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 ISSN-0974-1062
BUSINESS MAGAZINE FOR ELECTRONICS INDUSTRY

www.electronicsb2b.com
w w w. e l e c t r o n i c s b 2 b . c o m
Vol. 14  Issue 03  May 2020
Market Survey Editor : Rahul Chopra

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6 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz

 Electronics Bazaar Advisory Panel
Thought leaders of India’s ESDM sector, who are advising us on
how to facilitate faster growth of electronics industry in India

Amrit Manwani, Amrith Prabhu, Anil Kumar Muniswamy, Anoop K Mehrotra, B.M. Vaish,
CMD, Sahasra Electronics country manager, director, country manager & chairman,
Pvt Ltd Philips Lumileds SLN Technologies director, ITP Group
Pvt Ltd Jabil India

Gautam Awasthi, Neeraj Bharara, Pawan Sharma, Praveen Madaan, Rajeev Ramachandra,
Head-marketing communi- director, managing director, country manager, CTO & Co-founder,
cation, Emeai region Rosy Electronics Victor Component Juki India Mistral Solutions
Keysight Technologies Systems Pvt Ltd

Rajeev Rohatgi, N.Y. Patil, Sanjiv Narayan, B.S. Praveen, Soni Saran Singh,
director, Binay Opto managing director, managing director, MD & CEO, executive director,
Electronics Pvt Ltd Kyoritsu Electric (India) SGS Tekniks BAG Electronics (India) NMTronics India Pvt Ltd
Pvt Ltd Manufacturing Pvt Ltd Pvt Ltd

Subhash Goyal, K.Vijaykumar Gupta, Vikram Desai, Vinod Sharma, Yatish Mohan,
managing director, CEO, Kwality managing director, managing director, managing director, Rohde
Digital Circuits Pvt Ltd Photonics Pvt Ltd Desai Electronics Pvt Ltd Deki Electronics Ltd & Schwarz India Pvt Ltd

8 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz

 Industry
News

Cabinet rolls out three schemes to boost electronics manufacturing

The Union Cabinet has approved three schemes to enable large scale electronics manufacturing and attract fresh
investments worth about ` 500 billion in the sector.
Minister of Electronics and IT, Ravi Shankar
Prasad said that the ` 409.95 billion production-
linked incentive has been approved to boost domestic
manufacturing. It will also attract investments for the
manufacture of mobile phones and specified electronic
components, as well as for assembly, testing, marking
and packaging (ATMP) units.
The government has said that the scheme will
offer an incentive of 4 per cent to 6 per cent on the
incremental sale of goods manufactured in India. As a
result, the domestic value addition for mobile phones
is expected to rise to 35-40 per cent by 2025 from the
current 20-25 per cent. The scheme has the potential of
creating 800,000 direct and indirect jobs. Representational image

The outlay for the ‘Scheme for the Promotion of Manufacturing of Electronic Components and
Semiconductors’ is ` 32.85 billion and is expected to create about 600,000 jobs. The funds allocated will be
spread over eight years.
The third scheme, Electronics Manufacturing Clusters (EMC) 2.0, aims at creating quality infrastructure along
with industry-specific common facilities such as already built factory sheds, among others. For this scheme, the
government has allocated an outlay of ` 37.62 billion over a period of eight years.

XNRGI opens lithium-ion
battery factory in India
US based XNRGI has opened a
high temperature (HT) lithium-ion
battery factory in Gurugram, which
Representational image
will have the capacity to produce
240MWh of battery storage each
year.
As per the company’s
statement, it has already begun
producing a HT mobility smart
telemetry battery (the XM
5kWh) for rickshaws, e-bikes,
e-motorcycles, golf carts, solar and
wind farms, and telecom tower
UPS systems. The company has
plans to scale capacity globally in
the multi-GWh range by 2022 with
strategic relationships in different
parts of the world.
Operating as XNRGI India,
a wholly owned subsidiary of
XNRGI, the factory will produce
XNRGI’s range of HT turnkey
energy storage solutions (ESS).
This will include battery packs,
battery/energy management
systems, optional tracking,
and remote status monitoring
hardware.
The company has its own
R&D unit, manufactures its
batteries through its preferred
suppliers, builds battery and
energy management systems, and
assembles energy storage systems
in its automated factory.

10 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz

 Industry
News
Representational image
ICEA asks government to
include mobile phones
and laptops in essential
services list
The Indian Cellular and
Electronics Association (ICEA)
has urged the government to
include mobile phones, tablets,
laptops and other information and
communications technology (ICT)
products as essential services
during the coronavirus lockdown,
reported PTI.
The association has sent
a letter to PM Narendra Modi
seeking to resume the sale of these
devices via e-commerce platforms.
ICEA also appealed to the
government to include the service
and maintenance of these products
in the government’s essential
services list, during the lockdown
period.
“We would also like to
highlight that through mobile
devices the government can also
track citizens who are impacted
by COVID-19. It helps health
authorities to better track the
movement of infected citizens. If
their phones were to break down
or if they were not to have a
smartphone for whatever reason,
they should have access to repair
shops or stores to procure one,”
ICEA chairman Pankaj Mohindroo
was quoted as saying by PTI.
The 21-day nationwide
lockdown has brought the
12 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz
electronics industry to a grinding
halt in India. All manufacturing
activities have been put on hold
and retail stores have also been
closed. Smartphone companies like
Xiaomi, Vivo and Realme have also
postponed their launch plans for
their new products.
Amara Raja Electronics
teams up with Salom
Electric
Amara Raja Electronics Ltd (AREL),
a unit of the Amara Raja Group,
has entered into an agreement
with China based Salom Electric
(Xiamen) as a manufacturing and
supply partner.
As a part of the deal, AREL will
provide Salom with a wide range of
power products, including external
power supplies, battery chargers,
wall plug-in power supplies, car
chargers, vehicle power adaptors,
power banks, wireless chargers and
associated products.
The agreement also states that
the products will be manufactured
at AREL’s electronics factory in
Chittoor, Andhra Pradesh. The
products will be shipped to Salom’s
global clientele in India and abroad.
Nokia, Intel collaborate on
new 5G radio portfolio
Nokia is collaborating with Intel
on technology advancements for
its 5G radio portfolio. Sources at
the two companies said that they
are working closely on the new
Intel Atom P5900 processor that
combines compute, connectivity
and acceleration technologies.
The jointly developed custom
silicon solutions are included
in Nokia’s AirScale radio access
products being shipped worldwide
as part of its 5G ‘Powered by
ReefShark’ portfolio. Tommi Uitto,
president of mobile networks at
Nokia, said: “This partnership
highlights our continued
commitment to ensuring our 5G
portfolio is underpinned by best-
in-class technology.
IESA releases ESDM Report
2020 in collaboration with
Frost & Sullivan
India Electronics and
Semiconductor Association (IESA)
has released its annual ESDM
report in collaboration with Frost
& Sullivan. The report captures
the current status of the Indian
electronics industry, maps the
trends, and creates opportunities
for industry, government and
research institutes to work closely
in order to promote electronics
manufacturing in India.
As per the key findings of the
report, electronics is a sunshine
market that has grown in India
at a CAGR of 14 per cent over
the period 2016-19, and is
expected to accelerate at a CAGR
of 16.6 per cent between 2020-
25. Electronics manufacturing
currently contributes 3.3 per cent
to the Indian economy, and will
grow to US$ 320 billion by 2025.
With additional policy support,
it has the potential to reach US$
410 billion, which will be 8.2 per
cent of the US$ 5 trillion GDP that
India is targeting by 2025. The
report also stated that a boost in
ESDM manufacturing as a result
of massive capacity expansion can
generate 10 million jobs.
Currently, 50 per cent of India’s
US$ 134 billion electronics market
is catered to by imports. By 2025,
the total demand will reach US$
368 billion; however, imports can
be reduced to 29 per cent, saving
the country US$ 76 billion in
foreign exchange
 Industry
News
Snippets
Tata Power expands its
rooftop solar service
Tata Power has expanded its
rooftop solar service (RTS)
to 90 cities across India. The
rollout has come at a time when
consumers across all major
categories including commercial,
industrial and residential, as well
as the public sector, are adopting
solar energy as a reliable and
sustainable solution to meet their
energy needs.
Praveer Sinha, CEO and
managing director, Tata Power,
said, “With the increased
adoption of RTS by consumers,
we are confident that our solar
rooftop solutions will play a big
role in improving energy access
across the country in both urban
and rural areas.”
Jaguar Land Rover
India partners with Tata
Power for EV charging
infrastructure
Jaguar Land Rover India has
entered into a partnership with
Tata Power to offer end-to-end
EV charging solutions. Tata
Power will provide charging
solutions for the Jaguar Land
Rover in India across its retail
network of 27 outlets in 24 cities
and at the customer’s residence
and/or office. Tata Power will be
responsible for providing a range
of AC and DC chargers, starting
from 7kW to 50kW capacity.
Rohit Suri, president and
managing director, Jaguar Land
Rover India, said, “This tie-up is
one step forward in creating the
right ecosystem for enabling a
simple and hassle-free charging
experience for owners of our
first electric vehicle, the Jaguar
I-PACE, which makes its debut in
India later this year.”
Jakson to set up 70MW
solar power plant in Assam
Jakson Group has signed a
power purchase agreement
14 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz
(PPA) with the Assam Power
Distribution Company Limited
(APDCL) for a 70MW solar power
plant at Amguri, Sivasagar district
in Assam. Jakson had won the
bid to develop this 70MW grid-
connected solar power plant in
the state based on a Request for
Proposal (RFP) issued by Assam
Power Generation Corporation Ltd
(APGCL) last year.
Sundeep Gupta, vice-chairman
and managing director, Jakson
Group, said the project will be
the biggest solar power plant in
Assam and contribute towards
achieving India’s ambitious solar
energy target of 100GW by 2022.
In addition to the PPA, Jakson
has also signed a land lease and
project implementation support
agreement with APDCL for the
project.
ABB India sells solar inverter
business for ` 1 billion
ABB India has said that its board
of directors has approved the sale
of its solar inverter business on a
slump sale basis to Marici Solar
India for around ` 1.01 billion.
Marici Solar India is the Indian
subsidiary of the Italy based
company, FIMER SpA.
The board’s stake sale decision
is in line with ABB Group’s
Representational image
strategy of ongoing systematic
portfolio management to
strengthen competitiveness, focus
on the quality of revenue and
higher growth segments.
The business transfer will be
effective from April 1, 2020, the
company added.
Chunghwa Telecom selects
Ericsson and Nokia as 5G
RAN vendors
Taiwanese carrier Chunghwa
Telecom has selected Ericsson
and Nokia as its 5G RAN vendors,
as the telco plans to launch
commercial 5G services in July
based on the non-standalone
(NSA) architecture. It will run
5G services on the 3.5GHz and
28GHz bands.
Chunghwa Telecom will use
Ericsson’s Radio Base Stations
(RBS) and Ericsson’s 5G Core,
which includes 5G Evolved
Packet Core. Ericsson will also
provide the fronthaul and IP
backhaul transport solution using
Fronthaul 6000 and Router 6000
products. This will support C-RAN
architecture.
 Industry
News

IESA has set an ambitious target

to be a catalyst in incubating 1000
electronic products and fabless
startups, which will create 1000
IPRs, generate business worth
` 10 billion and create 1 million
jobs over the next five years.
While presenting the report,
Dr Satya Gupta, vice chairman,
IESA, said, “We are envisaging the
creation of a National Electronics
Mission along the lines of ISRO
to spearhead all these activities
and to make India a design-led
manufacturing hub for the world.”

Hero MotoCorp’s CMD

invests US$ 1 million in Ola
Electric Mobility
Pawan Munjal, the chairman and
managing director of Hero MotoCorp,
has invested about US$ 1 million
in Ola Electric Mobility through his
family trust. As per regulatory filings,
Pawan Munjal Family Trust has been
allotted 18 preference shares each at
a premium of ` 3,987,608 and a face
value of ` 10.
Recently, sources at Hero
MotoCorp have said that it will Representational image

spend ` 100 billion on alternative

mobility solutions. As per the
filings, Giles Whiting, partner at
SoftBank Group, has also joined the
company’s board.
Last year, Ola Electric Mobility
raised US$ 250 million (` 17.25
billion) from SoftBank, valuing the
company at close to US$ 1 billion.
The firm is running pilot electric
mobility projects in Gurugram,
Bengaluru and Nagpur.
EESL tenders for power
conversion systems and
fast-combo EV chargers
Energy Efficiency Services Limited
(EESL) has invited bids for the
supply and installation of power
conversion systems (PCS) and
fast-combo chargers for electric
vehicles (EVs).
The scope of the work for
the selected bidder will include
planning, supply, installation and
commissioning, with three years
of comprehensive on-site warranty
for 1,020 power conversion systems
(PCS) of all types, as well as fast-
combo chargers.
The three-year comprehensive
on-site warranty and AMC may
be extended to ten years. The last
date for the submission of online
bids is April 28, 2020, with the
techno-commercial bids to be
opened on the same date.
The bidders will be eligible to
participate in the bidding process
if they meet certain criteria, such
as they should have been in the
business of manufacturing electrical
equipment related to battery
chargers, storage batteries, electrical
switch gears, transformers,
converters, cables, and meters, for
the past three years. Besides, the
bidder should submit details of
in-house facilities, which include
a testing facility for mechanical,
electrical, electronic and other
related technical standards.
Makers of electronic
products and phones extend
warranties for customers
amid COVID-19 lockdown
Many major electronics and
mobile handset companies
including Samsung, OnePlus
and Oppo have announced the
extension of warranties on their
products, reported PTI. Many
other companies followed suit
amid the nationwide lockdown
imposed to combat the spread of
coronavirus.
As per the report, Samsung has
extended the standard warranty
across its product portfolio till
May 31, 2020, for all products
whose warranty would have
expired between March 20 and
April 30, 2020. OnePlus has also
extended warranties that end
between March 1 and May 30.
Customers can avail extended
warranty services for their devices
until May 31.
Oppo is also following a
similar extended timeline, and
has initiated an online repair
service that helps customers
with basic troubleshooting and
software related issues. Other
companies offering similar
extensions are Realme, Detel,
Lava, Techno India, etc.

