Lighterking Enterprise Co. recently introduced an innovative "optoelectronic" auto cigarette lighter that serves as a lighter and a decorative item at the same time. The company's president, Light Shen, claims that his new patented "illumination lighter" is the first such product to be developed in Taiwan.

The product incorporates surface-mount technology (SMT) and features a seven-color light-emitting diode (LED) with an embedded IC chip. It has two modes of operation, one as a color-changing decorative item and the other as a cigarette lighter plus decorative item. A push-pull switch on the body of the lighter allows the user to switch between the two modes.

In the decoration mode, when the lighter is pushed into the socket it flashes seven single- and mixed-color combinations at three-second intervals. The super-bright LED flashes changing and separated colors by using a specially designed transparent acrylic knob with a built-in reflecting lens. When the device is in the lighter mode, pushing it into its socket sets off the emission of seven-color LED-light sequence, which stops when the lighter is heated and pops out for use. The cessation of the flashing lights lets the driver know that the lighter is ready for use.

Shen says that his company has designed special heat-dissipating flow channels in the short plug-body, with a Bakelite O-ring heat insulator on the heater end. In the future, the SMT LED may be replaced by a small printed-circuit board (PCB) and other LEDs to enhance the product's performance.

The president says that the new "illumination lighter" is a first-generation product, and that in future more functions will be added to enrich its in-car applications. For example, the company is working on the development of an indicator for incoming phone calls and a touch-switch function, among other things, and Shen is confident that the expanding line will become the firm's main revenue spinner.

Lighterking was established in 1980 and today claims to be the largest automobile cigarette-lighter plug and socket maker in Taiwan. All of its products comply 100% with safety standards such as CE (EMI-EMC) and E11. The company's plant in Tucheng, northern Taiwan, employs about 50 workers who turn out over one million lighters and two million sockets a year.

About 90% of the products are exported to major markets including the United States, Europe, and the Middle East. Some of the products are sold under the company's own "LKG" brand, while others are made for first-tier suppliers to automakers in Taiwan and abroad.