Kionix's New KX220 Analog Accelerometers for the Industrial Market

Kionix is pleased to announce the release of the KX220 sensor series, a new family of medium-g, tri-axis Analog Accelerometers.   Initially two versions are available: the KX220-1071 and the KX220-1072, providing +/-20g and +/-40g ranges respectively.  Maximum supported bandwidths range from 4.5kHz to 8kHz.  Both sensors have built-in self-test functions, consume only 0.25mA at 3.3V and are delivered in 10-pin 3mm x 3mm LGA packages.

"The fast pace of digital sensor technologies in the consumer space is well known," states Nader Sadrzadeh, CEO of Kionix.  "However, industrial companies are now recognizing the benefits of these technologies and are accelerating their investment in them to bring greater efficiency, lower costs, and improved operations.  But unlike the consumer market, with its short upgrade cycles, it often doesn't make sense in the industrial sector to cast aside existing infrastructure and directly upgrade to digital solutions due to the significant capital already invested, the long lifetimes of equipment, and the need to ensure continuity.  So although digital rules in the consumer world, analog is still very alive and often preferred in industrial applications.  Recognizing this need, Kionix is complementing its high bandwidth, medium-g digital offerings with the addition of the KX220 series of analog accelerometers."

Since the typical application of industrial sensors are monitoring machines and physical processes, the g-range and bandwidth requirements are typically higher than those in hand held consumer devices.  These sensors are targeted to assist in applications ranging from vibration monitoring to shock and impact detection and measurement.  Markets served are Machine Health and Diagnostic Monitoring, Robotics and Automation, and Manufacturing Process Control.

Sample Availability: Now

Unity 2017.2 Gives Artists and Designers the Power to Unleash Their Full Creativity in 2D, 3D and XR

Unity Technologies (https://unity3d.com/), creator of the world’s most popular creation engine that reaches nearly 3 billion devices worldwide, announced that Unity 2017.2 is now available to download from the Unity Store. Unity 2017.2 is the most powerful content creation toolset to-date, delivering an end-to-end solution for 2D games and XR creation, as well as optimized support for ARCore, ARKit, Windows Mixed Reality and Vuforia.

“Unity 2017 was the start of a new cycle that evolves the world’s most popular game engine into an ever-expanding creation engine for gaming and a wide range of real-time entertainment,” said Adam Myhill, Head of Cinematics, Unity. “Unity 2017.2 continues this evolution, by providing enhanced visual tools that truly empower and inspire artists and designers to do what they do best: create amazing content. We believe the power and flexibility within 2017.2 allows for improved experimentation, rapid iteration and a deeper collaboration between disciplines, which is the backbone for truly stunning creations.”

Unity 2017.2 key features include:

●     2D Tilemap and Cinemachine for 2D: Designed to empower 2D creators, 2017.2 offers a complete suite of 2D tools, including the new 2D Tilemap tool for fast creation and iteration cycles. In addition, the new Cinemachine for 2D offers intelligent, easy to create camera behaviours with automatic composition, tracking, priorities and blending

●        Support and Further MR Optimization for the Latest Platforms: Unity currently powers 2/3rds of all AR/VR content, and now with further optimization for ARCore, ARKit, Windows Mixed Reality, and Vuforia, Unity developers will be able to reach over 1 billion AR-capable devices by the end of 2018. Unity makes it easy for developers to create MR experiences for supported devices, as well as add AR to existing apps to help drive user engagement and revenue growth

●        Collaboration with Autodesk to Improve Creation Workflow: Unity 2017.2 is the first creation engine that has source code access to Autodesk’s FBX SDK and that provides improved creation workflow for better iteration and decision-making. Unity and Autodesk are working together to directly and dramatically improve FBX support, and enable high-fidelity round-tripping between Maya/Max and Unity

Unity exists to democratize development, solve hard problems and enable success -- three core values that are the driving forces of Unity’s adoption by millions of creators. Unity powers more than 50% of all new mobile games and over 2/3rds of all AR and VR content. Interactive content made with Unity reaches nearly 3 billion devices worldwide.

Unity 2017.2 subscription plans are available with enhanced features and services to support customers’ needs. Unity Pro represents the top of the line in professional-grade tools while Unity Plus offers serious creators who intend to publish additional tools and services to help them succeed. Custom-tailored enterprise solutions are also available for teams of 21 or more. For hobbyists and aspiring creators, Unity Personal provides all the core features they need to get started for free.