16 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz

 Industry
News
Calendar of Forthcoming Electronics Fairs, Exhibitions, Seminars and Events
Name, date and venue Topics Contact address for details
RenewX South India’s largest renewable energy show. www.renewx.in
April 23-24, 2020
Hitex Exhibition Centre, Hyderabad
Source India A B2B event for those in the electronics supply chain. http://sourceindia-electronics.com/,
April 28-29, 2020 www.elcina.com
Chennai Trade Centre, Chennai
LED Expo Mumbai 2020 An exhibition that will showcase LED lighting products, their www.led-expo-mumbai.
May 7-9, 2020 applications and the latest technology trends from all over the in.messefrankfurt.com
Bombay Exhibition Center, Mumbai world.
Electronics Show 2020 A consumer electronics and new technology trade show. https://electronics-show.com
May 8-10, 2020
Ptak Warsaw Expo, Nadarzyn, Poland
Rise of AI Conference An event that connects thousands of AI experts, decision https://riseof.ai
May 13-14, 2020 makers, opinion leaders and game changers to discuss artificial
Deutsche Telekom’s Representative Office, intelligence (AI) for society, politics and the economy.
Berlin, Germany
NIWeek 2020 An annual global conference on graphical system design, www.ni.com
May 18-20, 2020 organised by National Instruments.
Austin Convention Center, Austin, Texas, USA
AV-ICNx An expo covering AV integration, communication and www.av-icnx.com
May 28-30, 2020 networking.
Bombay Exhibition Centre, Goregaon (East),
Mumbai
Computex Taipei 2020 The biggest computer exhibition in Asia and the second-largest www.chennai.taiwantrade.com
June 2-6, 2020 in the world.
Taipei World Trade Center, Taipei Nangang
Exhibition Center and Taipei International
Convention Center, Taipei, Taiwan (ROC)
Middle East Banking AI & Analytics Summit 2020 This is the third edition of this annual event that explores the use www.mebankingai.com
June 15-16, 2020 of AI in analytics and banking.
Armani Hotel Dubai, Dubai, UAE
PCIM Asia An international exhibition and conference covering power www.china.messefrankfurt.com
July 1-3, 2020 electronics, intelligent motion, renewable energy and energy
Shanghai World Expo Exhibition and management.
Convention Center, Shanghai, China
electronica China, productronica China and An international trade fair for electronic components, systems, https://productronica-china.com
LASER China applications and solutions.
July 3-5, 2020
National Exhibition and Convention Center
Shanghai, China
Convergence India 2020 A show on communications, broadcasting, IT and technology. www.convergenceindia.org
July 7-9, 2020
Pragati Maidan, New Delhi
Embedded Tech India Expo 2020 A show that brings together the embedded tech community, www.embeddedtechexpo.com
July 7-9, 2020 encompassing hardware, system software, tools, services,
Pragati Maidan, New Delhi governing bodies, academia, OEMs/ODMs, manufacturers, resellers/
distributors, solutions providers and solutions seekers.
Global Consumer Electronics Expo A B2B show that offers sourcing, manufacturing and production www.eventbrite.com
July 24-26, 2020 solutions for the electronics and home appliances industry.
Pragati Maidan, New Delhi
Automation Expo 2020 One of India’s most comprehensive events focusing on advanced www.automationindiaexpo.com
September 9-12, 2020 automation technology.
Bombay Convention & Exhibition Centre, Mumbai
Electric & Hybrid Vehicle Technology Expo The expo offers expert-led educational sessions, and showcases www.evtechexpo.com/
September 15-17, 2020 the materials, components and systems that make EVs and HEVs
Suburban Collection Showplace, Novi, unique.
Michigan, USA
Open Source India 2020 A premier conference in Asia targeted at nurturing and promoting www.opensourceindia.in
October 8-9, 2020 the open source ecosystem in the subcontinent.
NIMHANS Convention Centre, Bengaluru
Engineering Design Show The only event in UK that is entirely dedicated to engineering, www.engineeringdesignshows.co.uk
October 14-15, 2020 electronics and embedded design.
The Ricoh Arena, Coventry, UK
Light + LED Expo India 2020 A show dedicated to the latest innovative products, solar energy www.in.messefrankfurt.com
December 3-5, 2020 based devices, and new products.
Pragati Maidan, New Delhi
Since this information is subject to change, especially in view of the measures being taken to control the spread of the coronavirus,
all those interested are advised to ascertain the details from the organisers before making any commitment.

18 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz

Electronics Industry

How COVID-19 affects the

Indian electronics industry
COVID-19, from the large family of coronaviruses (CoV), has now become a threat
to humans and to the global economy. Because of lower production, China’s GDP is
speculated to drop by 1-1.25 percentage points. Most of the provinces and hubs of electronic
component production in China went into lockdown after the virus outbreak. This will
obviously hit the global economy as China accounts for approximately 19.71 per cent of
global GDP at purchasing power parity. Hence, experts speculate that global GDP will drop
by around 0.5 per cent during the course of this pandemic. Industry experts claim that the
virus outbreak will also impact the Indian electronics industry on a massive scale.

By Nijhum Rudra

C
hina is the world’s largest ex-
porter and the second-largest
importer of goods, accounting
for 13 per cent of the world’s exports
and 11 per cent of its imports. The
lockdown in China will affect around
500 million people within the coun-
try, deeply impacting its consumption
of goods. Many global companies
that have operations in India opine
that the Indian market will also be
impacted because we too rely a lot on
China and other countries for most
of our electronic components. On the
other hand, many domestic electronic
companies feel that the Chinese lock-
down will boost the Indian market
and help its growth.
In support of the latter view,
Amitansu Satpathy, director, Best
Power Equipments, says, “The coro-
navirus started in China, which is
the industrial hub of the world. As
most of the western markets have
been depending on a single source
for manufacturing, i.e., China, I am
sure that following this epidemic they
will try to look to other destinations
as well, in order to mitigate their
risks, in the future. The coronavirus
is actually going to help the industrial
sector in India, as the world will be
able to look at India as an alternative
to China. One big advantage is also
the fact that we have a big domestic
market. In case our products are not
sold in foreign destinations, they
can certainly be sold in the Indian
market.”
The research and analytics firm
CRISIL stated to the ET that about 18
per cent of India’s total merchandise
imports are from China. India had a
trade deficit of US$ 159 billion with
China, as of the end of 2019, and it

20 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz

Electronics Industry
remains a net importer from China
(including Hong Kong). Against this
backdrop, the worst hit are indus-
tries in electronics, consumer dura-
bles, auto components and pharma.
The electronics industry in India
is one of the important sectors that
is under immense stress. Rajoo Goel,
secretary general, ELCINA, says, “As
a result of the coronavirus outbreak,
the sector is in dire straits as the
entire supply chain is now severely
affected. Even those supplies that
have already arrived in India require
an advanced level of sanitisation
before they are allowed to be dis-
patched to various markets. The
tragedy is that no worker is willing
to touch any device sourced from
China, as of now.”
The obstacles that the
Indian electronics sector
faces
One of the biggest challenges for the
Indian electronics manufacturing
sector is its excessive dependence
on imports. China is the largest
manufacturer of electronics in the
world and also the largest exporter.
India imports almost US$ 60 bil-
lion worth of electronic equipment,
assemblies, components and raw
materials every year, and a majority
of this is sourced from China.
Wuhan is a major manufactur-
ing centre for the electronics in-
dustry and companies based there
are important suppliers for Indian
manufacturers. MSMEs are bearing
the brunt of the disruption in sup-
plies caused due to the coronavirus,
which has resulted in the lockdown
of several cities and towns. MSMEs
have limited resources and gener-
ally do not have many suppliers or
alternative sources. The only saving
grace has been that the COVID-19
outbreak happened just before the
Chinese New Year holidays when
Indian companies usually arrange
for extra stocks on account of the
holidays.
Praveen Madan, country head,
SMT division, Juki India, says, “As
mentioned on many occasions,
currently, India does not have the
complete capability nor the manu-
facturers to support electronics
manufacturing. About 70-80 per cent
22 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz
of the electronic components come
from China and most of the Indian
companies are only doing final as-
sembly and testing. This is also the
situation in the automotive industry,
where typically, about 40-50 per cent
of the parts are imported from China
or overseas. Companies stocked the
parts for about 30 days before the Chi-
nese New Year in 2020 but due to the
COVID-19 break-out, Chinese compa-
nies have not yet started operations
so there is a serious shortage. Parts
have become expensive too, and this
is worrying domestic manufacturers.”
ELCINA believes that the demon-
etisation shock and the adjustment
to GST processes and compliance
requirements have played out largely,
and Indian businesses have adjusted
to these mega changes. However,
many companies in the electronics
sector have been facing a depressed
market and, to that extent, the COV-
ID-19 epidemic is an added challenge,
making things even more difficult.
The crisis is now across the
value chain, and this is not only
due to the shortage of material sup-
plies but also due to restrictions in
travel for technical staff who are
working on various projects and
setting up manufacturing facilities
and equipment. Also, the impact
could vary from one segment to
another, depending on the extent of
localisation achieved. For example,
import dependence is higher in case
of mobiles and the IT/computer
segments, as compared to consumer
electronics as well as industrial,
power and automotive electronics.
The impact on the Indian
economy
Market experts have already stated
that this global pandemic will
impact India, though there is a
chance that the situation will be
under control by the end of April.
India imports components from
various parts of the world for the
top 20 products that it makes, in
which China accounts for the most
significant share. Of our country’s
total electronic imports, 45 per cent
are from China. Around one-third
of machinery and almost two-fifths
of organic chemicals that India im-
ports, come from China.
Countries like USA and China,
currently the two largest economies
in the world, have observed a dent in
trade and manufacturing.
Since the situation is still evolv-
ing, how the pandemic will hamper
the market eventually can only be
speculated on, but it is certain to
damage economies in the long run.
This disruption will have far reaching
consequences so it’s important to be
ready with contingency plans.
The leading consumer electron-
ics and smartphone companies in
India have announced a decrease in
production and there is a high chance
that the launch of new products will
be delayed. China produces 75 per
cent of the total value of the compo-
nents used in TVs and almost 85 per
Electronics Industry
cent, in the case of smartphones,
claims the ET. In fact, the pivotal
components such as mobile dis-
plays, open cell TV panels, printed
circuit boards, capacitors, memory
and LED chips, are all imported from
China. The market lockdown has
forced Chinese vendors to increase
the cost of components by 2-3 per
cent due to the shortage of supplies.
This will ultimately increase the
prices of Indian electronic products.
The giant manufacturers such as
Panasonic, Haier, Samsung, Voltas
and LG have decided to raise prices
of their products by 3-5 per cent,
depending on the models, which
implies a hike of ` 3000-` 4000 on
premium and flagship models. The
Budget had increased the import
duty on refrigerator and air-condi-
tioner compressors from 10 per cent
to 12.5 per cent. On motors used in
washing machines and some other
products, the import tax has gone
up from 7.5 per cent to 10 per cent.
Sunil Patwari, CEO, Rashmi
Rare Earth Limited, says, “As the
coronavirus outbreak forced China
to completely shut down its op-
erations, electronics manufacturing
companies in India are facing supply
disruptions, sky-rocketing prices
for imported goods, and produc-
tion cuts. The domestic electronics
manufacturing companies depend
on China to source a large part of
their raw materials, so the restric-
tions imposed by the government as
a precautionary measure is a huge
setback on the manufacturing front.
Due to the prevailing situation, there
has been a negative impact on pro-
duction, thereby impacting prices
for existing products, revenues and,
further, the overall economy.”
Electronics manufacturing com-
panies usually stock raw materials
and components to ensure con-
tinuous production for two to three
weeks, but the extended period
during which the coronavirus-linked
shutdown was enforced, is hamper-
ing the entire process.
What’s the solution?
To stabilise the situation, ELCINA
believes that there is definitely a
need to step back and re-strategise.
A spokesperson from the associa-
24 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz
What the experts say
“The majority of local Indian electronics manufacturers produce for domestic
consumption and very few export due to capacity
issues. The Indian rupee is weakening. The Indian
GDP will fall by about 1.5 per cent in line with the
global GDP fall. If this situation continues for an-
other one month, then the financial results for the
April to June 2020 period will be bad. If the situation
improves by April, then the latter part of Q2 (July
to September 2020) can see some better results.”
—Praveen Madan, country head,
SMT division, Juki India
“We feel it is too soon to presume and comment on
the market’s dynamics. However, as a precautionary
measure, it is imperative for the Indian government
to take charge of the situation. Reduced imports,
limited production and hindrances in the supply of
finished products can be challenging, and we need
to be prepared for this. We are hopeful that the mar-
ket will be successfully managed when the bigger
economies collaboratively come up with solutions.”
—Sunil Patwari, CEO,
Rashmi Rare Earth Limited
“There is definitely a loss of confidence among Indian MSMEs and the
electronics manufacturing industry in India. There is a realisation that
acute dependence on one source for most of their
key inputs is a highly risky and unsustainable
situation. It can result in huge financial losses and
even a complete shutdown of their business. They
could even vanish completely if the disruption in
supply continues for an extended period. The EMS
(electronics manufacturing services) players source
components from China while the component
manufacturers source their parts and raw materi-
als from China. Even if they can find alternatives,
it will be tough to source at the same prices and
avoid cost escalation.”
—Rajoo Goel, secretary-general, ELCINA
tion says, “We need to accept that the problem if the sources from
the short-term policy that we have China dry up due to the shutting
followed by continuing to depend down of their factories.”
on imports from China is high-risk He adds, “We need supportive
and unsustainable. The industry is policies as well as the political will,
in touch with MeitY and the govern- backed by adequate financial resourc-
ment is fully aware of the current es to ramp up the industry over the
situation. It is also working on some next ten years, till we become strong
immediate measures to help in the and self-propelled. We hope that the
shipment of goods from China to implementation of the National Policy
India. MeitY has also taken up the on Electronics 2019 (NPE 2019) will
matter with the Ministry of Civil give the required and urgent impetus,
Aviation to arrange for air cargo and also help us to overcome the
facilities to lift consignments from COVID-19 crisis and take us into a
China to India. But that cannot solve higher orbit.”
 Market Survey

The growth of the wearables market

As technology advances rapidly, providing cutting-edge functionalities in smaller form
factors, wearables are becoming a very essential part of our lives. These sophisticated devices
are equipped with smart sensors and associated with the exchange of data over the Internet.
Being an emerging trend, wearable devices fit into our changing lifestyles and can be worn
on any part of the body. We now have smartwatches, head-mounted displays, smart clothing,
ear-worn devices, fitness trackers, and body cameras, to name a few.

By Nijhum Rudra and Deepshikha Shukla

A
wearable device is used to
track a user’s vital signs or
capture data related to health
and fitness. As we move towards
a more technology-oriented world
with improved connectivity, these
devices are expected to soon become
ubiquitous. Though these devices are
gaining popularity globally with cer-
tain segments of the population such
as the fitness-oriented consumer,
the market within India is still at a
nascent stage.
Wearable technology appears to
be one of the newest frontiers of inno-
vation and development. Major types
of wearables include fitness trackers,
smartwatches, ECG monitors, blood
pressure monitors, bio-sensors, sugar-
level monitors, ear-worn devices,
head-mounted VR devices, and smart
clothing. The wearable devices mar-
ket is differentiated by product type,
end-use industry (industrial, media
and entertainment), and connectiv-
ity medium.
Factors driving growth in
the wearables segment
Technology advances, the decreas-
ing cost of manufacturing wearable
devices, higher levels of health
awareness, user-friendliness, and

25 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz

Market Survey
the entry of large companies into
this segment are the most pivotal
factors driving the growth of wear-
able technology. A lot of industries
such as healthcare, defence and
entertainment, among others, have
adopted this technology. Activity
trackers and smartwatches are very
popular today as they have various
functions and offer tangible health
benefits.
It has been observed that
wearables are very popular among
those over 25 years. Also, as obe-
sity has become a major issue
across the country, people are
opting for wearable technology
to track their health and fitness-
related data. Some such devices
have also become a trend among
college students.
Internationally, style, fashion
and convenience are some of the
key factors that guide user pref-
erences. Numerous OEMs have
understood this aspect and are
coming out with a range of de-
vices in various price segments,
depending on the requirements in
the market. Despite manufacturers
shifting their focus from fitness
trackers to smartwatches, wearable
technology has remained the top
health and fitness trend for the last
two years.
Growth of the wearables
market
The Internet of Medical Things
(IoMT) is predicted to grow at a
significantly higher rate during the
forecast period 2018-2023. Research
indicates that the global market for
medical wearable technology will
be worth US$ 8 billion by 2020. Ac-
cording to IDC, the Indian market for
wearable devices grew by 30.9 per
cent in 2019, with Apple, Samsung,
and Fossil emerging as some of the
most popular wearables brands.
In 2019, the wearables industry
registered a 25.8 per cent increase
in sales in Q2 globally, which
amounted to about 255 million
units. The global market for weara-
bles grew by 82.3 per cent in the
fourth quarter of 2019, reaching a
new high of 118.9 million devices!
Over the next three years, it is the
healthcare sector that is expected
26 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz
Table 1: Gartner’s forecast for global
wearable device shipments
Device (in millions) 2017 2018 2019 2022
Smartwatches 41.50 53 74.09 115.20
Head-mounted displays 19.08 28.40 34.83 80.18
Smart clothing 4.12 5.65 6.94 19.91
Ear-worn devices 21.49 33.44 46.12 158.43
Wristbands 36.00 38.97 41.86 51.73
Sports watches 18.63 19.46 21.28 27.74
Total 140.82 178.91 225.12 453.19
Experts’ views
The smart wearables market amounted to around 200 million units in 2019
and is expected to double by 2022. The wearables segment aims to influ-
ence the fields of health and medicine, fitness, aging, disability, education,
transportation, enterprise, finance, gaming, music, etc.
Our vision is to think smart, work smart and challenge the norm by
creating high-quality products that are innovative, and serve the purpose
of enhancing the way people live.”
—Manoj Kumar Pansari, chairman and managing director, Astrum
Fitness devices including bands and watches have been a strong factor
in the growth of wearables in India. Though India’s wearables market is
largely dominated by the basic devices, this has helped in setting the base
for the adoption of newer fitness devices.
As the global wearables market has shifted to smartwatches, the Indian
market is still based largely on bands. However, there’s now a clear shift
with people proactively using these devices for weight control and physi-
cal activity monitoring. Also, consumers have started asking for devices
that can help them in monitoring some of the lifestyle diseases with better
accuracy, forcing vendors to launch sophisticated devices in India. Also,
they want devices that have a good look and feel, to go with their lifestyle.
In India, so far, the adoption has been limited to people who are tech-
friendly and young. We haven’t seen the adoption of child watches and
the use of smartwatches by the elderly. Though, slowly, we are seeing that
people have started gifting these devices to their parents, but that is a very
small percentage of the overall market.
—Jaipal Singh, associate research manager, client devices, IDC India
Of course, wearables need to be sophisticated from two perspectives. One
is that this is technology being worn on the body, so it has to be of the best
quality to offer the best of safety to those wearing it. It should not result in
any health hazard or accident. Second, wearables should offer an original
experience. For instance, ear buds should give the best music or audio
experience. In some cases, wearables need to have advanced software and
computing capabilities to drive AI and other advanced technology use cases.
Right now, from the Indian perspective, I would say the biggest chal-
lenge is that the market is very fragmented with too many players, many
of whom are not credible enough, and there can be no assurance that they
are supplying good quality and value. The youth will continue to drive
sales, though wearables are also popular amongst professionals of all ages,
including sports people.
—Faisal Kawoosa, founder, techArc

