A 'ruggedised' device is specifically designed to operate reliably in harsh usage environments and conditions.

Panasonic's Toughbook targets B2B and focuses on mission critical sectors.

Explaining the company's focus, Panasonic (IT Products Business Unit) Global Marketing Team Manager Tatsuya Sekiguchi said demand for such products will rise as there is growth in mobile workforce and the need to stay connected at all times even in tough outdoor conditions.

According to research firm IDC, the world's mobile worker population will reach 1.3 billion, representing 37.2 per cent of the total workforce by 2015.

"We are already a market leader globally in ruggedised PCs with 60 per cent market share and our next plan is to do the same in tablets," he added.

Worldwide, about 800,000 ruggedised tablets are sold annually.

The company expects a healthy growth in ruggedised tablet market with rising demand in the enterprise sector.

VDC Research, a M2M market intelligence and advisory firm for technology suppliers and engineering, has said that the market will grow at a compound annual growth rate of 21 per cent.

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