At present, automotive electrification and intelligence have become a major trend in the development of the industry, and the intelligent cockpit has put forward new requirements for on-board displays. According to Omdia statistics, the average annual compound growth rate of market demand for automotive displays will remain at about 5%-6%, and by 2026, global automotive display shipments will reach 2400 million pieces.
From the perspective of technical routes, the field of on-board display presents a pattern of coexistence of LCD, Mini LED, OLED, and MicroLED technologies, among which Mini LED backlit on-board display stands out with many advantages in brightness, contrast, power consumption, curved surface display and large-scale. At present, whether it is LED manufacturers, module manufacturers, or panel manufacturers, they are increasing their layout, and industry chain manufacturers are also strengthening cooperation.
The on-board display has become a new battlefield for mini LED
As an upgrade from the traditional LCD backlight, the Mini LED backlight has the advantages of both OLED and LCD in terms of display performance. Whether it is the instrument cluster, center console, navigation display, or interactive window display, it can be completely improved, bringing richer visual enjoyment to the driver and passengers.
The excellent performance has also been favored by car companies, and they have let the mini LED screen "get on the car". According to incomplete statistics from the micro-network, up to now, Mini LED car screen has been applied to the latest models of many well-known brands such as Ideal, SAIC Roewe, Great Wall Motor, Weilai, Cadillac, Feifan Automobile, Mercedes-Benz, etc., and it is expected that Ford, BMW, Volvo and other car manufacturers will also join the application of Mini LED car display, and the market demand for Mini LED backlight car screen is increasing.
At the same time, the integration of the center console, instrument panel, and co-pilot has become the mainstream, and the overall screen length is 12 meters to 14 meters, which also means that the demand for Mini LEDs is gradually increasing. Panel manufacturers said, "Mini LED in the vehicle market growth trend is very obvious, is expected with the increase in new energy vehicle sales and the development of the trend of large screen in the vehicle, the penetration rate of the vehicle Mini LED will continue to rise." β
Mini LED products are on the car one after another, so that enterprises are full of expectations for their future development. An LED company said that the priority demand of car companies for mini LED on-board display products is reliability, and the acceptable range of products is large. Once it enters the first-chain system of car companies, it will form certain competitive barriers, so it is estimated that automotive display is an application market with more growth potential for Mini LED backlight.
Shenzhen Tianma also pointed out in the survey that Mini-LED backlight technology, as one of the upgrade solutions for on-board display, can be matched with the existing LCD mainstream mass production technology to improve the performance of LCD display products.
According to Cinno Research statistics, the sales of Mini-LED models in the first half of 2023 increased by 1% year-on-year3 times, accounting for 0 percent of China's passenger car sales compared to last year6% to 11%γIt is estimated that the global automotive market will ship about 400,000 mini LED display applications in 2023, and this number is expected to grow to more than 3.6 million by 2027.
From the perspective of automotive Mini LED backlight module manufacturers, Chinese car manufacturers use automotive display modules from manufacturers such as BOE, Jufei Optoelectronics, Longli Technology, etc., while European and American car manufacturers mainly use AUO and Innolux panels, with their own automotive display modules, regardless of the completion of the Chinese and European and American automotive display modules, they are delivered to Tier 1 manufacturers such as Bosch and Qunfengjun for system integration, and finally handed over to the car factory for assembly in the car.
As early as the end of 2022, Longli Technology has signed a contract with Bosch of Germany for up to 30The contract order of 2.7 billion yuan will provide the automotive mini-LED backlight display module products required for the BMW (BMW Automobiles) project of Bosch in Germany from 2025 to 2033. "Judging from the projects that the company has received and opened so far, the demand for mini-LED backlight display in on-board projects has been strongly verified. Longli Technology said.
Major manufacturers compete for layout
In the face of this fast-growing market, industrial chain enterprises such as panels, modules, and LEDs have increased their layout, and continue to increase R&D investment in on-board displays, especially the development of mini LED backlight on-board display products.
From the DIC Expo 2023 exhibition, BOE, Shenzhen Tianma, Huajiacai, Huayinxin, Yimei Innovation, Hanbo High-tech and other manufacturers have exhibited Mini LED vehicle application products, which have become a bright color at the exhibition.
In addition to the above-mentioned companies, TCL Huaxing, Longli Technology, Guoxing Optoelectronics, Jufei Optoelectronics, Ruifeng Optoelectronics, Hongli Display, Jingtai Optoelectronics, Jinko Electronics and other manufacturers are continuing to increase investment in research and development, and have launched mini LED backlight vehicle display products with different characteristics, competing to enter the automotive market first.
In addition to developing new products, major manufacturers are also strengthening cooperation in the field of automotive applications. From the announcement of the establishment of a business unit focusing on automotive LEDs by Nationstar Optoelectronics, to the establishment of an automotive electronics company by Xinruida and related partiesThen Shenzhen Tianma and Sanan Semiconductor reached a strategic cooperation to jointly develop on-board LED chip technology.
In addition, BOE holds HC Semitek, and cooperates with Chery Group, Jiangqi Group and other car companies, and TCL Huaxing and San'an Optoelectronics cooperate in Xiamen to promote the R&D and industrialization of Micro LED chips. From the chip manufacturing end to the packaging field, and then to the terminal application, the positive actions of a series of leading enterprises are promoting the automotive LED field to usher in a new climax.
Industry insiders told the author, "Whether it is BOE Holdings, HC Semitek, Hisense Holdings, or TCL Huaxing, Shenzhen Tianma and San'an Optoelectronics signed a cooperation, they are all in order to open up the upstream links to further consolidate LED production capacity, as well as mini-LED micro LED and other technology development." β
To a certain extent, industry chain manufacturers will expand and deepen the field of Mini LED backlight vehicle display in an all-round and multi-level manner, which will further promote the development of Mini LED technology. "Industry chain manufacturers are strengthening cooperation to improve production efficiency and ensure product consistency and reliability through technological innovation. At the same time, we strive to reduce the production cost of our products and improve our competitiveness by optimizing the production process and reducing the cost of raw materials. The above-mentioned person said.
A manufacturer told the author, "With the joint efforts of major manufacturers, the cost of Mini LED is currently declining by 20%-30% per year, which will further promote the large-scale application of Mini LED products in automobiles." β
Overall, Mini LED-backlit in-vehicle displays are carrying the industry's expectations and heading for the fast lane of development. The road to large-scale production may be full of difficulties, but the huge development potential of the industry and the positive layout of enterprises indicate that this will be a scientific and technological change with far-reaching impact.