Toshiba to Hike Output of Advanced Image-Processing Chips

Japanese semiconductor giant Toshiba Corp. plans to begin producing its latest automotive image-processing chips at a rate of several tens of thousands per month in the second half of next year, The Nikkei reports.

Toshiba will make Visconti2 image recognition processors at its plant in Oita, Japan. The company says the facility, which currently makes chips for security systems, will be able to use existing equipment without modification.

A single Visconti2 chip can process data from four cameras and recognize pedestrians, other vehicles and lane markings. The chip initially will be used in collision avoidance systems that automatically apply the brakes in an emergency. Such chips also will be critical in self-driving cars that are expected to arrived by 2020.

Toshiba says it aims to nearly triple its automotive component sales, including the burgeoning chip segment, to 280 billion yen ($2.8 billion) by 2020.