Smart Wearables Market - Growth Rate by Region (2019-2024)
Source: IDC
to drive the entire wearable devices
and technology market, because
of the availability of cutting-edge
products for health and fitness.
Challenges
The technology industry is constantly
evolving, offering new products and
features faster than ever. There are
a lot of expectations for wearables.
This technology is still evolving and
improving every day.
The biggest challenge is to
include new health-monitoring
27 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz
features into smaller form factors
that you can wear on your wrist.
Apart from wristwear, the market
for other types of wearables hasn’t
grown much. Also, as the products
are typically dealing with preven-
tative healthcare, they need to go
through many regulatory approvals.
Currently, the wearables market
needs attention from all major tech
and health players as it requires
significant investments in R&D in
order to make these devices rel-
evant to a larger audience. As these
Market Survey
players add new and more relevant
use cases, consumers will grow to
become dependent on them, hence
strengthening the market.
The market leadership of smart-
watches is expected to be challenged
in the next few years. Some experts
expect that ear-worn devices could
become more popular than smart-
watches soon, especially given the
success of products such as Apple’s
AirPods and Samsung’s IconX.
The future of wearable
technology
According to experts, consumer
electronic brands will continue to
lead the market, while the market
share of traditional smartwatches
is speculated to grow by 20 per
cent by the end of 2022, due to the
introduction of more fashionable
and stylish products. According
to research and market reports,
the CAGR of the global wearable
devices market is forecast to be
11.3 per cent from 2019 to 2025, to
reach US$ 62.82 billion by 2025.
Mordor Intelligence has reported
that the smart wearables market
is expected to reach 614.31 million
units by 2025.
This article was first published in
Electronics For You April 2020 issue
Electronic Component

How government policies are boosting the

manufacture of electronic components
The Indian government is offering various incentive schemes to boost the
domestic production of electronic components.

By Nijhum Rudra

A
t the time of India’s In-
dependence, the country’s
engineering and electronics
industries had a very nominal share
in its GDP, as the technology was just
developing. The primary aim of In-
dian planners was to promote heavy
machinery building and the electron-
ics industry. It was in the late 1970s
that the demand for electronic and
electrical products started gaining
momentum in India. And in the late
1980s, the government of India also
shifted its focus towards promoting
growth, which helped the electronics
industry flourish, attracting consider-
able foreign investments and boosting
Indian startups.
With the arrival of mobile phones
and other smart gadgets, the Indian
electronics industry witnessed a spurt
in demand and growth, but the coun-
try lacked manufacturing facilities for
both the products and components
because of various reasons. As the
demand for smartphones and IoT
enabled electronic gadgets continued
to increase sharply, India had to find
a way to manufacture and assemble
the products domestically, since its
electronics import bill was soon going
to overtake its oil import bill. This is
when the ‘Make in India’ initiative
was launched by Prime Minister Nar-
endra Modi, to boost the economy as
well as increase employment.
After that, India commenced doz-
ens of manufacturing and assembly
operations, with foreign firms such as

28 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz


Xiaomi, Samsung, etc, setting up their
manufacturing hubs here. Yet, 80 per
cent of the most important inputs,
which is the components, continue to
be shipped predominantly from China
and other countries. This is increasing
the cost of locally finished products
in India. After several consultations
with major electronics associations
and with manufacturers, the govern-
ment has finally stepped in to unleash
various policies and schemes that
will boost electronics and component
manufacturing in India.
The Electronics Development
Fund: An early initiative
To set things rolling, the Prime
Minister in a cabinet meeting in
2015 announced the setting up of
the Electronics Development Fund
(EDF). This was launched during
the inauguration of the Digital India
Week. As part of the Digital India pro-
gramme, the government envisaged
developing the Electronics System
Design and Manufacturing (ESDM)
sector to achieve net zero imports
by 2020. Setting up the EDF was one
of the important strategies to enable
creating a vibrant ecosystem for in-
novation, R&D and active industry
involvement. The EDF was set up
as a ‘Fund of funds’ to participate in
professionally managed ‘Daughter
funds’, which in turn would provide
risk capital to companies develop-
ing new technologies in the area of
electronics, nano-electronics and IT.
The EDF aims to help attract
venture funds, angel funds and seed
funds towards R&D and innovation
in specified areas. By creating a bat-
tery of daughter funds, a pool of fund
managers can seek out good startups
(potential winners) and select them
for funding, based on professional
considerations, MeitY’s official web-
site claims.
Let’s look at some of the other im-
portant policies announced by the gov-
ernment to boost the manufacture of
electronic devices and components in
India, some of which are pretty recent.
Foreign Investment Policy
India welcomes investors in the elec-
tronics and IT sector. The government
of India is striving to bring about
greater transparency in policies and
29 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz
procedures to provide an investor-
friendly platform.
A foreign company can start op-
erations in India by registering under
the Indian Companies Act 1956. For-
eign equity in such Indian companies
can be up to 100 per cent. At the
time of registration, it is necessary
to provide the following details about
the project—a local partner (if any),
structure of the company, its man-
agement and shareholding pattern.
A joint venture has the advantages
of established contracts, financial
support and the distribution/market-
ing network of the Indian partner.
Approval of foreign investments is
through either the automatic route
or government approval.
The government of India facili-
tates foreign direct investment (FDI)
and investments from non-resident
Indians (NRIs), including overseas
corporate bodies or OCBs predomi-
nantly owned by them, to comple-
ment and supplement domestic
investments. Foreign technology
induction is encouraged both through
FDI and through foreign technology
collaboration agreements. These can
be approved either through the auto-
matic route under powers delegated
to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI)
or otherwise, by the relevant govern-
ment authorities.
National Policy on
Electronics (NPE)
This was initially announced in
2012 to promote the growth of the
electronics industry. But, due to the
lack of a clear vision and schemes,
the policy failed. It was revised last
Electronic Component
year with more schemes and incen-
tives, and backed by a very clear
vision. The Union Cabinet approved
the revised policy to promote the
growth of the ESDM clusters and
escalate domestic manufacturing of
electronic goods and components.
With this revised policy, India aims
to achieve a domestic turnover of
US$ 400 billion by 2025 from the
electronics sector. It also expects to
create 10 million fresh jobs by the
end of 2025.
The important aims of the Na-
tional Policy on Electronics (NPE)
2019 are as follows:
• Domestic manufacturing and
export promotion in the entire
value-chain of ESDM in India
to create a globally competitive
ecosystem.
• Structured incentives to support
the manufacturing of core elec-
tronic components.
• Special incentive packages for
mega projects which are extreme-
ly high-tech and entail huge in-
vestments, such as semiconductor
facilities, display fabrication, etc.
• Schemes and incentives for the
setting up of new manufacturing
units or the expansion of exist-
ing units.
• Promotion of increased R&D and
innovation across all sub-sectors
of electronics, such as 5G, loT/
sensors, artificial intelligence
(Al), machine learning, virtual
reality (VR), drones, robotics,
nano-based devices, etc.
• Incentives and support to increase
the availability of a skilled work-
force, including re-skilling.
Electronic Component
• Development of a fabless chip
design industry, the medical
electronic devices industry, the
automotive electronics industry,
power electronics for mobility and
strategic electronics.
• Creation of a special Sovereign
Patent Fund (SPF) to promote
the development and acquisition
of intellectual property rights or
patents in the electronics sector to
make them available to Indian en-
trepreneurs at a relatively low cost.
Apart from this, the govern-
ment has also announced new fiscal
policies to promote the growth of the
electronic components and hardware
segments. As of now, the peak rate
of custom duty is 10 per cent. The
custom duty on 217 Information
Technology Agreement (ITA-1) items
is 0 per cent. The agreement covers
the following main categories of
products and components: computers
and peripherals, telecommunication
equipment, electronic components in-
cluding semiconductors, semiconduc-
tor manufacturing equipment, and
software and scientific instruments,
state sources at MeitY.
Latest policies and
announcements on
components
According to the Electronic Indus-
tries Association of India (ELCINA),
the domestic electronic components
market has increased from US$ 11
billion in 2015-16 to US$ 20.8 billion
in 2018-19. Domestic production of
electronic components is valued at
approximately US$ 10 billion, of which
around US$ 7.7 billion is domestically
consumed. In July 2019, Ravi Shankar
Prasad, union minister for electronics
and IT, had said that around 120 mo-
bile phone manufacturing plants were
operational in the country.
To promote the manufacture of
electronic items in India, the Indian
government has approved the Pro-
duction Incentive Scheme (PLI) for
large scale electronics manufacturing
that comprises incentives for players
manufacturing mobile phones in In-
dia, as well as for specified electronic
components like assembly, testing,
marking and packaging (ATMP) units.
According to the government’s
official statement, “The PLI scheme
30 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz
shall extend an incentive of 4 per
cent to 6 per cent on incremental
sales (over the base year) of goods
manufactured in India and covered
under target segments, to eligible
companies, for a period of five
years, subsequent to the base year
as defined.”
“Due to this, the domestic value
addition for mobile phones is ex-
pected to rise 35 per cent to 40 per
cent by 2025 from the current level of
20 per cent to 25 per cent. The total
employment (direct and indirect) po-
tential of the scheme is approximately
800,000 jobs,” the statement added.
Along with this scheme, the
government has also launched
special schemes and incentives for
manufacturing semiconductors and
electronic components. From the date
of announcement, the scheme will be
open for applications for three years,
while the incentives will be available
on investments for five years.
As per the official statement of the
GoI, “The scheme will provide finan-
cial incentives of 25 per cent on capi-
tal expenditure for the identified list
of electronic goods that comprise the
downstream value chain of electronic
products, i.e., electronic components,
semiconductors/display fabrication
units, ATMP units, specialised sub-
assemblies and capital goods for the
manufacture of the aforesaid goods,
all of which involve high value-added
manufacturing.”
The government opined that this
incentive scheme will offer an invest-
ment of approximately ` 200 billion.
An exclusive report in electronicsb2b
states that the ‘…plant, machinery,
equipment, associated utilities and
technology, including R&D of the
industrial units making investments
for manufacturing of electronic com-
ponents, semiconductors, ATMP, spe-
cialised sub-assemblies and capital
goods for these items, in the specified
categories, are covered.
The incentive package will cater
to all segments of electronics manu-
facturing such as mobile electronics,
consumer electronics, industrial
electronics, automotive electronics,
medical electronics, strategic elec-
tronics, power electronics, telecom
equipment, and computer hardware,
among others.
 StartUps

We help startups in every possible

way during the incubation period
A brainchild of the Software Technology Parks of
India (STPI), Electropreneur Park helps electronics
startups through the processes of incubation,
acceleration and pitching to VCs. This initiative
is supported by the Ministry of Electronics and
Information Technology (MeitY). The STPI,
the University of Delhi and India Electronics
& Semiconductor Association (IESA) are also
stakeholders in this venture.
Sanjeev Chopra, CEO, Electropreneur Park,
sheds light on how the organisation is helping
India based startups incubate, accelerate and pitch
ideas to VCs. Located in the Delhi University,
Electropreneur Park has mentored more than
40 electronics startups till now.

Sanjeev Chopra, CEO,

Electropreneur Park

EB: What do you offer
startups, in terms of support?
We offer every incubated startup
a dedicated office space at our
centre, with the primary objective
of giving full time access to
the state-of-art electronics
lab facilities and product
development assistance. Typically,
an electronics startup needs
to invest about ` 2 million to
` 3 million in the necessary test
and development equipment. We
have advanced testing equipment
like spectrum analysers, variable
DC loads, 3D printers, PCB
prototyping machines, EDA/
software tools and embedded
tools for creating embedded
designs, and more.
Then, as a part of the
programme, we offer each startup
an anchor mentor, who could be
a leader/expert in a company or a
successful entrepreneur.
We also facilitate interactive
sessions with technical experts
from the industry, such as chip
manufacturers/distributors like
Infineon Technologies, STM,
Arrow Electronics, etc. We
arrange visits by technical experts
and engineers from leading
organisations to Electropreneur
Park, and sit down with startup
team members to understand the
application and help them choose
the right set of components for
the product or solution they are
building.
While all the facilities are
extended to a startup without
any outright fee or charges,
we expect each firm to share a
small percentage of its equity
for the sustainability of the
Electropreneur Park project.
EB: Do you also help startups
when it comes to pitching
to VCs?
We help startups in every way
possible during the incubation
period. Electropreneur Park helps
them connect to industry leaders,
vendors and others. We invite
various investors and VCs to
Electropreneur Park from time to
time for providing startups ample
opportunities to make a business
pitch and seek investments.
We also engage experts to help
startups create a professional
pitch for the investors.
EB: How are startups paired
with mentors? Can mentors
invest in these startups?
Both, the startup as well as the
mentor, should be comfortable
with each other. It is not a simple
process of pairing a mentor with
the startups. We want both the
startup and the mentor to be
excited about being coached,
and mentoring, respectively.
We arrange maybe two or three
sessions between the mentors
and the startup.
After that, we check how the
startups and mentors are feeling.

