. It also offers world-class thermal insulation from the sun’s infrared rays. Having noticed this characteristic, a customer requested us to provide a solution using PICASUS™ IR as the camera sensor. Since heat is applied during processing at the customer's end, we proposed our own product with heat-resistant protective film applied to both sides of the PICASUS™ IR. In addition to using our knowledge and experience to select the film materials and processing methods, we also worked closely with the development and quality assurance group established within the Company to persistently clear quality hurdles, enabling us to enter into mass production.

Interview

Entered the Films Department
Global Business Section in 2020

Engraved in its own products:
Toray International's raison d'être.

Toray's PICASUS™ carries a wide range of possibilities. As a trading company of the Toray Group that handles PICASUS™, we are often reminded of the wide range of applications of PICASUS™ by the requests we receive from our customers. Protecting heat-sensitive camera sensors with the thermal barrier effect of PICASUS IR™ — this topic was also, as a matter of course, entirely new. On the one hand, the PICASUS™ IR we procure is only the raw material. Toray International is at its best when we add value that contributes to solving our customers' problems and offer it as our own products.

In this project, the first thing we faced was the challenge associated with heating. When the customer performs special processing on PICASUS™ IR, the surface of PICASUS™ IR is heated. Although it is possible to take countermeasures by applying heat-resistant protective film on both sides, problems occur due to the difference in materials between the protective film and PICASUS™ IR. A solution was needed to control it.

Manufacturer-level knowledge and organization
supported by a proven track record.

In developing the solution, we believe there are two major values that Toray International was able to provide. To begin with, even though we are a trading company, we have accumulated considerable knowledge about materials and processing. Although we do not have our own factory, we conduct business with many processing manufacturers, either as customers or as suppliers. Naturally, we can also communicate closely with Toray’s engineers. We also conduct the selection of processing manufacturers to meet the required quality. I believe that this flexibility is something we are able to achieve only because we are not processing our own products.

In addition, we have an in-house development and quality assurance group. After building a system through repeated cooperation, we made a proposal based on our own quality assurance product. Although the group is still in its early days, we believe that we have laid the foundation for providing even higher value-added solutions for the future.

We seek to thoroughly understand our customers.
This attitude yields solutions.

The products, refined through careful material selection and processing, have acquired such originality that one could call them custom-made. While we faced many challenges on the way to mass production, we overcame them one by one and worked together on the project for several years, and I am proud to say that we were able to bring the final product to the market.

I myself kept a strong focus on thoroughly understanding the customer. How would they be using the product? What could become an issue? I have tried to conduct interviews as fully as possible and to respond to requests for improvement in a courteous and friendly manner. I am proud to say that being involved in all the operations required of a manufacturer, such as material procurement, processing coordination, inventory control, and export arrangements, has also helped me to take appropriate action from a holistic viewpoint. Going forward, I hope that I can continue to promote Toray International's global contributions through its products, while making the most of its strengths.

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