"Our goal was simple," continued Mr.Kikuchi, "We wanted to achieve the world's fastest AF speed on the E-1's successor.
"To achieve this goal, we developed an AF-dedicated engine that's capable of concurrent processing at an ultrahigh speed. By simultaneously reading the analog output from the new AF sensor, and performing analog-to-digital signal conversion and digital signal processing such as AF detection computation, this AF-dedicated engine has enabled a phenomenal increase in AF detection speed.
"AF detection of all distance-sensing points is executed in an instant, so subject capturing and tracking performance are also improved, in addition to the AF speed."

"According to Mr.Takeshi Kindaichi, "We knew that the sensor unit mounted in the E-1's successor would have to be extremely precise, but also extremely resistant to environmental changes, ageing and impacts.
And the more we studied it, the more we realized how difficult the mass-production design would be. We really treaded a thorny path."
"To deal with this issue," said Kindaichi, "we worked with an elite unit at Olympus that specializes in the world's smallest and lightest technologies. But we soon ran into difficulty because it was a question of submicron accuracy, or precision to less than 1/1000 of millimeter."
"The sensor unit is fabricated with 6 optical axis alignment and additionally subjected to a 3-axis adjustment before it is mounted in the camera body. The design of the alignment mechanism and equipment, and establishment of the technology were all challenges to for us at that time. The technology that we needed was unknown at the time. It was only thanks to the concerted efforts of the mechanical, optical and production facility design units, and us, the electrical design unit, that we were finally able to make the necessary breakthrough.
"The biggest difficulty for us was the selection of the adhesive agents. We selected and used different adhesives depending on where they were to be employed.
"Sensor unit fabricated in this way are able to withstand any environmental changes, ageing and impacts prior to being mounted in the camera's body. Once mounted, the sensors are protected by a strong, rigid magnesium exterior, ensuring that they continue to manifest the highest AF performance under any conditions."