31 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz

StartUps
The initial three to four months is
about interacting with the various
potential mentors before formally
assigning a specific mentor to a
startup.
A startup can have more than
one mentor. One could be on
the strategic side and the second
could be with a very specific
domain expertise.
EB: How long does a season
usually run for? How many
startups have you helped
so far?
A formal call for proposals is
given and outreach activities
are conducted every eight to
nine months, depending on the
availability of incubation space.
We have already conducted six
seasons. We started operations in
April 2016 and are in our fourth
year of operation.
Till now, we have been able
to support 40 startups in various
programmes. Out of these 40,
we are expecting that by the end
of this year, we will have exits
from one or two startups, though
many of them have completed the
incubation period and graduated.
Our programme typically runs for
one-and-a-half to two years, as far
as the incubation is concerned.
EB: What does the term ‘exit’
signify?
By ‘exit’ we mean that we
completely let go of whatever
equity we hold in the startup that
is exiting. The money that comes
in can be used to sustain this
project. Exits generally happen
when venture capital (VC) comes
in and there is a VC level of
funding involved. We expect our
startups to achieve a consolidated
valuation of more than ` 3 billion
by end of this year and a possible
exit from one or two startups.
EB: How many types of
programmes do you run?
We have two types, mainly, the
pre-incubation programme and
the incubation programme. There
is also a third category, which
is the virtual acceleration. It is
offered to startups that are not
32 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz
located at Electropreneur Park
premises.
For example, we have one
startup under virtual acceleration
in Bengaluru. That programme
involves more of mentoring and
other support services.
EB: What if a startup is
not ready to make an exit
two to three years after the
incubation?
We understand that every startup
may not be able to offer us an
exit upon graduation (two years)
as electronics startups need time
to develop the product and scale
it to the desired level to attract
institutional investors.
Apart from the physical
space, all the other support is
available to startups that have
graduated. If a startup graduates
after two years but still wants
mentoring or access to the
lab facilities, we extend these
facilities without any charges.
We also continue to extend our
support in market access to
these startups.
EB: What happens if a startup
makes an exit and another
reaches out to you with the
same idea?
At any given time, we don’t
incubate two directly competing
startups unless we see a synergy
among them. So far, we have
also not taken on any startup
working exactly on the same
idea of an already graduated
startup. However, if a startup
is working on an idea with a
new value proposition, though
addressing maybe the same
problem as an earlier startup,
then we may consider taking it
on board.
EB: From all the applications
you receive, how do you
select the startups?
We have a two-stage process.
We receive close to 100
proposals every season, Out
of those, we do the first-level
of screening to shortlist 20
complete and most promising
proposals. These teams are
then called to make a detailed
presentation and pitch to a
panel of industry leaders and
experts.
This panel consists of highly
experienced industry veterans
like Dr Ajai Chowdhry, co-
founder of HCL; Jaswinder
Ahuja, MD of Cadence; Ajit
Manocha, ex-vice chairman
of Global Foundries; Pradeep
Gupta, MD of Cyber Media; the
director of STPI, Delhi University
representatives and other
industry leaders.
After making presentations,
a lot of cross-questioning and
discussions take place. We
typically coach about six to eight
startups every season.
EB: What if the panel sees
potential in a startup but is
still not sure?
We have started a pre-incubation
programme. For the first two
seasons, we were only taking
startups that had a validated
proof-of-concept (POC) for
incubation. But then we realised
that some of the startups had
a good business idea and
we started a pre-incubation
programme, which typically lasts
for three to six months.
If a startup has a very good
business idea, and we see
potential in the team, then we
give them free access to the
lab and the office for a period
of three months along with the
required technical and business
mentorship.
Once the startup is able to
demonstrate a POC, it gets an
opportunity to pitch again to
the panel for the incubation
programme.
EB: Are POCs mandatory for
applying to the incubation
programme directly?
Yes, for the incubation
programme, POCs are required.
These are accessed when the
startup makes the required
pitch to the panel of industry
experts. Either we completely
reject a startup, or in case we
are satisfied with the current

progress made by a team, we
may offer it pre-incubation on
the condition that the team
demonstrates the POC. This
is reviewed and the result is
declared after three months.
EB: Are you focusing on
startups working around some
specific technologies?
We are open to startups working
around any technology. While
selecting a startup, we look for
innovation, uniqueness of the
idea, business potential, team
capabilities and the feasibility of
the project to create a sustainable
business venture within one to
two years.
We also ensure that we
are able to offer the required
mentorship and facilities in the
technology area of the startup we
incubate. For example, we took
on a startup from Bengaluru,
which was creating an electric
helicopter.
33 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz
Now, we don’t have the
technology to create an electric
helicopter in-house, but we
took the startup on-board as we
could facilitate the access to lab
facilities at the ITI complex in
Bengaluru, along with expertise
from HAL Laboratories, also in
the same city.
EB: How do you reach out to
potential startups?
We use all possible forums
– through the online and
print media. We reach out to
various engineering colleges
for roadshows and share
programmes for students on
college social media pages. This
season we also used Google
Adwords, as well as organic and
non-organic promotion on other
channels like Facebook and
Instagram.
We get a good number of
prospects from the Startup
India portal and the MeitY
StartUps
Startup Hub portals. Initially, we
were doing roadshows on a pan-
India basis by visiting various
cities. But last season, we did
a live webcast for those who
were out of town, to address
all the questions of potential
incubatees.
EB: Where is the Entrepreneur
Park facility located?
We are in the South Campus of
Delhi University. We are on the
third floor of the library building.
It is a 929 sqm (10,000 square
feet) space, where we have set up
an RF and a power lab. Around
72 people can be accommodated
there. We have different cubicles
since electronics startups working
on a product need to protect their
patents.
Every startup that comes on
board is given a cubicle, which
is either a five-seater or an eight-
seater. They can use the lab
facilities as and when required.
ESDM

How COVID-19 has affected

Indian ESDM clusters
Recognising the seriousness of the COVID-19 problem, the government
of India has sent advisories to Indian missions abroad
to scout for alternative sources of goods that Indian
industry needs, to continue production for the
domestic and export markets. Needless to say, the
impact of this global pandemic will be felt across the
Indian electronics industry for a considerable amount
of time even after things crawl back to normal.

By Rajiv Batra

T
he repercussions of the pan-
demic caused by the coronavi-
rus, now known as COVID-19,
are more than what it was assumed
in the initial stages. The virus has
spread to more than 150 countries
as of writing this, and the number
of persons afflicted is increasing, as
are the casualties. Almost all devel-
oped nations, including the US and
countries in the European Union, are
locked down. India is taking stringent
precautionary action to minimise
the impact of this virus across the
country.
Cutting across geographies, there
is a commitment to deal with this
pandemic from various quarters—
central governments, organisations
like the UN and WHO, businesses,
NGOs, etc. The heightened aware-
ness can be leveraged to evolve a
basic protocol of the do’s and don’ts import these goods, are either closed shortlisted about 100 critical inputs
for the entire manufacturing and or working with reduced capacities that the country may need on an
services sectors. This can spell out, due to this pandemic. This has been urgent basis.  Not much has been
among many other things, what is going on for almost four months or heard about this since then. This
expected of a responsible organisa- so. The stocks with Indian manufac- is leading to great consternation
tion, in the event of an epidemic, turers, particularly in the electronics among those across industry. It is
pandemic or a natural disaster. and auto segments, are rapidly deplet- also not known how such products
India sources a wide range of raw ing since the industry practice is to are going to be sourced and at what
materials, components and related hold inventory for just three to four rates. Additionally, manufacturers
goods from China, which mainly go months. At the same time, reports and distribution companies are
to industries like electronics, auto- from China indicate that the expected exploring a few alternative loca-
mobiles, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, time for restoring normalcy in produc- tions for sourcing components like
etc. Since the Chinese New Year holi- tion would be by June or so. Thailand, Malaysia and Vietnam.
days, most of the provinces in that There were reliable reports doing But the options now include higher
country, from where India used to the rounds that the government had air freight costs to reduce lead

34 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz


times, which would inflate the cost
of components and finished goods
by 5-6 per cent, which consumers
would have to pay.
Since electronic goods and auto
components are the major items of
India’s exports and, at the same time,
these are intensely import dependent,
the government should make immedi-
ate efforts to source such goods. It is all
the more important since the COVID-19
virus has spread to many  countries,
impairing their ability to supply those
placing new orders. In the given situ-
ation, domestic manufacturers should
be encouraged to tap the sources on
their own. Also, finance at concessional
rates should be extended to them to
overcome the difficult situation.  online, on an average, manufacturers
Admittedly, the entire chain in
the industry, including manufac-
turers, suppliers, traders, shipping
lines, air cargo fleets and local dis-
tribution chains stand to bear the
burden. The losses are across the
spectrum and not for manufactur-
ers alone.  There are a number of
media reports highlighting how the
electronics and automotive sectors
are being affected by the pandemic,
especially those who get their direct
supplies from China.
One can expect that component
prices internationally will go up soon.
Will the manufacturers refrain from
making a killing at that time? Con-
sumer electronics companies plan to
increase the prices of refrigerators,
air-conditioners, microwave ovens and
washing machines very soon, due to
higher component prices amid short
supplies. The Budget had increased
the import duty on refrigerator and
air-conditioner compressors from 10
per cent to 12.5 per cent. On the mo-
tors used in washing machines and
some other products, the import tax
has gone up from 7.5 per cent to 10
per cent. In the consumer electronics
industry, all the key parts such as the
compressors for ACs and refrigerators,
washing machine motors and plastic
parts are imported from China.
Considering the prevailing con-
ditions across the globe, I guess
that the worst is yet to come. Our
manufacturers are expressing con-
cerns about delayed deliveries and
shut product lines, while suppliers
struggle to keep factories in China
35 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz
ESDM
staffed. The Chinese government
is overwhelmed by this crisis and
it could take weeks for factory pro-
duction to start.
My worry is that even after manu-
facturing resumes in China, there will
be further delays because companies
will need to first supply pending or-
ders. They will also face the obstacle
of the non-availability of raw materi-
als and peripheral services, even after
the pandemic passes.
Transportation, cargo and cus-
toms will also face immense chal-
lenges to meet the demand, as they
will be a sudden post-pandemic
boom in manufacturing. Looking
at the reports and updates available
surveyed by different stakeholder as-
sociations have been told to expect
three-to-four week delays from their
suppliers, but as per my opinion, the
prevailing situation in the market
suggests that average delays will be
about eight weeks.
India’s US$ 30 billion smartphone
market, currently the world’s second
largest, will see major disruptions as
it is heavily dependent on imports.
The pandemic has the potential to
affect bilateral trade worth about
US$ 87 billion. As per the analytics
firm Dun & Bradstreet, at least 51,000
companies, including 163 from the
Fortune 1000 list from around the
world, have one or more direct (or
Tier-1) suppliers in the impacted
region, and at least five million
companies have one or more Tier-2
suppliers in and around the epicentre
of the outbreak.
The government should come up
with a financial package for the elec-
tronics sector. Internationally, many
countries are planning to pass bills
to help the industries most affected
by the pandemic. Many countries are
directly helping the airlines and travel
industries since the number of passen-
gers has drastically come down in the
last fortnight after travel restrictions
were imposed. The time has come
for us to understand that the impact
of this pandemic is universal and af-
fects many more industries than just
the airlines and hospitality.
The author is the managing director
of Rabyte Electronics Pvt Ltd.
Automotive

The future of automotive technology

The automobiles of today are moving towards becoming what we imagined in the 1980s—
driverless, connected to the Internet and more fuel-efficient. This paradigm transformation
in the automotive industry will continue well into the future to create vehicles that will be
mind boggling. With the introduction of autonomous cars, the use of emerging technologies
is only poised to increase. Incredibly precise and clear vision will converge with technical
expertise and dedication, on a global scale.

By Sekaran Letchumanan

T
here is a massive overhaul
taking place in the automotive
industry, as we speak. What
we knew to be cars that could ferry us
from one place to another are fast be-
coming super charged computers that
can do much more than just transport
us. The very definition of the word
‘automotive’ is going to be expanded
and perhaps even redefined. Compa-
nies that were traditionally consid-
ered car manufacturers, now go by
the name of ‘mobility companies’. If
you add high tech to mobility, what
you used to define as transport could
now be a service.
Let’s look at some of the most
noticeable trends being witnessed in
the automotive industry today.
New manufacturing processes
and collaborations
Automotive manufacturers know
that they must revisit their existing
operations and processes in order to
be relevant and remain competitive.
According to a study conducted by
AlixPartners in 2019, it is estimated
that over the next five years, US$
400 billion will be spent by major
auto companies in the development
of autonomous vehicles (AVs). This
will translate into massive overhauls
in factory setups, equipment recon-
figuration, the reskilling of workers
and the need for new vendor part-
ners. Fundamentally, the business
models for the automotive industry
will change.
The consumer will be provided
with more choices in terms of the
features in the AVs, in this new era of

36 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz


automation and digitisation; however,
the onus of developing these new
vehicles will fall on the automak-
ers, who will have to take on all the
associated challenges too. Besides,
it has not yet been established that
customers are truly ready for AVs,
so that factor will have an impact on
how much manufacturers choose to
focus on this emerging segment of
transportation.
The emerging Industry 4.0 tech-
nologies provide cost benefits,
improve efficiency and change the
competitive landscape. No longer are
auto manufacturers competing only
with each other. Emerging technology
has also ushered in a new competition
segment—that of the data companies.
In order to work, AVs will require
unique sensors and processors to
collect huge volumes of data that will
make the car smart. This will entail
different industries collaborating to
take the AV to the road.
Associations with new
partners
In this new future, OEMs will not be
the only specialists in manufacturing.
Given the pivotal role of both hard-
ware and software, OEMs will have
to define their unique value addition,
be it in design, assembly, safety or
customer experience. Beyond the
automobile space, in areas such as
data security, data storage and human
machine interface (HMI), all the con-
cerned parties will need to collaborate
with each other closely to deploy
and integrate the new technologies
required to make AVs a reality.
Moving from car
manufacturers to mobility
companies
Automotive manufacturers are now
shifting from being automobile manu-
facturers to defining new age mobil-
ity. The concept of mobility expands
today’s definition of a vehicle and
of even transportation, overall. The
car, with added high-tech elements,
is on track to becoming a service.
For example, AVs will eventually be
comparable to fleets of taxis or air-
planes, created to operate around the
clock. Manufacturers must grapple
with the idea that AVs in these fleets
may only last a year, and therefore,
37 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz
Automotive
adapt the life cycle management from
ten years and 150,000 miles to three
years and 300,000 miles, for instance.
This would require a paradigm shift
in how vehicles are designed and
constructed.
These changes within the indus-
try gives customers more choices
to personalise their transportation
efforts; however, the growth in con-
sumer expectations will dictate future
demands. In addition to altering the
nature of the industry, autonomous
vehicles will present many new and
unprecedented challenges to manu-
facturers and the status quo. It’s time
to either adjust or be left behind.
Cars will become living
rooms on wheels
As the technology to stay connected
increasingly converges with the
automotive functions, the pace of
innovation will accelerate even more.
Our cars will become our ‘living room
on wheels’ or an ‘office on wheels’
(https://flex.com/resources/4-ways-
technology-drives-the-automotive-
industry). Infotainment systems were
only the beginning. In an effort to
always be ‘in the know’, communi-
cation options from, and to, medical
and consumer devices are all finding
their way onto our dashboards.
Technology is transforming the
automotive industry and the poten-
tial disruptors are advanced driver-
assistance systems (ADAS), domain
controllers, AV powered sensors,
electric vehicle applications, au-
tonomous (AV) cross collaboration,
Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X) features,
IoT partnerships, 5G and Level 4 au-
tonomy. This is where technology is
really replacing humans.
Automakers must remain ahead of
the curve and strive to get inside cus-
tomers’ minds to anticipate their cur-
rent and future needs, working within
a complex ecosystem of technology
partners to prioritise and meet those
needs. Manufacturers with this level
of insight, with the capability to im-
plement these dramatic innovations
will thrive, as technology transforms
the automotive and transportation
industries.
The author is the vice president –
operations at Flex India.
Data Converters

The recent trends in RF data converters

Analogue-to-digital converters (ADC) and digital-to-analogue converters (DAC) act as
bridges between the two domains. For years, these devices have remained the interface
between the analogue and digital worlds. Data converters used to occupy a large chunk of
your test bench or instrument rack and consumed a lot of power. The rate of data conversion
offered by traditional ADCs/DACs was often a major bottleneck in any system. Today,
there has been a drastic improvement in the performance of data converters. They are now
incorporated into an SoC or an FPGA, leading to superior performance and power efficiency.

By Rajeev Ramachandra

A
ccording to various research
organisations, the global data
converter market is expected
to grow at a CAGR of 6.28 per cent
and reach USD 6.37 billion by 2025.
This growth is aided by several mar-
ket factors such as the need for higher
data rates in 5G infrastructures, the
evolution of ultra-high speed data
acquisition systems, the need for
high-speed test and measurement
solutions, the increasing demand for
high-speed and high-resolution data
for various defence, scientific and
medical applications, etc. Data con-
verters are most often used in radar
and SIGINT (signals intelligence)
applications, spectrum analysers,
medical imaging, industrial, automo-
tive safety applications, cellular base
stations, and other communication
infrastructure, among others.
In general, we can categorise
these as general-purpose data con-
verters and high-speed data convert-
ers, based on the sampling rate. In
the higher radio frequency (RF) range
(GHz), the speed offered by general
purpose ADCs/DACs becomes a bot-
tleneck. This article discusses high-
speed digital-to-analogue converters
and analogue-to-digital converters
—their working principles and key
enablers.
But first let’s look at traditional RF
data conversion techniques.
The traditional approach—
heterodyne conversion
Here’s a quick look at how an ADC
or DAC is used in the traditional
approach. An input RF signal is
down-converted to an intermediate
frequency, also known as IF. The
carrier wave is shifted to the IF as
an intermediate step by mixing the
signal with a local oscillator. Once
the signal is in the IF range, simple
analogue circuits are used to filter,
fine tune and amplify or attenuate the
signal, as required. Such processed
analogue signals are then taken to
the digital world through an ADC for
digital signal processing.
Similarly, in digital-to-analogue
conversion, the processed signal data
is taken from the digital world to the
analogue world through DAC, and
from IF to RF through UP converters.
This approach is called heterodyne
conversion (IF).
A typical radio receiver design
based on heterodyne conversion (IF)
is shown in Figure 1.
The modulated RF carrier is
passed through a low-noise ampli-
fier (LNA) and band-pass filter (BPF)
before converting to IF as shown in
Figure 1. After passing through an
anti-aliasing filter (AAF) the IF is
digitised by the ADC. Demodulation
is carried out at the baseband level.
The above approach is mostly due
to the limitation of the conversion
speed of ADCs. If we were to break
the ADC speed barriers, would it be
feasible to think of direct sampling?
Now, let’s look at the transmitter
path for the heterodyne approach.
Here, the baseband data is modulated
in the digital domain and applied to
the DAC to convert to the IF, which
in turn is up-converted to RF using a
mixer and LO, as shown in Figure 2.
Direct conversion or zero IF
To address the need for high-speed
data conversion, a new technique
called zero IF or RF sampling was
implemented. This is an alternate
to the heterodyne (IF) approach of
handling RF signals using high-speed
RF ADCs. In this case, the RF carrier
is down-converted directly to the
baseband instead of IF. The RF carrier
is converted to the baseband (I&Q)

38 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz

 Data Converters

RF ADC
New high-frequency ADCs known as
RF ADCs can directly sample wideband
signals beyond 6GHz. In addition, these
RF ADCs have built-in signal processing
capabilities. An RF system designer, using
the latest RF ADC, needs to design only
Figure 1 the hardware platform and use software
to configure the hardware to suit the
application. An RF ADC with signal pro-
cessing capabilities is shown in Figure 4.
Now, let’s look at the transmitter path
for the zero IF approach. The baseband
data is modulated in the I&Q modulator
and applied to two DACs, which is further
Figure 2 up-converted to RF using the IQ mixer
and LO, as shown in Figure 5.

