Faurecia and Immersion Partner for Haptic Automotive Technologies

Interactive touch surface applications grow in cars, driving a greater need for haptic technologies

NANTERRE, France & SAN FRANCISCO–(BUSINESS WIRE)–#advancedhmi–Faurecia, one of the world�s leading automotive technology companies and Immersion Corporation (NASDAQ: IMMR), the leading developer and provider of technologies for haptics, today announced a multi-year license agreement, providing Faurecia with access to Immersion’s haptic technologies and solutions. The agreement enables Faurecia to develop advanced, interactive haptic user interfaces with the latest innovations from Immersion.

“Cars in the near future will be built with smart technology, which allows intuitive touch based interactions. This agreement with Immersion expands our technology ecosystem and illustrates our forward-thinking approach to meeting the technology needs of occupants for a connected and personalized experience,” declared Edouard Da Silva, Display Global Product Line Director at Faurecia Clarion Electronics.

“Haptics brings new capabilities to automotive HMIs. It enables tactile surfaces to readily respond to users and creates new opportunities for OEMs to re-imagine the user experience,” said Jared Smith, Interim CEO at Immersion. “We’re excited to work with Faurecia to go beyond the traditional approach to automotive HMI systems and explore new ways that we can help the driver safely interact with the car.”

According to IHS Markit, the use of haptics will continue to gain traction, and multimodal HMI systems are expected to become the vehicle standard in the upcoming years. In addition, capacitive touch-based systems will become the primary display interface, with 95% of center stack display enabled with touch technology by 2026.*

Faurecia HMI solutions are designed with usability in mind, with intuitive technologies allowing occupants to interact by touch, gesture or voice to manage infotainment, seating or thermal comfort options. As an example, Faurecia has developed a scalable multi-view graphical interface for IVI, called Trenza. To reduce driver distraction, this technology uses priority management when resizing windows. It also allows users to organize their most frequently used apps or services by simply dragging and dropping them into an easy to access series of options on the top of the display screen.

Immersion’s Haptics for Automotive Solution provides automotive tier-one suppliers with innovative use cases, reference designs for haptic implementations, and software and technologies to facilitate the use of haptics in advanced automotive HMIs. Immersion continues to innovate, provide new technologies, and license automotive tier-one suppliers and other component suppliers in the automotive market.

The agreement between Immersion and Faurecia is a license to Immersion’s patented technology as well as haptic technology solutions for automotive touch screens and controls.

*Source: IHS Markit – AutoTechInsight Webinar: The Future of User Interface and User Experience & SID Display Week Review; August 2020

About Immersion

Immersion Corporation (NASDAQ: IMMR) is the leading innovator of touch feedback technology, also known as haptics. The company invents, accelerates, and scales haptic experiences by providing technology solutions for mobile, automotive, gaming, and consumer electronics. Haptic technology creates immersive and realistic experiences that enhance digital interactions by engaging users’ sense of touch. Immersion is headquartered in San Francisco, California, with offices worldwide. Learn more at www.immersion.com.

About Faurecia

Founded in 1997, Faurecia has grown to become a major player in the global automotive industry. With 248 industrial sites, 37 R&D centers and 115,500 employees in 37 countries, Faurecia is a global leader in its four areas of business: Seating, Interiors, Clarion Electronics and Clean Mobility. Faurecia has focused its technology strategy on providing solutions for the “Cockpit of the Future” and “Sustainable Mobility”. In 2019, the Group posted sales of €17.8 billion. Faurecia is listed on the Euronext Paris stock exchange. For more information, please visit www.faurecia.com

Forward-looking Statements

This press release contains “forward-looking statements” that involve risks and uncertainties, as well as assumptions that, if they never materialize or prove incorrect, could cause the results of Immersion Corporation and its consolidated subsidiaries to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements.

All statements, other than the statements of historical fact, are statements that may be deemed forward-looking statements. Examples of forward-looking statements contained herein include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the increasing prominence of haptic technologies in the automotive market, statements regarding the potential for the increasing prominence of haptic technologies to reshape the automotive market, statements regarding the role of haptic technologies in cars that may be developed in the future, and statements regarding Immersion’s future technological developments and outbound licenses.

Immersion’s actual results might differ materially from those stated or implied by such forward-looking statements due to risks and uncertainties associated with Immersion’s business, which include, but are not limited to, lack of continued innovation in haptic technology and changing consumer preferences and expectations with respect to the automotive market.

For a more detailed discussion of these factors and other factors that could cause actual results to vary materially, interested parties should review the risk factors listed in Immersion’s most current Form 10-K, and Form 10-Q, both of which are on file with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The forward-looking statements in this press release reflect Immersion’s beliefs and predictions as of the date of this release. Immersion disclaims any obligation to update these forward-looking statements as a result of financial, business, or any other developments occurring after the date of this release.

Immersion and the Immersion logo are trademarks of Immersion Corporation in the United States and other countries. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

(IMMR – C)

Contacts

Media Contacts:
Linda Quach

Immersion Corporation

408-350-8832

lquach@immersion.com

Eric Fohlen-Weill

Faurecia

+33 (0)1 72 36 72 58

eric.fohlen-weill@faurecia.com

Investor Contacts:
Aaron Akerman

Immersion Corporation

514-987-9800 ext. 5110

aakerman@immersion.com

Marc Maillet

Faurecia

+33 (0)1 72 36 75 70

marc.maillet@faurecia.com