USIF and The Chopra’s Collaborate For EB-5 Visa in India; Applications likely to Double Over the Years

The Chopras, a leading higher education business in exclusive partnership with U.S. Immigration Fund are bringing families in India the opportunity to invest in a global future to enable business, education, career and residential opportunities in the United States. As per the latest USIF report, the total number of EB-5 visa applications in the country numbered 150 in 2016 and likely to shoot up to 300 in 2017 and double again to 600 during 2018.

An official series of exclusive seminars across the nation are educating investors and families on the details of the EB-5 program and the process of obtaining US Green Card Status via high quality real estate investments.

The EB-5 visa program offers foreign investors to invest $500,000 into a qualified project. The project should successfully create 10 full-time jobs for U.S. worker’s basis which the individual and his/her immediate family is given a permanent green card.

Speaking on the occasion,  John Linn, Director of Asia-Pacific Operations at U.S. Immigration Fund, said, “As Indian economy is growing at a rapid pace, there is a lot of exchange between our neighboring countries to facilitate and furthermore business opportunities. Such seminars will prove to be a beneficial exchange of culture and employment opportunity where potential investors can make use of long term benefits extended by the US government. This is a great investment vehicle and has huge potential in generating multiple jobs and in turn rich dividends to the investors.”

Shan Chopra, Managing Partner, The Chopra Group added “Our partnership is focused on advancing opportunity for individuals and families in education, careers and business in the United States. Global mobility and access are in high demand in an emerging India, and our offering provides freedom and flexibility to many aiming to build a global future for their families. We’re excited to be in the early phases of developing a program that has intrinsic value for all stakeholders and is sure to see a steep growth curve over the next 18-24 months in India”. 

The seminar enlightened the future investors on the benefits and nuances of this U.S. EB-5 Investment program. The summit also focused on planning the future for U.S. college education and having a complete understanding of all the visa options. Both firms are working closely to establish a dedicated Investor Relations arm to manage the needs of their clients from start to finish in the execution of the EB-5 investor visa. The EB-5 investment opportunity is available in all offices operated by The Chopras across 20 cities, and growing.

The U.S. Congress created the EB-5 Program in 1990 to enable high net worth Foreign Investors to obtain a U.S. Visa by investing in a U.S. business that will benefit the economy and create more jobs.

The EB-5 seminar was scheduled to take place in five cities in India out of which Chandigarh, Ludhiana and Delhi were successfully conducted. The programme agenda and relevant information for the roadshows in the cities mentioned above is available on the website of The Chopras.

Four B’lore Healthcare Institutions Ace Medical Value Travel Awards

Four Bengaluru-based healthcare institutions aced the Medical Value Travel Awards 2017 by emerging winners in as many as 5 of the 14 categories. The Awards were announced on the first day of Advantage Healthcare India 2017, the third global summit on medical value travel (medical tourism) jointly organized by FICCI; Dept. of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce & Industry, Govt. of India; and Service Export Promotion Council (SEPC).

The Narayana Institute of Cardiac Sciences yet again proved its medical excellence by bagging two awards for Interventional Cardiology and Cardiac Surgery, respectively, in the category of “Medical Value Travel Specialist Hospital – Cardiology.”

The Mazumdar Shaw Medical Center emerged the winner in the category of “Medical Value Travel Specialist Hospital – Oncology,” while Nova IVI Fertility aced the category of “Medical Value Travel Specialist Hospital – In Vitro Fertilization / Infertility.”

The Ayurvedagram Heritage Wellness Centre was declared the Wellness Center of the Year.

                

The Medical Value Travel Awards were presented by Rajnish Kumar, Principal Chief Commissioner of Income Tax (Karnataka); Sudhanshu Pandey, Jt. Secretary, Dept. of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce & Industry, GoI; Sangeeta Godbole, Director General, Services Export Promotion Council (SEPC); and Sangeeta Saxena, Additional Economic Advisor, Ministry of Commerce & Industry, GoI.

LIST OF WINNERS

1.       CATEGORY: Medical Facilitator of the Year: HBG Medical Assistance (Gurgaon / Delhi)

2.       CATEGORY: Wellness Centre of the Year: Ayurvedagram Heritage Wellness Centre, (Bengaluru)

3.       CATEGORY: Ayurveda Centre of the Year: AyurVAID Hospitals (Kochi)

4.       CATEGORY: Medical Value Travel Specialist Hospital – Cardiology (Interventional Cardiology): Narayana Institute of Cardiac Sciences (Bengaluru)

5.       CATEGORY: Medical Value Travel Specialist Hospital – Cardiology (Cardiac surgery): Narayana Institute of Cardiac Sciences (Bengaluru)