RF DAC
The high frequency DAC, known as
RF DAC, can generate frequency up
to 6GHz directly, thereby eliminating
the need for IF-to-RF conversion. The
RF DAC includes signal processing, as
shown in Figure 6.
Figure 3
Conclusion
Zero IF systems reduce the component
count and complexity of the design,
hence bringing in a lot of advantages.
The system noise factor is minimised,
and the out-band RF blockers can be
attenuated by the RF front-end filters.
Overall, zero IF systems are compact
and provide better performance. At
Figure 4 the same time, since high-speed ADCs
are new in the market and expensive,
a cautious approach is required before
finalising the design.
The trends for zero IF systems are
further moving towards the System-on-
Chip concept. High-speed ADCs and
DACs integrated with programmable
logic eliminate the need for complex
digital interfaces between converters and
the digital circuit. Such devices can be
Figure 5 placed with the antennas and digitally
interfaced to the processing world.

Rajeev Ramachandra is the chief

Figure 6
using the IQ mixer as shown in Figure
3. Two ADCs are used to digitise I&Q
technology officer and co-found-
er of Mistral Solutions Pvt Ltd.
He holds a degree in computer
science engineering from Bangalore
University. Ramachandra has vast expe-
rience in processor based designs, rang-
ing from embedded systems to VME,
PCI, cPCI and USB bus based systems.
data. Here, too, demodulation is car- He has also worked extensively on the
ried out at the baseband level. Intel family and DSP based CPUs.

39 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz

My Story

“I am very
happy to
employ 225
people in over
14 countries,
offering them
good jobs”
A few of my favourite things
Hobbies: Skiing, scuba diving,
golf, and hiking in the mountains
Music I like to listen to: Classic
rock from the 70s, 80s and 90s
Christopher J. Fussner, who grew up on Long Favourite food: All kinds. I am
Island, New York, is the founder and president not skinny! I love Thai, Chinese,
Indian, etc
of Trans Technology Worldwide, a leading SMT The kind of books I read:
solutions provider. He is proud about the fact that Anything on action, about
international relations and on
his success was earned through hard work, zeal and espionage
honesty. During his childhood, he went to a Catholic My favourite singer: Mick
school and later, to George Washington University Jagger! (Rock on!)

(Washington DC). He earned an MBA from the

Thunderbird School of Global Management in
I
nitially, I was not very interested
Arizona. To study and to earn his living, Fussner did in this particular business or in-
lots of odd jobs like cutting grass, serving as a waiter, dustry, but my friend’s brother,
Hamed El-Abd, motivated me to get
and being a bus boy; he also worked as a paper boy. involved. So, I started learning about
His motivation and endurance helped him found the electronics industry in Southern
California. After I started working
Trans Technology in 1988. In a candid interaction there, I was assigned to work in Ko-
with Nijhum Rudra, Fussner shares his professional rea and Singapore. The first couple
of my professional years were very
journey, the various obstacles he faced in his career, challenging, but I worked hard day
and his major contributions to the industry. and night to get a deep understanding

40 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz


about the electronics industry. Then,
when fortune slowly favoured me, I
started Trans Technology in 1988 with
an initial investment of US$ 50,000.
Slowly, my business started making
profits and success followed with
the increase in demand for electronic
items all around the world in the late
1980s.
India also witnessed economic
growth in the early 90s. That’s the
time when the demand for electronics
started gaining traction and hence,
I commenced my India operations
in 2001.
My role in Trans
Technology and the
challenges I faced
Being the president, founder and
owner of Trans Technology, I always
try to ensure that my employees
are happy and that their demands
are fulfilled along with those of the
customers. We maintain both an ami-
cable and professional atmosphere
in the organisation. I motivate my
employees to work hard and achieve
success along with listening to their
pain points. The biggest challenge I
faced in my career was founding a
startup with very little capital. You
can understand that the lack of suf-
ficient cash hampered the smooth
running of the company.
In those days, getting loans and
subsidies wasn’t as simple as it is
today. The first few years were very
tiresome; I didn’t draw a salary and
would go to the office by public bus.
But I was very fortunate to have par-
ents who backed me during this crisis
by giving me a loan of US$ 20,000. I
was also very lucky that the Yamaha
and Heller agencies stood by me dur-
ing that time and with their strong
support, our sales grew in Singapore,
Malaysia, Thailand, and then in India.
The turning point and my
major contribution
The biggest turning point in my career
was back in 1991 when we started
making a lot of money. After the
hard work and the years of running
a cash-starved operation, it was a
wonderful feeling for my employees
and me. Through this business, we
have contributed tremendously to the
electronics industry.
41 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz
My Story
Right now, I am very happy to em-
ploy 225 people in over 14 countries,
offering them good jobs. I like to hire
people who love to work, and have
an ambition to achieve some goal
through their work. Constant dedica-
tion and love for your profession is
extremely crucial to achieve success.
I always keep my clients happy with
state-of-art services. You have to lis-
ten to all the challenges your clients
face, in detail. Think them over and
only then can you provide a great so-
lution. In every one of our offices, we
have a poster that says: “Rule No. 1.
If we don’t take care of the customer,
somebody else will.”
Management style and
success mantra
I always believe in maintaining an
amicable relationship with my clients
even if the contract is over for some
particular reason, since you never
know when you will work with them
again.
Also, you have to constantly
keep thinking about best-selling
processes, and always stay calm and
focused. A ‘never give up’ attitude
is mandatory for every professional.
I follow a ‘hands-on and hands-off’
management style. I am involved in
the day-to-day operations, but I let
my managers run things. You do not
need to interfere in every operation.
If you do, you tend to lose faith and
trust in your colleagues or employ-
ees. This mantra and management
style helped Trans Tech to achieve
a worldwide sales figure of US$ 110
million last year.
Last, I do not believe in follow-
ing any role model. You just chalk
out your detailed plan and then fol-
low it with loyalty, persistence and
knowledge.
Road map
The future of SMT products looks
very promising because as said earli-
er, the demand for electronic products
is growing all over the world. More
and more manufacturers are coming
to India to begin production here. We
are also opening our new demo centre
and showroom in Bengaluru this year,
which will help us to demonstrate,
train and evaluate. We will continue
to grow organically.
IoT & AI solutions

IoT is one of the areas 5G technology

has the potential to affect in a big way
Manish Misra, chief innovation officer at Panasonic
India, is currently spearheading the company’s
Innovation Centre based in Bengaluru. In his current
role, he is responsible for driving innovation to
shape future products and solutions for Panasonic
in India and for markets beyond. He is also driving
a technology-enabled strategy of the company with
a specific focus on emerging trends, such as IoT,
analytics, blockchain, the cloud and mobile. In a
conversation with Potshangbam July, Misra discusses
Panasonic’s latest product launch, the potential of 5G
technology, and a lot more.

Manish Misra, chief innovation officer

at Panasonic India

EB: What is the IoT and AI
enabled platform ‘Miraie’ all
about? Can you give us more
details?
Panasonic has a longstanding
commitment towards creating ‘A
Better Life, A Better World’. In line
with this vision, we have forayed
into the ‘connected living solutions’
space with the launch of our IoT
and AI-enabled platform – Miraie.
The literal meaning of Miraie is
‘future home’ in Japanese, so the
platform is aimed at empowering
the everyday lives of our consumers
with comfort, convenience and
seamless connectivity across all
Panasonic appliances. The platform
presently hosts India’s largest range
of connected ACs, smart doorbells,
and smart plugs and switches, and
there are plans to further expand
the connected products portfolio by
the end of this year.
Conceptualised and developed
at Panasonic’s India Innovation
Centre, Miraie features the
following:
• Inbuilt intelligent diagnostics
that detect issues in advance,
maximising performance and
the operational life span of
products.
• Leverages Google’s Voice
Assistant and Amazon’s Alexa
technology to offer seamless
and hands-free operation, and
controls devices with voice
commands.
• Offers an e-warranty, wherein
all warranty services and annual
maintenance contracts are
stored digitally for all products
so consumers get notified if
there is any change in status.
• Advance recommendations
based on our AI technology, and
customised sleep profiles.
EB: What are the benefits that
consumers can derive from
connected appliances?
Technology has become an
integral part of designing a dream
house, taking into account the
vital lifestyle aspects of it. Today,
consumers have the option to
make their home smart. This
involves the use of devices and
appliances that talk to each other,
and are intelligent enough to
pre-empt your next move as they
learn more about your habits and
daily routine. Newer technologies
like artificial intelligence and IoT
enable the better management
of devices and offer complete
control over connected appliances,
whilst keeping a check on energy
consumption. Consumers are now
looking towards IoT and AI enabled
solutions to enhance their quality of
life through connected ecosystems.
As per our research, over 75 per
cent of people surveyed are looking
for specific requirements related
to ease of use, safety, monitoring
misuse, service reminders and
personalised usage patterns.
For instance, Panasonic’s
connected ACs based on the Miraie
platform can:
• Set up customised sleep
profiles for uninterrupted sleep,
intuitively managing several
products in collaboration with
each other, thus providing a
comfortable solution.
• Switch on your AC in advance,
at your preferred temperature
setting. In case you forget,
Miraie sends you a reminder
when you are about to reach

42 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz


home, on the basis of Google
map synchronisation.
The intuitive Miraie platform
can recognise usage patterns and
suggests optimal modes of using
connected devices, thus extending
the best comfort for consumers.
As mentioned earlier, it also offers
features such as an e-warranty
and AMC management, a one-
touch service request, proactive
maintenance notifications, etc.
EB: So, are there any new
launches of connected products
on the horizon?
We recently unveiled the first
range of IoT products in the Indian
market—connected air conditioners,
smart door bells, and plugs and
switches. In the near future, we
plan to expand the connected range
of products to include refrigerators,
washing machines, televisions,
fans, geysers, etc, giving consumers
a full range of connected living
solutions for a futuristic home.
EB: There is so much buzz
around 5G. Does it play a
significant role in the IoT?
We firmly believe that IoT is one
of the areas that 5G technology
has the potential to affect in a
big way. With more and more
companies adopting emerging
technologies like AI/ML and IoT
to enhance the experience of their
consumers, 5G opens up a new
world. 5G is expected to be almost
ten times faster than current LTE
networks, allowing IoT devices
to communicate and share data
faster than ever. This will give the
necessary impetus to the smart
home devices segment, thereby
leading to increased adoption
amongst users and presenting a
significant business opportunity for
enterprises.
EB: Do you feel that Indian
consumers are now more open
to the idea of IoT enabled
products?
Now, more than ever before,
Indian consumers are very open
to the idea of engaging with IoT
enabled devices. Based on a
43 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz
recent survey done by Panasonic,
over 98 per cent of consumers in
India are aware of what IoT is and
are looking for ways to make their
lives easier, more comfortable
and convenient with the use of
technology. Interestingly, we’ve
also noticed that the consumers
are ready to spend extra for
luxury, which makes it a huge
opportunity for businesses to tap
into and continue to invest in
newer technologies like IoT, AI
and ML.
The fast evolving demand for
technologically advanced products
mirrors the fact that Indian
consumers are indeed welcoming
IoT powered devices to make their
lives easier.
EB: What are the steps being
taken to drive your product
sales?
We understand that there is a
growing need for brands to create
awareness among consumers about
the use of newer technologies like
AI and IoT. Given the nature of our
announcement, we have introduced
holistic marketing and promotional
campaigns using both digital and
traditional media, to improve the
understanding around connected
living, amongst aspirational Indian
consumers. Besides digital films
and influencer outreach across
social platforms, we have organised
national dealer meets to reach out
to our consumers directly. Specific
to the connected ACs, we have
launched a digital campaign—
#MeetTheFuture—that comprises
a series of videos based on simple
yet important consumer insights,
to bring alive the sense of ease and
fun that is possible in life through
connected technology. Apart from
this, we are also engaged with key
influencers such as Rajiv Makhni
and Harsha Bhogle to promote our
new AC range.
To enhance the shop floor
experience, unique product
displays and demo zones are
being set up to drive awareness
about the Miraie range. This will
be enhanced with strong service
support provided by the Panasonic
operations team.
IoT & AI solutions
EB: How do you see the
market evolving for IoT and AI
enabled products in India?
According to an industry report
by NASSCOM, India is expected
to be a front runner in IoT
adoption in the APAC region.
With an expected CAGR of 62
per cent, the Indian IoT market
is set to reach US$ 9 billion by
2020. Touted as the ‘next big
thing’ for businesses, AI has
the potential to add US$ 957
billion, or 15 per cent of India’s
current gross value added
(GVA) in 2035. Looking at the
immense opportunity, we have
forayed into the connected living
solutions space through Miraie.
EB: Privacy vulnerabilities are
very high in the connected
ecosystem; so how do you
tackle such issues without
losing the trust of your
customers?
We take the safety, security and
privacy of our consumers very
seriously. At Panasonic, we
follow privacy by design and
security by design, wherein we
follow a standard procedure
and mechanism such as
anonymisation, deep encryption,
multi-factor authentication, etc,
to safeguard customers’ data
or PII (personal identifiable
information).
With an aim to build trust
among our users, we ensure
complete transparency and
provide consumers with full
control of their personal data.
EB: Do you think the Indian
government is doing enough to
bolster the IoT market?
I believe that initiatives like Digital
India by the government of India
have been welcoming businesses
to capitalise on the lucrative
opportunities that technologies
like AI and IoT present.
In fact, this year’s Budget
is also a testament of how the
government is aiming to boost the
incomes of people and enhance
their purchasing power in the
backdrop of emerging technologies
such as AI, IoT and ML.
IoT Business

The awareness about IoT solutions

in India is still quite low
As a core subsidiary of Tsinghua Unigroup, UNISOC
is a fabless semiconductor company committed
to R&D in the area of core chipsets in mobile
communications and IoT. Its products cover mobile
chipset platforms supporting 2G/3G/4G/5G
communication standards and various chipset
solutions in the fields of IoT, RFFE, wireless
connection, security, TVs, etc.
Eric Zhou, executive vice president, UNISOC, in an
exclusive conversation with Electronics Bazaar, discusses
why IoT adoption is still slow in India and what needs to
be done about it. He is of the view that IoT has a major
role to play in almost every dimension of life.

