Market analysis of emerging LED backlight modules

With the emergence of new technologies in recent years, liquid crystal display (LCD) and plasma display panels (PDP) are becoming more competitive, the product price is decreased with the increase of technology choice. In the case of the market is close to saturation, another technology transition is coming, and many people think that this is the LED backlight module (Back Light Unit, BLU) as a good time for the next generation of display applications debut. LED BLU has been pursued because it has with the cold cathode fluorescent tube (CCFL) advanced features of BLU significantly different. LED BLU has the advantages of high color gamut, high contrast, mercury free, RoHS environmental protection standards, low voltage and fast response. Now, in addition to the overall evaluation of the advantages of LED, designers are also beginning to understand LED BLU power solutions. The high cost structure LED BLU is to make it become a new generation of LED showed that the only obstacle to the application. Even if the LED BLU shows excellent visual effects, its application has been subject to high costs associated with. LED BLU for mobile devices with small screen have been popular for several years, the manufacturers continue to strive to overcome the obstacles of price promotion, turns to medium size display applications of this technology, such as digital photo frame, car navigation devices, notebook computers and monitors. In addition, despite the failure to achieve low-cost market goals, many mainstream TV manufacturers have begun to introduce some new prototype products, trying to create a LED BLU TV market. To make larger LED BLU display screen, you must use IC to drive higher requirements. Big screen TV with LED BLU, the BLU circuit (at least) must consider two functions: improve the contrast with local light, and pulsed driving function to reduce motion blur, which is the superiority of the LED BLU in CCFL BLU. LED BLU driver IC can carry out dynamic backlight lighting control, but also the relative strength of the LED other lighting technology today, and relative to the small screen, this feature is more important for the big screen. As for mobile devices display or digital photo frame of the small screen, you do not need to use local dimming technology or pulse drive, does not require a large screen required excellent visual display. To dynamic design of LED BLU TV IC driver control, LED matrix array must be arranged carefully, because the current number of channels and each channel and voltage level in the IC specification is very important. Recently, many TV manufacturers are more active in the promotion of new LED BLU tv. Change market derived from a solution that can solve two problems: one is the high cost of LED; two is the uncertainty in the design of LED matrix. It is believed RGB LED than white LED visual effect is much better (especially in the color gamut), but the study pointed out that human eyes can hardly distinguish differences between RGB LED and white LED, because the human eye is most sensitive to the brightness of the first eye, and the brightness of RGB LED and white LED is almost the same. Because white LED is much cheaper than RGB LED (although still more expensive than CCFL), so in order to quickly create a new market, TV manufacturers on the use of white LED. LED type choice to speed up the array design, because designers do not need to press the control group in each RGB color, also don't bother to consider local dimming. The use of white LED also removed many designers have been unable to solve the problem. The development of LED BLU bring new opportunities for power IC. For example, the built-in DC-DC module, the input voltage of 24V or 40V SMPS, requires at least 16 to 32 output channels (depending on the screen size), each channel requires at least 60mA of the current. This voltage requirements means that we can expect the LED BLU market will have more changes, this change relates not only to MOSFET, including IC driver. In the CCFL BLU market, the IC market is very closed, only a few key patents IC manufacturers to participate in, when there are new competitors to enter the market, there will be a serious conflict. In the LED BLU market will not have this rule, because the main components can be converted into DC-DC system from the inverter. The key to the success or failure of the market is how designers can accurately adjust the drive IC specifications, thereby providing customers with "system specified IC". The current LED BLU design concept is still looking forward to more changes in order to improve the cost structure of different screen sizes. From the size of the market, many people become a backlight solution of "LED BLU does? "The question is cautious. CCFL has been innovative in terms of cost and performance, and active matrix organic light-emitting diodes (Active Matrix Light Emitting Diode, AMOLED) technology is likely to lead to the final exit LED. Displaybank survey pointed out that the LED market is expected to occupy 40% of the total share of the backlight module Market in 2010. Leading current market and technology companies are trying to eliminate many technical barriers, plus the LED BLU prototype of new products in large numbers, this shows that the market will be reversed. From a technical point of view, because the LED driver IC rely on generic DC-DC technology, rather than a unique technology involving patent issues, so the CCFL inverter market provides more opportunities. Any power supply company that is able to launch an ideal system application will be regarded as the market leader. Many excellent power solutions can be designed to provide a suitable circuit, providing a powerful and accurate IC. The ideal solution for manufacturers is a design concept that integrates SMPS and DC-DC modules to reduce costs