6.       CATEGORY: Medical Value Travel Specialist Hospital – Paediatric Cardiac Sciences: Fortis Hospital (Mohali)

7.       CATEGORY: Medical Value Travel Specialist Hospital – Oncology: Mazumdar Shaw Medical Center (Bengaluru)

8.       CATEGORY: Medical Value Travel Specialist Hospital – Neurosciences: Paras Hospitals (Gurgaon)

9.       CATEGORY: Medical Value Travel Specialist Hospital – In Vitro Fertilization / Infertility: Nova IVI Fertility (Bengaluru)

10.   CATEGORY: Medical Value Travel Specialist Hospital – Transplant (Liver): Gleneagles Global Hospitals (Chennai)

11.   CATEGORY: Medical Value Travel Specialist Hospital – Transplant (Kidney): Indraprastha Apollo Hospitals (New Delhi)

12.   CATEGORY: Medical Value Travel Specialist Hospital – Transplant (Heart): Fortis Malar Hospital (Chennai)

13.   CATEGORY: Medical Value Travel Specialist Hospital – Transplant (Bone Marrow): Apollo Hospitals (Chennai)

14.   CATEGORY: Medical Value Travel Specialist Hospital – Spine Surgery: Apollo Health City (Hyderabad)

Accenture Appoints Nikki Mendonça as President of Intelligent Marketing Operations

Accenture has appointed Nikki Mendonça as President of Intelligent Marketing Operations within Accenture Operations. Mendonça’s appointment is effective early 2018.

In this new role, Mendonça will manage a global team focused on helping Accenture clients activate, operate and scale marketing programs to deliver increased performance and growth. The team will use predictive analytics to target and attract the right customers across marketing channels to enhance loyalty and optimize the customer lifecycle.

The Intelligent Marketing Operations team will collaborate with professionals from across Accenture, including Accenture Interactive, to create a marketing growth engine for clients through the seamless integration of capabilities delivered as a managed service. Accenture helps clients define the user experience, design and optimize the channel mix, and run the campaigns as a service while leveraging unrivalled data insights, leading artificial intelligence capabilities, and deep industry expertise.

Mendonça brings to Accenture 25 years of strategic marketing experience, including mastery in creating highly contextual and personalized customer journeys and expertise in driving digital content optimization. She joins Accenture from OMD Worldwide, an Omnicom company, where she served as president of the company’s EMEA region. In that role, she had overall responsibility for more than 6,500 marketing professionals serving leading global brands, including McDonald’s, PepsiCo, Estee Lauder, Liberty Global and Walt Disney. Previously, she held management roles at Capital Radio and Leo Burnett.

“Nikki is a proven business leader and digital marketing strategist and I’m excited that she will lead and help us to build our Intelligent Marketing Operations business,” said Debbie Polishook, group chief executive, Accenture Operations. “Her arrival comes at a strategically important time in building this capability as we continue to develop innovative solutions that combine platform, analytics, artificial intelligence, machine learning and other core technologies to help clients enhance their marketing impact.” 

Mendonça said, “My passion is helping clients create highly personalized and engaging customer journeys that improve their marketing performance and grow their business. I am very excited to join Accenture, a global leader in digital marketing services, and look forward to leading a talented team whose mission is to help clients transform their marketing performance to achieve new growth and success in a digital-first world.” 

Philips HealthWorks Empowers Niramai, Parentlane, Theranosis and Touchkin Start-ups to Transform Healthcare Across India

Philips HealthWorks presented their first Bangalore start-up at the Breakthrough Day in the Philips Innovation Campus. The 4 healthcare start-ups were chosen from an array of 600 start-ups. They showcased their solutions to the audience consisting of healthcare professionals, Philips leaders, leading entrepreneurs and venture capitalists.

The 4 start-ups of the Bangalore cohort are: Niramai, Parentlane, Theranosis and Touchkin.  The solutions presented include non-invasive breast screening solution, an intelligent social platform that tracks a child's holistic developmental activities, a solution for monitoring Cancer treatment efficacy & clinical outcomes and an emotionally intelligent AI platform.

Philips HealthWorks program is a unique and intensive 12 week tailored program designed to help the start-ups build, test, de-risk and scale their idea. Apart from mentoring, the program also provides technical and business expertise, state-of-the-art technology, co-working space and advice from the top experts within the industry.

Speaking on the momentous occasion, Alberto Prado, Head of Philips HealthWorks said, “Tackling the biggest challenges in healthcare requires dynamic partnerships. Our world-class startup program gives startups unrivaled opportunities to make a profound difference to the lives of billions of people. The program gives access to an outstanding network of experts, investors and healthcare partners and also to our three global innovation hubs.  We are very excited about our first Bangalore cohort which is showcasing exciting solutions across a vast array of fields in Healthcare, from Data Science, Oncology, Behavioral health to Parenting.”