Eric Zhou,
executive vice president, UNISOC

Here are some interesting excerpts
from the interaction.
EB: Do you feel that IoT is
opening an entirely new market,
or is all this just hype?
IoT is more than just a buzzword
– it is a massive, lucrative digital
opportunity that can transform
service delivery, business operations,
and the end consumer’s quality of
life. This scope for disruption, more
than anything else, is driving the
growth of the IoT industry in India.
As per a recent NASSCOM report,
the Indian IoT market will exceed
US$ 15 billion by 2020 and will
play a huge role in driving business
growth and digitisation across the
country. Such an impressive growth
trajectory cannot be attributed to
mere hype.
EB: In your opinion, is the
Indian government playing any
significant role in expanding the
IoT market right now? If so, in
what way?
The role the government should
play in driving the growth of the
IoT market cannot be overstated.
There is an urgent need for policy
makers and regulators to collaborate
with industry stakeholders to define
and implement standard business
processes, as well as develop
infrastructural capabilities and policy
frameworks.
The Ministry of
Telecommunications has already
set up a team to study the business
model of the Internet of Things,
including revenue, costs and product
sharing. The government is also
currently studying a simplified
licensing and regulatory framework
for IoT/M2M service providers.
TRAI advocates a coordinated
approach to develop 5G services,
IoT/M2M systems, and a security
framework to advance the
programme, and to coordinate
with industry stakeholders across
domains such as agriculture,
smart cities, smart transportation
networks, diversified logistics, smart
meters, and consumer durables.
Doing so will expand the IoT/M2M
connectivity service market and will
have a major impact in defining
the value chain and the technology
stack for the IoT ecosystem in India.
EB: Apart from the government,
does the private sector have
any role to play in the IoT space
currently?
It is encouraging to see that private
players in the IoT space are already
taking major steps to encourage large
scale adoption of IoT solutions. At
UNISOC, for instance, we are playing a
major role in driving the 5G revolution
in India with products and solutions
such as MAKALU, our proprietary
5G platform, and IVY 510, our first
5G modem. Our aim is to support the
commercialisation of 5G technology
and create a robust foundation for IoT
connectivity in the country.
EB: Are you satisfied at the rate
of deployment of IoT solutions in
India?
IoT adoption in India has
progressed at a slower pace than
in other developing and developed
economies due to multiple factors.
To begin with, the connectivity
infrastructure in the country is still
in a relatively nascent stage and not
strong enough to support the large
scale adoption of advanced IoT
solutions. The lack of industry-wide

44 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz


standardisation is another challenge
that hinders the growth of the
country’s IoT ecosystem.
But the most important aspect,
however, is the human factor. The
awareness about IoT solutions in
India is still quite low – whether
amongst the end consumers or
business decision-makers. Business
leaders and key stakeholders in
the public sector need to create a
culture that thrives on and promotes
IoT adoption. Only by doing so can
they accelerate the technological
development in this high-potential
space and drive the growth of the
Indian IoT market.
EB: How do you see the IoT
market evolving in the next two
to three years?
Certain recent developments, such as
the deployment of the narrowband
(NB) network, hold a lot of promise
for the Indian IoT market. The
renewed focus from domain-leading
organisations with international
operational models and deployment
expertise also hints at a stronger IoT
ecosystem within the country. If things
progress as planned, we can expect
India to witness its own IoT revolution
in the next two to three years.
EB: Which industry segments do
you believe will be driving the
most demand? Why?
While IoT solutions are expected to
find adoption across all industries,
we foresee the maximum demand
to be generated by industries such
as manufacturing, automotive,
telecom, urban mobility, energy and
consumer products.
Other conventionally non-
technical sectors such as education
and agriculture are also expected
to demonstrate high demand for
new-age IoT solutions that can
address large need gaps and drive
operational optimisation.
EB: What fraction of your overall
business is IoT related?
A major chunk of our business
is focused on IoT. UNISOC’s core
vision is to build a smart world
through powerful connectivity.
Through our IoT solutions, we
power a lot of smart electronic
45 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz
IoT Business
products, including smartphones,
tablets, Wi-Fi modems, home
devices, wearables, connected car
products, and many more. Our
Industry Electronics Business Unit
and Connectivity Device Business
Unit are both related to IoT.
EB: Have you seen any
outstanding IoT deployments in
India that you were impressed
by?
Yes, there are some successful pilots
that do merit greater attention
in domains such as domestic
cloud services, industrial IoT,
and machine-to-machine (M2M)
communications. The country’s
consumer market, however, has not
yet registered much success when it
comes to large IoT projects.
This dynamic will need to
change if the country is to achieve
true digitisation – something which
will only be possible through a
robust, consumer-led IoT ecosystem.
EB: What’s the USP that UNISOC
offers?
One of the biggest differentiators for
UNISOC is the depth and scope of
our offerings. We have created an
entire ecosystem of solutions that
cater to connectivity requirements
across verticals, categories, and
markets. Our progressive R&D and
manufacturing capabilities have
helped us deliver cutting-edge
technology to a wide consumer base
at affordable price points.
We continue to make significant
investments in R&D initiatives to
further build on this differentiation,
and bolster the depth and quality
of our offerings. For instance, as
mentioned earlier, we are preparing
for the imminent 5G revolution by
developing and launching futuristic
solutions such as MAKALU and IVY
510. We have also been collaborating
with several domain leaders such as
Rohde & Schwarz to test new-age 5G
applications. These developments
are aimed at establishing UNISOC
Read
as the leading chipset and SoC Electronics Bazaar
solutions provider in the global
technology space and the partner of
choice for organisations contributing
to the creation of tomorrow’s tech-
led world.
My Story

“Your customers and staff

are the backbone of your
business”
“I strongly believe that simplicity and honesty get recognised and pay back
later, if not immediately.” This is the mantra that drove Suresh Nair, director,
Leaptech Corporation, to enter the electronics business in 2003, and the
success of his firm proved him right. In a candid conversation with Baishakhi
Dutta, Nair shares how he witnessed the SMT revolution in India and
developed a well-known brand from scratch. Excerpts follow...

Suresh Nair, director,

Leaptech Corporation

46 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz


B
orn in 1968 in Kanyakumari,
Tamil Nadu, I grew up in
a middle class family with
friends from a similar background.
I had a very simple and easy going
childhood. Life was simpler in those
days, and definitely much more
interesting. We were free to roam
around – we could just get out of the
house and walk around the whole
town, all alone. There were none of
the problems or stresses of today.
That way of life is something that
I would like to cherish for a long
time since it has vanished from
today’s world.
My father was a government
employee and my mother a house-
wife. I have three sisters; all of
them are employed in different
industries across India. My wife,
Veena, is into business. I have two
children —my daughter, Diksha
and my son, Ekansh, and both
are in school.
My passion for
technology
I studied in Kanyakumari, at Car-
mel Higher Secondary School.
After my schooling, I did my B.E.
in electronics and communica-
tion engineering from Madurai
Kamaraj University. After that I
earned a postgraduate diploma in
business management from Penn-
sylvania University, USA.
Right from my school days, I
was fascinated with electronics as
a subject. That is the main reason
I went into engineering and specifi-
cally chose the electronics stream. I
then attended a walk-in interview at
a medical equipment company and
luckily got the job.
Developing a taste for
electronics
I started my career in the medical
electronics domain as a service
engineer for a company called
Transasia Biomedicals in 1990.
Though the company was based
in Mumbai, I worked from Chen-
nai. I worked for a few years and
later moved to a company called
IMC (International Marketing Cor-
poration), which was a distribu-
tor for principals like Universal
Instruments, USA; Speedline, USA,
47 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz
A few of my favourite things
Favourite food: North Indian and
South Indian cuisine
Favourite actor: Rajnikanth
Favourite books: Self-development
and general knowledge books
Favourite singer: S.P. Balasubrah-
manyam
etc. I worked in that company for
close to ten years. My job with
IMC helped me to focus on and
learn about the industry that I am
in, currently.
After that, my partner V.P. Sree-
jeev and I started Leaptech Corpora-
tion in 2003, with just three to four
people. We have grown to almost 70
employees now.
Starting my own business,
and witnessing the
transition
In the late 90s and early 2000s,
India’s electronics market was still
very small. Even today, after con-
siderable growth, it is still smaller
than many other international mar-
kets. There were not many options
for equipment suppliers. During
the 2000s, we started seeing good
opportunities in the market. The
SMT equipment market was slowly
growing. We realised that there was
scope for more people to enter the
business. My partner and I took that
opportunity, deciding to leave our
respective jobs to start a business
on our own.
Over different periods of time,
different segments of the electronics
industry have grown. In the 90s, the
demand was more in the consumer
electronics industry for products like
TVs, VCD players, etc. At that time,
the EMS industry was also growing
but not in a noticeably big way. And
then the STBs (setup boxes) started
coming out in the early 2000s. That
segment was growing well. Later,
the mobile phone industry took off.
In the meantime, the automotive
industry also grew.
The mobile phone industry re-
ally changed the face of the entire
electronics industry in India. When
companies like Nokia started com-
ing to India, the related vendors
My Story
also started coming here. The EMS
industry also grew. Big EMS firms
like Flextronics, Salcomp, Jabil,
Sanmina SCI and others started
setting up offices in the country.
And then other industries took
over, for example, automotive and
lighting. LEDs came in and the
lighting industry started booming.
Recently, smartphones have come
back into the mainstream and
the market is being dominated by
Chinese manufacturers. It has been
a privilege for me to witness this
transition and make my business
grow simultaneously.
In our industry, every order
and every business is a challenge.
Nothing comes easy. Before cus-
tomers like Nokia came in, we were
mostly working with local Indian
companies. So their service and
support structure requirements
were of a certain level. By the time
the big players started foraying into
the Indian market, their service
expectations were totally different
and more inclined towards inter-
national standards. To cope with
those requirements and sustain our
business was a challenge initially,
though we picked up what was
needed pretty quickly. We had to
learn a lot and train our workforce
to meet customer expectations.
Major contributions to the
industry
My contribution has been bring-
ing in the right technologies along
with the right players to the Indian
market, at the right time. In the days
before we started our business, there
were very few players in the SMT
industry. The three dominant brands
were Fuji, Panasonic and Universal.
Back then, these were pretty expen-
sive brands.
When we started the business,
we introduced the Indian market to
Yamaha equipment, which offered
high speed, was technologically
advanced and mass produced. So
the price was lower compared to
the expensive brands of that time.
Persuading Yamaha to enter the
Indian market was quite challeng-
ing, though. We had to convince
them that we could do it since by
then we had been in the industry
My Story
for many years and had dealt with
many customers. That helped us to
convince Yamaha to become our
principals. Through Leaptech, my
team and I have constantly targeted
bringing down the price of the SMT
equipment without compromising
on the quality and features.
Best management
practices that I have
implemented
I strongly believe in giving my em-
ployees responsibility and freedom.
I prefer telling them, “This is your
job and how you do it is all up to
you. I look at the results.” So they
are accountable and completely
responsible for the results, but I do
not micro-manage them as they go
about achieving those results. I am
not concerned what time they go to
a meeting or when they come back.
I do not look at all those details. This
has helped increase the productivity
levels of the employees.
Motivating my team
Apart from the usual monetary ben-
efits and motivational statements,
the management team maintains
a friendly relationship with all
employees. Sometimes we make
mistakes too. At times like that they
do not hesitate to come and tell us
that we have done something wrong,
48 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz
and even suggest ways to correct
the error, and we take this feedback
positively.
Establishing this practice has
helped us a lot in the past. Over-
all, efficiency and integrity are the
two most important traits that I
emphasise on, in addition to get-
ting the job done. Also, I strongly
believe that simplicity and honesty
get recognised and pay back later,
if not immediately.
Leisure time seems like a
luxury
Currently, there is no specific hobby
that I have. Earlier when I used to
get time, I played tennis. I am a
workaholic, by nature. At present,
if I get some leisure time, I spend it
with my family. Also, I read a lot,
preferably non-fiction but nothing
specific. Reading is something that
I never get bored of.
No plans to slow down
Professionally, I would like to
grow in the same business and
come up with better products for
our customers as well as for the
industry. We intend to grow stead-
ily with respect to market share as
well as our staff strength. On the
personal front, I do not have any
plans to slow down since I want to
devote the majority of my time to
strengthening the brand, enhanc-
ing its reputation and holding on
to our position in the industry.
Customers and staff are
the backbone of any
business
Five years after starting my busi-
ness, between 2008 and 2009, the
market collapsed suddenly. Things
were so bad that for many months,
there was no business at all or
very little of it. So we were kind of
taken aback. We had not expected
this as till then, the business had
been growing every year, nicely and
smoothly. But we had to be patient
and realised that ups and downs
are part of doing business. We used
that time to improve our marketing
and build a better rapport with our
customers. That helped us once the
market came back to normal.
There cannot be good times
throughout, and that is how we
learn to do healthy business. So
my advice to others would be to
remain prepared for the down-
turn. Expect it to happen at any
time and be prepared for it. Also,
never ignore your customers and
staff when business slows down.
After all, they form the backbone
of your business. Hence you must
take care of them very well, no
matter what the situation is.
 Mobile Gaming

The world of gaming:

Powered by revolutionary chipsets
The expansion in the smartphone gaming industry in India is led by innovative chipsets
that optimise performance, provide superb image quality and smooth gameplay, and
ensure uninterrupted connectivity for dedicated gamers.

By Kuldeep Malik

M
obile gaming is the next big
opportunity for smartphone
makers, telecom operators
and importantly, the chipset makers.
It is like a computer code on which
chipset firms can write any number
of applications, processes and be
creatively innovative.
According to a recent KPMG report
on sports gaming in India, the indus-
try is expected to grow at a CAGR of
22.1 per cent from FY18-23, touching
` 118.8 billion. This momentum is
likely to be further accelerated by the
current lockdown facing the country
as people are increasingly turning to
online and smartphone gaming to
stay entertained during their post-
work hours. A report by Bengaluru
based InMobi Group, titled ‘COVID-19
Consumer Insights: India’, which cov-
ered the period from the first week of
January to March 11, 2020, stated that
there has been a 110 per cent growth
in the usage of gaming apps during
this period.
With the number of gaming com-
panies in India reportedly growing at
a rate of 20 per cent each year, start-
ups are creating unique offerings by
diversifying into different genres such
as innovative and bold storylines and
creative designs to capture the imagi-
nation of gaming enthusiasts. Playing
games accounts for 43 per cent of all
smartphone activity, according to a
VentureLab study.
On a global scale, gaming has over-
taken films and music as the preferred
leisure activity. The largest segment in
the industry is smartphone gaming,
powered by increased mobile penetra- quality of games on offer. The boom- ing to different reports in the media,
tion, robust Internet connectivity, low ing gaming industry is being driven mobile games account for 33 per cent
data costs and the improvement in the by digitally savvy millennials. Accord- of all app downloads globally, 74 per

49 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz

Mobile Gaming
cent of consumer spending on apps,
and 10 per cent of all the time users
spend on apps.
Further, industry reports esti-
mate that the number of mobile
gamers was 1.36 billion worldwide
last year, with 36 per cent being
between the ages of 25 and 36.
The percentage of users who play
mobile games will rise 22.5 per
cent by 2024 to more than 1.7 bil-
lion people worldwide, up 18.6 per
cent from last year. The latest data
from NASSCOM states that India’s
mobile games market is expected
to reach 628 million users this year.
There are indications that this trend
will not just continue but grow ex-
ponentially, and this will certainly
support the growth of the mobile
gaming industry.
A new dimension has been added
to the gaming industry—at the heart
of this expanding smartphone gaming
market is the minuscule yet powerful
chipset that powers the mobile de-
vice, ensuring that dedicated gamers
enjoy uninterrupted connectivity and
smooth gameplay. Chipset makers
50 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz
like MediaTek are designing newer
and faster technologies to meet the
demand.
We are at an exciting phase that
will change mobile gaming with
principles of psychology forming
the contours of chipset design and
performance. For instance, gaming
companies may create commercial
rewards for players who clear a stage
or complete a particular number of
rounds. It could be a new revenue
stream for telecom services providers
and a new opportunity for advertisers
and brand promoters.
The two latest smartphone
chipsets for mobile gaming from
MediaTek, the Helio G70 and G80,
are designed to make mobile gaming
smart and affordable. MediaTek’s G
series of chipsets deliver powerful
performance and gameplay features
that let device makers innovate and
cater to consumer gaming demands.
As a chipset maker, MediaTek
is keen to offer gamers a smooth
performance in heavy-loading game
engines, demanding scenes and in-
tense gameplay while ensuring power
efficiency for longer gaming sessions.
Further, MediaTek’s HyperEngine
game technology facilitates intelligent
prediction of Wi-Fi and LTE concur-
rency. For example, if the Wi-Fi signal
drops, the Wi-Fi and LTE concurrency
gets triggered within just 13 millisec-
onds, ensuring a smooth and lag-free
connection during gaming. The faster
response between smartphone and
cell-tower and the option to defer
calls while in-game without a drop
in connection also boosts the gaming
experience.
With the smartphone gaming
industry regularly acquiring new
investors and incorporating innova-
tive technology, the gaming market’s
revenue is on a northward trajectory
—getting bigger and better. Further,
emerging technologies like virtual
and augmented reality, artificial intel-
ligence, the Internet of Things and
5G connectivity, are set to propel the
industry to greater heights in India
and globally.
The author is the director,
corporate sales, MediaTek India
SMT Focus

The latest products

available in the SMT
dispensing and
coating market
SMT dispensing products have the potential to process a vast variety of chemistries that comprise
viscous or abrasive materials, irrespective of slight changes in these materials due to atmospheric
conditions. These dispensing, coating and curing systems are ideal for selective coating, potting,
beading, and meter-mix dispensing applications. Apart from that, they are also suitable for batch
or inline operations, and are designed for high accuracy and demanding applications.

