First Wave Of USI 1.0 Active Stylus Products Hit The Market

Posted on by Evander Pierre

14 Companies Launching Products Using USI 1.0 – First Open Standard Active Stylus Protocol Available

WAKEFIELD, Mass., USA – September 26, 2019 – The Universal Stylus Initiative (USI) unveiled today the first 14 companies with products using the USI 1.0 Stylus and Device Specification — the first open standard active stylus protocol available on the market.

USI 1.0 replaces propriety approaches with a single solution allowing a stylus to be used across a wide range of touch-enabled devices, including phones, tablets, computing and entertainment platforms.  For the first time independent hardware vendors (IHVs), original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and the software ecosystem can develop a new generation of active styluses that provide consumers a consistent, customizable and interoperable experience across make, model and form-factor.

The following companies use USI 1.0 in their active stylus products:  Chicony Electronics Co., Ltd., Cirel Systems, Elan Microelectronics Corporation, Google, Shenzhen Goodix Technology Co., Ltd., Hanvon Technology Co., Ltd., HiDeep, Inc., HP, Inc., Intel Corporation, MAXEYE, Silicon Integrated Systems Corporation, Sunrex Technnology Corporation, Sunwoda Electronic Company, Waltop International Corporation.

Access the Product Showcase for a list of products using USI 1.0 with downloadable images, product descriptions and USI supporting statements: https://universalstylus.org/product-showcase/.

“Our vision is of a single, active stylus capable of operating with all the devices that a consumer owns or uses in the workplace or at home. USI 1.0  makes this vision a reality by providing a next generation active stylus option that is an alternative to current proprietary solutions,” said Peter Mueller, chairman, USI.  “Intel, Google and 30 other global companies were involved in the development of the USI 1.0 Specification helping to ensure its marketplace acceptance and implementation.”

USI 1.0 Specification And Active Styluses Positioned For Growth

The global multi-touch screen market was valued at $6 billion in 2016 and is projected to reach $16 billion by 2023 according to analyst reports.  USI 1.0 is well-positioned for growth with Google Chromebook standardizing on USI 1.0 last year and Android accounting for almost 60 percent of tablet operating systems.  In addition, USI members Lenovo, HP and Dell, Inc., account for over 60 percent of  the global PC market.

“It’s been a ‘David vs Goliaths’ scenario for us since USI was established four years ago so we are excited to see the first wave of products using USI 1.0 launching in the market.  Due to the many benefits of an open standard and the strong support from our membership, we expect USI adoption will continue to grow,” added Mueller.

USI 1.0:  First Open, Non-proprietary Active Stylus Specification

The USI 1.0 Specification defines a standard signaling mechanism and communication protocol between a stylus and a touch-enabled device. The 1.0 Specification features a robust two-way protocol designed from the ground up to support a rich set of base features including multiple, simultaneous styluses as well as extensibility for per-vendor customization and future usages.

Users will be able to use a single USI stylus across all of their USI-enabled devices and any USI stylus shipped with devices will work with other USI-enabled devices, even those from different manufacturers. Additionally, the USI 1.0 Specification also provides the capability to use multiple styluses from different manufacturers on a single device. This is a breakthrough capability and industry-first enabled by the USI 1.0 Specification.

An additional benefit of the USI standard is the ability to deliver a consistent stylus user experience across platforms. This consistency and ease-of-use, coupled with interoperability, increases the consumer appeal of an active stylus and will help proliferate the technology.

About Universal Stylus Initiative

The Universal Stylus Initiative (USI) is a global, not-for-profit technology trade association whose mission is to define industry-wide standards for interoperable communication between an active stylus and touch-enabled devices such as phones, tablets, and computing and entertainment platforms. The USI specification provides for a stylus capable of communicating with different touch sensors and touch controller integrated circuits, so that users can employ the same stylus across numerous touch-enabled devices, as long as each device’s touch controller is compliant with the USI specification.

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Industry Statements in Support of USI

Cirel Systems

Active capacitive pen technology has been maturing over the years but has remained restricted to few products as the communication protocols between pen and device have been proprietary. An open standard is a key step in making this technology accessible to a larger user base. The first implementations of USI are now ready for market deployment and are realizing the promise of a low cost, low power yet noise resilient digital inking solution which bodes well for adoption of inking by a wider variety of touch-enabled products in the very near future.   

Elan Microelectronics Corporation

ELAN, being the world leader in touch controller with active stylus support, is happy to announce we have readily available solutions today and will be in brand products by next calendar year. Having first shipped inside devices with proprietary pens dating back to 2013, ELAN is in full support of industry standard that will bring about the best user experience.  

Shenzhen Goodix Technology Co., Ltd (Goodix)

USI introduced two-way communication two years ago, when most of the market didn’t see the potential for achieving commercialization of such an advanced, unique feature at that time. Goodix was an early adopter of USI and has new products scheduled to be available this year. 

Google

Google Chromebook aims to build better computing through the application of the founding principles of “speed, security and simplicity”– and, in the case of active styluses, that means Google supports the Universal Stylus Initiative (USI). Google joined USI over a year ago with the plan to implement USI’s open, standard active stylus specification across Chrome OS. (From USI published case study).

HiDeep, Inc. 

HiDeep Touch Controller ICs, iST945Au and iST1245Au are fully compliant with USI 1.0 protocol specifications.  The ICs communicate bi-directionally with a USI stylus and provide a great inking performance with strong noise immunity.  The ICs have passed USI and Google’s AVL tests and have shown good interoperability performance with styluses available on the market.

HP

At HP, we’re always striving to enhance our user’s computing experience, both with innovative hardware and software solutions. Our new HP Rechargeable USI Pen is a perfect example; giving users a more compelling way to interact with their PC. The new USI pen, combined with our first USI supported Chromebook x360 laptops, will enable users to fully enjoy the Chrome experience, whether it’s for editing, drawing, sketching, or taking notes. We’re very excited about expanding this technology to future HP devices.

Maxeye Smart Technologies Co., Ltd.

USI is a stylus alliance promoted by many well-known enterprises. Continuous optimization of the protocol and performance will greatly promote the development of stylus technology. 

Silicon Integrated Systems Corporation

From developing both USI-enabled touch controllers and USI stylus controllers, SiS has built up a strong knowledge-base and experience in interoperability of USI devices and USI styluses. Thus, SiS is capable of supporting various USI stylus pens on SiS USI-enabled touch controllers as well as SiS USI stylus controllers or other USI-enabled touch controllers. That’s also a key goal of USI technology — to provide customers an interoperable experience across various form-factors or platforms. 

Sunwoda Electronic Co., Ltd.

Sunwoda is a professional active pen ODM provider. As a member of USI, Sunwoda is trying its best to provide a perfect USI pen to customers.

Sunrex Technology Corporation

Sunrex Technology Corp. fully supports the Universal Stylus Initiative that propels forward the standardization of stylus pen technology protocol.

Waltop International Corp.

Waltop’s involvement with USI from Day One was customer-driven.  Customers want an open, standard active stylus specification featuring bi-directional communication with multi-stylus support — what Waltop calls “Grab-n-Write” —  meaning any USI-enabled active stylus can write on any USI-enabled device.  Implementing the USI solution has increased the options and products we are able to offer our customers.