Taiwan Automotive Electronics Makers See Powers in Telematics, OBU Products

Taipei, March 21, 2006 (CENS)--In the booming global automotive electronics market, Taiwan companies are expected to gain great opportunities in manufacturing onboard unit (OBU) equipment and telematics products, according to the Industrial Economics and Knowledge Center (IEK) of the Industrial Technology Research Institute.

In 2008, the IEK forecasted, the production value of Taiwan's automotive electronics industry is expected to reach NT$30 billion (US$923.08 million at US$1: NT$32.5) and some products, such as light-emitting diodes (LEDs), are expected to enjoy very high growth rates

The automotive electronics industry alliance under the local Taiwan Electrical and Electronic Manufacturers' Association (TEEMA) recently held an annual meeting with discussion topics focusing on hybrid electric vehicles (HEV) and LED automotive applications. Many industry experts participated in the discussions and shared their experiences and views on related technologies and market trends.

Automotive Research and Testing Center (ARTC) project manager Liao Hsueh-lung said that the LED will have a wider application range in the automotive market, as new car models in the near future are expected to require about 60 LEDs in various parts. But the automotive LED lamps still must improve in areas such as power efficiency, power output, reliability and durability, stability, compliance, and brightness decay.

In Europe, Liao pointed out, more than 60% of new cars are already equipped with LED third brake lights, placing a large demand on Taiwan' s LED suppliers. The project manager also said that the LED headlamps are expected to become common in two or three years after some technical bottlenecks are solved, such as white-light brightness decay and an insufficient number of lumens.