P
CBs require a range of equipment for diverse
procedures such as dispensing, coating and cur-
ing. All these processes go on simultaneously,
especially in batch operations for bulk manufacturing.
Technology applications these days require top-notch
coating and dispensing products that ensure high ac-
curacy and repeatability.
Some of the latest SMT dispensing and coat-
ing machines launched by leading companies are
listed below.

Model: Camalot Prodigy; Manufacturer: ITW EAE

Speed, stability, and precision are hallmarks of the
Camalot Prodigy automated dispensing systems from
ITW EAE, USA. Innovative gantry designs in smaller,
more compact footprints enable rapid acceleration for
faster throughput, while at the same time providing
stability that enables precision for applications ranging
from solder paste and under-fill to adhesive dispensing
and advanced ‘jetting’ techniques. Camalot systems
offer two types of auger pumps, both controlled with
a precise servo drive system. The 635SD series is
typically used for finer feature dots and lines of highly
viscose materials. The 680SD pumps deliver high flow
rates and also incorporate a patented positive shutoff
that eliminates dripping of lower viscosity materials.
For highly abrasive materials, both pump systems offer
more wear-resistant carbide auger screws.

Key features:
• High-speed and accurate dispensing
• Large board capability
• Controlled heating for repeatable processes • Pipeline conveyor mode
• Plug-and-play architecture • Benchmark user interface with FlipChip Calculator
• Independent dual head software
• Synchronous dual head mode
• Automatic vision alignment Contact: Leaptech Corporation, www.leaptech.in

52 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz

 SMT Focus

Model: MyC50; Manufacturer: Mycronic

The MYC50 in-line conformal coating system in the
MYSmart series from Mycronic combines high accuracy
edge control with advanced feedback systems. A wide
range of process parameters can be monitored enabling
high quality output. Options such as fan width control,
non-heated circulation systems, heated circulation systems
and barcode readers are a few examples of the process
control enhancements that are possible. The MYC50 helps
to prevent material waste while ensuring highly controlled
coating film thickness, coating area and process speed.

Key features:
• Fast and stable operation
• Spray patterns can be changed on-the-fly, significantly
improving process efficiency
• Flexible multi-axis control enables precise coating of • Barcode reader enables automatic program loading
complex PCBs and traceability
• Powerful process controls result in precise coating that
consistently meets strict quality guidelines Contact: TransTechnology, www.trans-tec.com

Model: Panorama; Manufacturer: Nordson ASYMTEK

They are available in three types—Panorama S-Line,
Panorama C-Line and Panorama R-Line.

The Panorama solutions provide a balance of
equipment and process control for optimal efficiency
in automated conformal coating. They are modular
so that configurations are flexible and equipment
can be easily added when needed. Process control
and automation work together to create efficiency.
Key features:
• A full range of equipment options
• Minimal operator interaction
• Closed-loop controls, parameter limits and
inspection across the line
• Process data for improved productivity
• Stability and consistency at every step
Contact: www.nordson.com

Model: MYD10/ MYD50; Manufacturer: Mycronic

The MYSmart series from Mycronic offers a wide range of
in-line dispensing solutions together with a comprehensive
portfolio of valve technologies. The compact MYD10 in
this series enables highly advanced non-contact jetting
for enhanced dispensing uniformity, throughput and
material utilisation. For higher-precision applications such
as complex chip packaging, the powerful MYD50 system
further boosts productivity with linear motor motion
control. The MYSmart in-line dispensing solutions make
it possible to handle a vast array of current and emerging
products, assembly fluids and package types.

Key features: • Low maintenance and long service life

• Unmatched production value • High-precision dispensing volume control
• Non-contact jetting technology
• Semi- or full automation Contact: TransTechnology, www.trans-tec.com

53 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz

SMT Focus

Model: PrecisionCoat V with AQC;

Manufacturer: Specialty Coating Systems

The PrecisionCoat V selective conformal coating and

dispensing system is fully programmable. It is a multi-
purpose system that offers good programming for
efficiency in automated material applications. It allows
users to precisely apply a wide range of materials,
including 100 per cent solids, as well as solvent based
and water based coatings.

Key features:
• High accuracy and repeatability
• Automatic quick change (AQC) allows for five
separate tools within a single machine
• Five axes programmable tilt and rotate
• Windows based software control with user-friendly fiducial recognition, needle calibration, laser-height
interface mapping, etc
• Ease of programming
• SCS designed valves Contact: www.scscoatings.com
• Safety interlocks
• Equipped with a range of optional features, such as Indian distributor: iNETest Technologies India Pvt Ltd

Model: Vortik; Manufacturer: Nordson ASYMTEK

The Vortik series of pumps incorporates progressive cavity
pump technology in a fully integrated dispensing system
solution, complete with process controls for mass flow
control and a patent-pending Automated Ratio Control
(ARC) system for mixing two-component fluids. Three
pump families in the Vortik series—VPs, VPm, and VPg—
are based upon general volume ranges, and each includes
models for dispensing one-component (1K) and two-
component (2K) fluids. In addition, changes in speed or
volumetric output are logged, providing good traceability.

Key features:
• VPs pumps come with a flow rate of 0.2 microlitres
per second, and delivers the smallest depositions of
1- and 2-component fluids
• The VPm and VPg pumps dispense volumes from • Dispensing is faster during production because no
2 to 400 microlitres/second for applications in fluid refill cycle is needed
electronics package assembly and automotive
electronics Contact: www.nordson.com

54 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz

 ePower Focus

Why battery chargers are critical

in extending the life of batteries
Battery chargers are continually evolving with the addition of advanced features that have
made the charging process more convenient, reliable and simple. The greatest benefit these
chargers provide is in prolonging the life of the batteries.

By Potshangbam July

T
he initial cost of a battery charger may make you
think it is not worth investing in one, but it will
be a pragmatic move to do so in the long term. A
decent battery charger is as important as the battery itself,
as the performance of the latter depends on how carefully
you charge and use it. In fact, battery chargers act as the
catalyst to extract the optimum performance from your
batteries, and make them more powerful and resilient.
There are some common issues with regard to batteries,
such as overcharging, undercharging, etc. Overcharging is
generally worse than undercharging. The former results in
heat and pressure building up inside the batteries, which
can make them leak chemicals or gases, rupture and even
explode. Therefore, it is recommended that you use good
quality battery chargers to avoid such scenarios. With
constant tech advances, battery chargers now come in a
variety of designs and sizes. LCD screens in these devices
indicate the charge in each battery.
Types of battery chargers available in the market
The slow charger is the most basic type and is used
overnight to charge the battery. This type is not capable
of detecting the charge level. Such chargers generally
take 14-16 hours to fully charge an empty battery. Slow
chargers are mostly used to charge AAA, AA and C cells,
and other children’s toys.
The rapid charger is an upgraded version of the slow
variant. It has the temperature sensing feature, which
makes it possible to charge even a faulty battery with
higher levels of safety. When the charge is full, it changes
its status to ‘Ready’. Such chargers are largely used to
charge the batteries of consumer products, and take three
to six hours to do so.
Fast chargers come with several advantages, the main
one being a shorter charging time. This calls for good
communication between the charger and the battery.
This charger is ideal for charging weak batteries which
have not been used for a long time, and can charge these
batteries within an hour or two. This charger is perfect for
starting vehicles with weak batteries, especially in winters.
Ultra-fast chargers are compatible with batteries that
are in good condition. These batteries are designed to
accept ultra-fast charge. It should be noted that ultra-fast
charging is suitable only in the first charge phase. Once the
battery reaches 70 per cent state-of-charge (SoC), the charge
current should be reduced. Ultra-fast charging is effective
only in moderate temperatures. It should be avoided in low
temperatures as it slows down the chemical reaction.
How battery chargers extend battery life
• Battery chargers are designed based on battery types.
Therefore, it is important to use the right charger.

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ePower Focus
Charging with the wrong amperage can reduce the life
span of the battery, even to the extent of damaging it.
• Unplug the charger from the outlet when it is fully
charged. If a fully charged battery is plugged in
continuously, it can affect the durability of both the
charger and battery. Sometimes the battery bulges out
a bit because of the overcharging current.
• One needs to be cautious while using fast chargers as they
are prone to overcharging. Besides, they use the constant
current charging method to charge the battery very quickly.
In such cases, there is a risk of exceeding its safe operating
temperature limits, specified by the manufacturer. In turn,
this can hasten the death of the battery.
Choosing the right battery charger
• Select a charger based on the battery type
A charger is not compatible with all types of batteries.
Therefore, it is important to identify the chemistry and
the type of a battery for which you need a charger. All
the batteries do not have the same characteristics, which
is why each battery needs a specific type of charger.
For example, lithium based batteries are very sensitive
to high voltage; therefore, a charger with sharp output
voltage regulation is required to avoid fire.
• Determine the charge storage/size
Here we don’t literally imply the physical size, but how
many amp hours a battery can store. Every battery has
different ampere-hour ratings, which is the charge storage
of the battery. If your battery is big enough with a 10 amp-
hour rating, then you can consider it a a1A charger. This
will take nearly 10 hours to recharge the battery fully. The
effective way to calculate the total charging time of the
battery is to take the amp-hour rating of the battery and
divide it by the charger rating (amps), and add about 10 per
cent for the extra time taken to totally top up the battery.
• Find the voltage rating
It should be noted that the voltage rating of the charger
should not exceed the voltage rating of the battery.
Otherwise, there is a high chance that the battery will
start deteriorating very soon or may even explode.
• Quality of the chargers
Chargers of good quality usually come with safety
features such as protection against over voltage, over
current or short circuits. What is most attractive about
low quality battery chargers is that they are cheap. But
the dangerous aspects of such chargers are that they
do not have any safety mechanism. Therefore, it is
56 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz
Advantages of smart chargers
Smart chargers are highly sophisticated and work
intelligently. They use microchip based electronic circuits
that can sense and gauge how much charge is stored in
the batteries, and allow a much finer control over the
charging process. They come with high tech features,
including battery monitoring capabilities, providing
protection from overcharging or undercharging,
automatic switching off/on after setting a time;
regulation of over temperature, current and voltage, etc.
They have the capability to communicate with a smart
battery pack’s battery management system (BMS), which
results in effective charging management.
Smart chargers gather information from the battery, and
adjust the charge current and voltage based on the data
collected. This provides an opportunity to act quickly if any
errors occur in the process and rectify it. Smart chargers can
also be programmed to give a planned and varied output
to charge and maintain the battery in a good condition.
Besides, they come with advanced circuitry that indicates
when the batteries require to charge or stop charging, or
how fast they can charge. Further, these chargers are able to
determine the quality of the battery—how old it is, which
cell is performing better than others, etc.
Smart chargers are programmed to perform typically
eight or nine distinct automated steps to ensure a favourable
environment for the battery to accept a full charge.
important to consider good brands and manufacturers
that provide the proper guidelines and specifications.
Trends in the market
With the expansion of the electronics industry, there is higher
demand for battery chargers. The increased use of connected
devices and the steady rise in electric vehicle (EV) adoption
are driving the growth of the battery charger market.
The miniaturised devices
and components popular
today are extremely prone to
overheating, which can cause
serious equipment damage.
Since heat control/dissipation
has become paramount, the
demand for wireless and high
temperature resistant smart
chargers has picked up. These
chargers have many benefits.
Another factor driving the growth of the smart battery charger
market is the increasing awareness about the harmful carbon
emissions from fossil fuels, their impact on the environment
and the importance of renewal energy. However, the high cost
of smart chargers is hampering quicker growth. The demand
for smart chargers is high in sectors like telecommunications,
consumer electronics, automotive electronics, etc.
According to a report by Research and Markets, the
global battery charger market reached a turnover of around
US$ 18.5 billion in 2018. The market is further projected
to reach US$ 29.8 billion by 2024, exhibiting a CAGR of
8.3 per cent during 2019-2024.
 Green Energy

The benefits of building solar

charging stations for electric vehicles
Although electric vehicles (EVs) are considered an eco-friendly option, global warming
due to greenhouse gas emissions will remain an issue if conventional sources of energy
are used to generate the electricity to power EVs. Several companies like ABB, Magenta
Power, ChargePoint, Leviton Manufacturing, Schneider Electric, Siemens AG and Tesla
are operating in the global EV charging station market. Generating power from renewable
energy sources like solar addresses this concern, maximising the green impact of EVs. It is
true that the production of solar panels results in carbon emissions but they become carbon
neutral in a few years and last for 15 to 20 years, on an average.

By Ayushee Sharma

T
he adoption of electric mo-
bility, not only by customers
but even the auto industry,
depends a lot on the growth of the
EV charging infrastructure. A solar
charging station usually consists of
EV supply equipment (EVSE), an
array of solar panels, an inverter
to convert solar power from DC to
AC, an energy storage system (for
off-grid charging), charge control-
lers and a secure network for the
wireless transmission of data to
help users make real-time decisions.
In the case of on-grid charging,
solar power is fed into the grid
regardless of the need for it, and
electricity is drawn from the grid,
which guarantees charging and the
optimum use of solar power. This is
a cheaper option compared to charg-
ing off-grid. In the case of off-grid
charging, a solar panel connects
to the energy storage system from
which the power is drawn. Such
chargers can be placed anywhere
since they do not have to connect