“Philips HealthWorks startup program is unique. It is customized according to the need of each start-up. We are making a dedicated effort to help start-ups in strengthening their value proposition and become successful sustainable business. We are committed towards building a supportive environment for start-ups across the world.” said Srinivas Prasad, CEO, Philips Innovation Campus, Bangalore.

Talking about their journey and experience with Philips HealthWorks, Dr. Shibi Kannan, Founder & CEO, Theranosis said, “There is something special about Philips HealthWorks program. Most of the Startup programs are focused on IT sector, very few of them on Healthcare sector and within that very few are focusing on technology – Philips HealthWorks addresses it via attention to both the business side and technology side of Healthcare solutions.”  Neeraj, Co-founder & CTO of Parentlane said, “Philips HealthWorks program helped us understand the big picture, identify our customers, and understand their pain-points. I especially liked the experimental designs which was an effective way to get the responses from the customers.” 

Powered by Philips 125 years of groundbreaking innovation, Philips HealthWorks believes that supporting invention and entrepreneurism among emerging companies is critical in furthering the cause of accessible and affordable healthcare for all in India. 

Cisco’s Digitization will Improve Efficiency, Reduce Costs, and Expand Capacity of Akshaya Patra Midday Meals to Over 28500 Children

As part of its global efforts to support nonprofit organizations around the world that help meet critical human needs, Cisco today announced an agreement with Akshaya Patra Foundation which will be accelerating digitization of their kitchens across 7 locations in India.  Akshaya Patra Foundation is the world’s largest (non-profit) mid-day meal programme serving wholesome food to over 1.66 million children from 13,958 schools across 12 states in India. Digitization of Akshaya Patra kitchens and key offices will help them realize significant gains in productivity, scalability, and cost-efficiency and accelerate Akshaya Patra’s goal to reach 5 Million children by 2020.

As part of this agreement, Cisco will deploy an enterprise-grade network and collaboration suite connecting their kitchens and their offices by enabling end to end IT & process digitization.  The upgraded Akshaya Patra network will connect their offices in Bangalore, Gurgaon, and field kitchens across 7 locations (2 kitchens in Bangalore, one each in Lucknow, Vrindavan, Bellary, Guwahati, and Jigani) on a single network which will enable them to efficiently track their kitchen production, distribution, supply chain and logistics. 

Through digitization, Akshaya Patra will have faster and better connectivity in their field offices which is critical to the kitchen’s operational performance, and necessary to support virtual collaboration and knowledge sharing.  In addition, Akshaya Patra can now analyze, and operationalize disparate sets of data in near real-time helping them to improve the overall speed, security and responsiveness of the programme.  This digitization effort is expected to increase Akshaya Patra’s operational efficiency by about 5% in the initial phase, which will help them extend the mid-day meal program to over 28500 students everyday immediately. 

Cisco has been associated with Akshaya Patra since 2007 through employee giving, volunteering and disaster relief assistance. In the aftermath of the 2015 Chennai floods, Cisco sponsored Akshaya Patra’s first kitchen-on-wheels. The kitchen-on-wheels can run around the clock, with un-interrupted power supply to provide 2000 meals every two hours when stationed at any site post a disaster. In the aftermath of the recent floods in Gorakhpur, this kitchen generated about 100,000 meals.

“Technology connects people in meaningful ways and has the power to create new opportunities and boost economic growth and well-being. Cisco is committed to supporting scalable and self-sustaining programs that use technology to address some of society's biggest challenges. For the past 20 years, we have applied our technology and expertise to accelerate global problem solving and positively affect people, society, and the planet.” - Tae Yoo, Senior Vice President, Corporate Affairs, Cisco.

                                                   

“We are excited to work with Cisco to digitize our operations. Small improvements in operational efficiency can have a big impact when you distribute at scale.  Currently most of the data collection and planning is manual; with a rapidly growing network of kitchens, the network platform we are putting in place today will help us in our digitization journey by enabling real-time data collection, streamline kitchen production, distribution and supply chain.  All of this will help us in our mission to reach more children.”  -  Shridhar Venkat, Chief Executive Officer, The Akshaya Patra Foundation.

“In India, we focus on positively affecting and engaging with the communities in which we work, live, and play. Using the power of the network to digitally enable nonprofit organizations such as Akshaya Patra is a great example of how technology can help solve the world's most challenging problems. We are committed to focusing on solutions that can be scaled to benefit millions in underserved communities around the world.”  - VC Gopalratnam, SVP-IT and CIO-International, Cisco.