Shinhan Venture Investment, a venture capital firm affiliated with the Shinhan Financial Group, is continuing bold investments in the materials, parts and equipment industry. It is evaluated that compared to its fellow domestic venture capitals, the firm has been among the most aggressive in securing a portfolio in materials, parts and equipment, leading the growth of related industries.

On the 19^th, insiders of the venture investment industry were aware of Shinhan Venture Investment recently investing in Cubixel, an optical equipment company. Participating in the Series A investment round, the firm invested a total of 2 billion won. The firm used funds from the 'Shinhan-Neo Materials & Parts Equipment Investment Association (contracted total of KRW 19.9 billion)', which was formed at the end of last year for the purpose of investing in companies in the materials, parts and equipment industry. 

The investment was led by Choi Seongil and Lee Wonho, respectively representative fund manager and team leader of the Shinhan-Neo material, parts and equipment investment association. Choi Seongil, after studying Industrial Chemistry at Hanyang University, worked as an investment reviewer at KTB Network. Choi then went through major venture capitals such as SL Investment, Atinum Investment, and Wonik Investment Partners. Choi currently focuses on investments in semiconductors, IT parts materials, displays, and chemicals.

Team leader Lee Wonho studied Mechanical Engineering at Sungkyunkwan University and later worked at Samsung Electronics Manufacturing Technology Research Center (Samsung’s Research Center). Samsung’s Research Center carries out advanced research on core manufacturing and equipment technologies. As a support organization for Samsung Electronics' DS division, Samsung’s Research Center focuses on innovation and development in semiconductor and display manufacturing. Lee's career is closely related to Shinhan Venture Investment's investment in the materials, parts, and equipment industry.

Cubixel, selected by Shinhan Venture Investment, boasts 3D hologram automatic optical inspection (AOI) technology that can be applied to major industrial fields such as semiconductors, displays, and printed circuit boards (PCBs). The company has developed the 'FSH (Flying-over scanning holography) optical module' for 3D hologram AOI which increases the yield of core parts used in the information and communication technology (ICT) industry. The company aims to commercialize the technology by the end of this month and is currently testing the technology in the production lines of major corporations.

Differentiating the product is its ability to quickly and accurately inspect defective parts with low-volume data. The 3D AOI equipment currently in use recreates 3D images by synthesizing approximately 1,000 2D images. On the contrary, Cubixel’s 3D hologram AOI equipment realizes three dimensional images with a single image. 

Cubixel focuses on pioneering the AOI equipment market using 3D holograms. From the second half of the year, the company plans to introduce AOI equipment that incorporates the 'FSH optical module' for the uses of semiconductor assembly, display, PCB hole/wiring inspection, etc. Using hologram technology, the 'FSH optical module' can extract high-speed 3D image information at over 15 frames per second.

Through this technology, it is possible to significantly shorten the quality inspection time for high-integration and ultra-fine parts, thereby increasing productivity. With a resolution of 1㎛ class, 3D information on detailed areas of parts with a depth of 5 mm or less, such as bump balls, copper patterns, PCB holes, and package-on-package (PoP) holes, can be secured with a single image. In addition, it is possible to inspect defects such as bubbles, particles, scratches, chippings, etc. formed at the bottom of a complex layer that is combined with a reflector object, or a defective image of the object surface with considerable reflection.

Based on the hologram original technology, Cubixel plans to expand its application fields beyond parts optical inspection equipment, to biomedical devices, such as holographic 3D laparoscopes, holographic 3D fluorescence microscopes, and holographic 3D live cell imaging. Attention focuses on whether the company will continue to grow and lead the market.