57 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz

Green Energy
to the grid. A heavy steel base plate
usually acts as a solid foundation,
making it easy to install the system.
A Level 1 or Level 2 EV charging
station is typically located below the
photovoltaic array, protecting the
vehicles from sun damage. Level 1
charge stations are the slowest but
the least expensive of three charge
levels and are suitable for areas where
parking times are long, such as at
offices. Level 2 charging stations are
more suitable for areas where the
parking time is shorter. Not all EVs
can use a Level 3 charger, which is
used for rapid charging (around an
hour) especially for travelling long
distances. The Tesla SuperCharger is
an example of a Level 3 charger.
These charging stations can be
installed in the parking lots of shop-
ping centres, offices, restaurants,
gyms, rest stops along highways,
parks, among others, making it easy
for the public to charge their vehicles
and reduce range anxiety.
For home installations, if the
amount of solar electricity generated
does not suffice because of reasons
like weather conditions (cloudy
days), only then is grid electricity
required. While going for this option,
make sure that the number of solar
panels installed can compensate for
the charging losses. Also, three-phase
power is capable of supporting a
higher capacity array. The excess
power generated can be sold to util-
ity companies, which the owners get
back in the form of credits whenever
required. This is a cheaper option
compared to a battery storage system
which is generally used for charging
overnight.
The cost of setting up a solar-
powered charging station depends
on factors like installation costs,
hardware equipment, cost of elec-
tricity and maintenance in the long
run. The cost of purchasing a so-
lar array also varies based on the
manufacturer and the solar panels
selected. For those who already
have a solar array installed at their
homes, they just need to have an
EV charging station.
The environmental benefits of
charging stations that run on solar
power are many. Besides better air
quality and reduced dependence on
58 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz
The opinion of an expert
For setting up EV charging infrastructure, one should have a mini-
mum of ` 5 million to get onboard and stay invested as this industry
progresses. But this is purely dependent on your vision and how you
plan the size and scale of your project. The payback period is com-
pletely dependent on the size of the investment planned and the EV
chargers deployed.
There are two key challenges faced during the implementation of
these systems – the upfront cost of installing solar based systems, and
the availability of rooftop space for the solar panels. Addressing the
key problems, we have developed a business proposition which makes
the investments in solar energy systems redeemable in five years, de-
pending on the number of vehicles serviced by the charging station.
Another technical challenge we are trying to solve when going totally
green for charging stations is the power backup. We are working on
solutions using end of life batteries so that the net carbon impact is
as low as possible.
The government undoubtedly has been encouraging the infrastruc-
ture setup in India, to boost the adoption of EVs. The shift will be more
evident by 2030. We are focusing on building a seamless network of
EV charging stations, enabling easier adoption among the target audi-
ence, making them future-ready. As the nation moves towards clean
and affordable power for all, it is our attempt to provide customers
with the best solutions for a greener tomorrow. We have spearheaded
several first-time technologies in the industry and solar charging sta-
tions have been one of them. These stations will play a key role in
the energy systems of the next 25 years. As the nation moves towards
clean and affordable power for all, this is one of the most eco-friendly
options to look for.
Currently, we are focused on setting up the EV charging ecosystem
in India. Very recently, in association with HPCL, we introduced a
streetlamp integrated EV charger. This has helped us address the key
challenges, such as the lack of space and proximity to charging points.
In parallel, we have also designed portable and compact chargers to
boost the EV charging infrastructure in rural and remote areas.
Maxson Lewis, MD and co-founder, Magenta Power
fossil fuels, every day running costs Although the payback period
are lower. The load on conventional is long, collaborations and gov-
grids also gets reduced. Apart from ernment policies can decrease it
this, large scale implementation will and help in establishing a robust
increase employment opportunities charging infrastructure. In India,
owing to the need for trained people the government has de-licensed the
for installation, maintenance and public charging stations business for
operation of these stations. EVs. In 2019, BHEL announced that
Considering the benefits and the it will be setting up five solar based
viability of such a system, many EV charging stations at Haryana
businesses are investing in this con- Tourism Corporation’s resorts on
cept. According to a recent report the Delhi-Chandigarh highway. The
from ReportLinker, the global EV organisation has also developed a
charging station market is expected central monitoring system and a
to increase at a CAGR of 34 per cent mobile app for EV charging. The
during 2020-2024. Tesla Motors, a Japanese electronics company Pa-
subsidiary of Tesla, for instance, is nasonic is also working to set up
constructing solar-powered charg- nearly 100,000 charging stations
ing stations in convenient locations for EVs across India’s 25 largest
for its EV customers. cities.
 Connected Lighting

LEDs and Li-Fi brighten the future of

connected lighting systems
Until recently, lighting systems operated as localised points of illumination. However, this function
is evolving as our dependence on connectivity and data continues to increase. Connected lighting
systems (CLSs) blend LED capabilities with IoT connectivity to enable design engineers to
simultaneously provide illumination and transfer data. With the IoT as the data collection platform,
CLSs will save electrical energy while opening up new avenues to provide a range of services and
benefits to people and organisations.

By Paul Golata

A
t the core of the CLS is an
emerging optical wireless
communication technology
called Li-Fi, short for light fidelity.
Introduced in 2011, Li-Fi uses IEEE
802.11 protocols and has gained
momentum, becoming a viable al-
ternative to the ever-shrinking Wi-Fi
spectrum and is evolving towards
making lighting a central point in
smart infrastructure. In this article,
we explore the role of IoT technolo-
gies, Li-Fi’s ability to transfer data
through lighting, and technologies
that need further development, all
of which will ensure CLSs develop
to their full potential.
The role of IoT
The IoT is a technological revolution.
Smart sensor technology and wireless
connectivity have led design engineers
to focus on how to sense and collect
data as well as how to get it into a
digital domain for Web handling and
manipulating. Sensors, connectivity
and digital data make up the founda-
tion for further CLS development.
Optical sensors: Sensors are
everywhere, measuring aspects like
humidity, temperature, pressure, air
quality, vibration, and volatile or-
ganic compounds (VOC), to name a
few. Sensors detect analogue signals
generated from the physical world
and then convert them into digital
data signals that can be controlled
and manipulated by embedded
systems (Figure 1). Optical sensors
convert light energy into readable
electrical signals that can detect
whether lights are on or off, as well
as measure light intensity.
Wireless connectivity: Wi-Fi is a
technique that allows devices to con-

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Connected Lighting
nect to a wireless local area network
(WLAN). Wi-Fi uses electromagnetic
radiation in the radio frequency (RF)
spectral range (20kHz–300GHz),
at five primary frequency ranges:
2.4GHz, 3.6GHz, 4.9GHz, 5GHz and
5.9GHz. Currently, most consumer
products focus on one or both of the
2.4GHz and 5GHz frequencies. Wi-Fi
has drawbacks, however, including
a susceptibility to being hacked and
a spectrum that’s already nearing
capacity.
Digital data: It is easy to store
digital data for future use. Combined
with a future in which artificial intel-
ligence (AI) and Big Data analytics
(BDA) curate, apply, extend and lever-
age this data, the designer’s aim is to
bring illumination systems into this
overarching technological framework.
IoT promises to enable a variety of
end-to-end solutions that are more
intelligent.
Li-Fi or optical wireless com-
munication: As mentioned earlier,
CLSs blend LED capabilities with
IoT connectivity, enabling design
engineers to simultaneously provide
illumination and transfer data. At the
core of these systems is solid-state
lighting (SSL), which uses LEDs as
sources of illumination, rather than
filaments, plasma, or gas. LEDs offer
designers a palette of options, such
as quick modulation between being
on and off; and the ability to control
colours and output lumens. They’re
also known to be long-lasting, com-
pact, durable and energy-efficient,
making them a good option for
further application.
As an optical wireless communi-
cation (OWC) technology, Li-Fi has
evolved to deliver data via visible
light. While Wi-Fi uses radio waves
to deliver data, Li-Fi uses infrared,
ultraviolet, and visible light waves,
which offer several advantages.
Currently, the Wi-Fi spectrum is
crowded to a point nearing a crisis,
but the visible Li-Fi spectrum is
nearly 10,000 times larger than its RF
counterpart. Li-Fi can also offer data
rates that are competitive with Wi-Fi,
with reliable, high-quality transmis-
sion speeds of >30Mbps. What’s
more, Li-Fi uses Line of Sight (LoS)
architecture, which makes it highly
immune to hacking; data usually
60 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz
Figure 1: Sensors receive analogue signals from the physical world and convert them into digital
data signals that are controllable by embedded systems
disappears when a hacker intercepts
the data stream.
An LED’s ability to modulate on
and off quickly is key to why Li-Fi
works. Data moves from one location
to another through these modulation
and demodulation processes. Li-Fi
operates by taking streaming data
content and inserting it into an SSL
driver, which can run a string of LED
lamps, turning them on and off at high
speeds. As the LED lamps turn on and
off, strobing faster than the eye can
see, they illuminate the required area.
Within this area is a Li-Fi don-
gle, an integrated device that con-
nects to a computer and contains a
photo-detector to sense the light. It
responds by producing an electric
current in proportion to the amount
of light impinging on its surface. The
tiny electrical signal passes into an
electronic circuit with amplifiers that
boost the signal. Further signal con-
ditioning and processing occur before
the signal leaves the dongle through
a wireless connection to a device,
such as a laptop, portable computer,
mobile device, or mobile phone.
A unified whole: Products,
systems and software
Several years ago, LED manufactur-
ers began prioritising the creation of
a unified solution—that is, a lighting
system capable of interacting with all
the various electro-mechanical sys-
tems in one place. With the boom in
the IoT space, this initiative revealed
three levels of differential, sustainable
support that was necessary to enable
the potential of CLSs using hardware,
IoT, software, and interface assets.
Hardware assets: Hardware as-
sets require the packaging of LED
components and the use of electronic
drivers to control the current that
passes to the LED components. De-
signers also must consider the related
electro-optical-mechanical functions
to ensure these devices can work
together and be transformed into suc-
cessful luminaires. Hardware designs
may require thermal heat sinking,
mounting, packaging, optical con-
trol, and integration with items that
the luminaire will have to interface
with (using common and applicable
design codes).
Adding intelligent sensors to
obtain analogue information and
convert it into digital information is
also part of this design effort. In short,
the suppliers should focus on how
all the related hardware components
work together.
IoT assets: Hardware, however,
is not enough. A robust CLS design
requires additional measures to en-
able it to connect to and work in
synergy with other lighting systems
successfully. CLS suppliers must

address systems integration issues,
including data security. How will data
be secure from unauthorised users
that attempt to take control of it? Data
security may require authentication,
which protects sophisticated keys
that authorise access. Back-end stor-
age, computers servers, and analytics
also require thought. When entering
the realm of IoT, CLS designers must
ensure that the pathway to get data
onto and off the CLS is available,
reliable and robust.
Software assets: IoT provides a
broad array of services never possible
before, by way of the cloud. In the
new world of IoT, CLS providers that
offer cloud based technology services
to support their offerings will have a
competitive advantage because they
allow their customers to obtain the
maximum benefits from their prod-
ucts, immediately.
Future interoperability is para-
mount to fast growth. Standard solu-
tions, which allow multiple suppliers’
products to work seamlessly together
over time, provide economic incen-
tives and benefits. Solutions that
cannot work well with other products
will find themselves at a competitive
61 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz
disadvantage, as the need to be able
to cross domains and boundaries
without issues will be primary.
Another area that CLS suppliers
must address is common application
programming interfaces (APIs). The
US Department of Energy (DOE) has
realised that this is a major hurdle
that needs to be overcome to achieve
some of the desired energy benefits
of CLS. SSL is more efficient when
it comes to saving energy. However,
SSL, in the form of multiple CLSs that
connect to the IoT will empower the
cities of tomorrow to be even more
efficient. This increased efficiency
will result from CLS being combined
with SSL and IoT within a smart grid,
allowing coordination among offices,
buildings, homes, retailers, street-
lights, etc, so that they all work as
an optimised, whole system instead
of individually.
The data that smart sensors ob-
tain, combined with data analytics,
will work to make adjustments that
save money for each location within
the unified system, which would not
be possible if the location was left
unconnected from the whole. The
DOE suggests making APIs readily
Connected Lighting
available for users, while the lighting
industry looks at adopting common
approaches to security that seek to
minimise systems integration issues
for the industry.
LED light sources have become an
avenue by which lighting can move
from analogue to digital, making life
easier—via the IoT. Li-Fi offers the
potential for CLSs to both provide
light and transfer data. With these ca-
pabilities, lighting systems could offer
an alternative to the ever-shrinking
Wi-Fi spectrum to make lighting the
hub in smart infrastructure. Con-
nected lighting innovation promises
a future that is even brighter than the
world we live in today. But as with
many future innovations, seeing is
believing.
Paul Golata joined Mouser
Electronics in 2011 as a senior
technical content specialist.
He has earlier worked in
manufacturing, marketing
and sales, at Hughes Aircraft Company,
Melles Griot, Piper Jaffray, Balzers Optics,
JDSU, and Arrow Electronics. He holds a
BSEET from DeVry Institute of Technology
– Chicago, IL; and an MBA from
Pepperdine University – Malibu, CA.
 New
Products
Components

Transistor available as standard as well as a 5V/1A VSB output

RFMW has announced design and sales support for a
high-power transistor from Ampleon. The ART2K0PE
power LDMOS transistor provides 2000W of pulsed RF
energy for ISM applications in the HF to
400MHz band. Offering 28.5dB of gain
and a drain efficiency of 73 per cent, this
transistor supports plasma generators, MRI
systems, CO2 lasers and particle accelerators.
Other uses are found in radio and VHF TV broadcast
transmitters as well as HF communications and radar
systems in the aerospace industry. A high breakdown
voltage enables Class E operation up to 50V VDS while
the ART2K0PE is qualified up to a maximum VDS
of 65V. The device is characterised from 30V to 65V.
Integrated dual-sided ESD protection enables Class C
operation and a complete switch-off of the transistor.
The transistor is capable of withstanding load
mismatches corresponding to a VSWR of 65:1.
Contact: RFMW, rfmw.com
AC/DC power supplies
The RACM550 series of AC/DC power supplies is
designed to support up to 300 watts of continuous
output power at 24V without cooling fans. Building
on the RACM230 230W 10.16cm x
5.08cm series, this highly efficient
10.16cm x 7.62cm baseplate-
cooled design is just 38mm
high and enables direct heat
dissipation through metal
housings in the end application.
Up to 550 watts of peak power is available to drive
dynamic loads for several seconds, or even longer,
with minimal forced air. A smart fan output is
for applications with housekeeping circuits and on/
off controls. In standby mode, the units consume less
than 500mW of power. The wide input range of 80V
to 264V AC, an operating altitude of up to 5000m,
operating ambient temperatures of -40°C to +70°C,
and international safety agency certifications—all
these make the series worldwide-compliant for
medical 2MOPP (250V AC), household, industrial and
ITE applications. The RACM550 series is available as
an open-frame design or in an enclosed metal housing.
Contact: RECOM, recom-power.com
Sensor ICs
Allegro MicroSystems has launched the brand new
custom SOIC16W package, named ‘MC’, which
marks a leap forward in the industry’s
current-sensing capabilities for power-
dense applications that require high
isolation with low power loss. This
new package has an ultra-low
265uOhm series resistance — 2.5
times lower than existing SOIC16W solutions—while
delivering Allegro’s highest certified isolation rating
of 5kV. These devices are optimal for applications
like DC-DC converters, solar inverters, UPS systems,
xEV on-board chargers (OBC), EV charging piles, and
motor control. The new MC package has a copper
lead frame more than two times (2X) thicker than
that of standard SOIC semiconductor packages. This
allows for the ultra-low 265uOhm series resistance
that improves current density in the Allegro
package—and therefore power density in customer
applications.
Contact: Allegro MicroSystems, www.allegromicro.com

Spectrum analysers
Siglent Technologies, which is in the R&D space for electronic test and measurement
equipment, presents two spectrum analysers that meet the growing demand of high
bandwidths for 5G applications. One model is part of the powerful and flexible
RF signaling SSA3000X Plus series of spectrum analysers, with a frequency range
of up to 7.5GHz for delivering reliable automatic measurements and has multiple
modes of operation. Optional functions are RF power measurement, vector signal
modulation analysis, reflection measurement and EMI testing. The other model is
part of the powerful and flexible RF signaling SVA1000X series of spectrum and vector network analysers. It
has a frequency range of 7.5GHz, comes with multiple modes of operation and delivers reliable automatic
measurements. Optional functions are a distance-to-fault locator and a vector signal modulation analyser.
Contact: Siglent Technologies, siglent.com

62 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz

Non-isolated DC-DC converters
With the launch of its RPMB-3.0 series, RECOM has
expanded its range of compact, non-isolated DC-DC
converters in its standard 12.19mm x 12.19mm x
3.75mm DOSA-
compatible,
thermally-enhanced
LGA package. The
preset outputs
available are 3.3V
(trimmable 1V-9V),
5V (trimmable 1V-9V), 12V (trimmable 9V-24V), or
15V (trimmable 9V-24V). All variants operate up to
36V input with a low dropout voltage of 500mV or less.
All parts operate to 100°C ambient temperature with
some load derating but without the need for forced air
cooling. The efficiency is up to 94 per cent, allowing
the full output current of 3A across the entire input
voltage range. Efficiency is also excellent down to very
low loads which, combined with a very low quiescent
current of 30µA (3.3V version), makes this series
suitable for applications that have ‘sleep’ modes such
as microcontrollers and transceivers. The parts also
feature six-sided shielding for low radiated EMI and
excellent thermal management.
Contact: RECOM, recom-power.com
Wireless SoC devices
Silicon Labs has announced a new family of secure,
proprietary, wireless System-on-Chip (SoC) devices
designed for power- and size-constrained IoT products
powered by batteries or energy harvesting sources.
Target applications
include electronic shelf
labels (ESL), building
security, industrial
automation sensors and
custom modules for
commercial lighting.
Based on Silicon Labs’
wireless Gecko Series 2 platform, the new EFR32FG22
(FG22) SoCs deliver an optimal combination of
security features, 2.4GHz wireless performance, energy
efficiency, and software tools and stacks to enable the
next generation of ESL and automation products.
Contact: Silicon Labs, www.silabs.com
Industrial SoM
Mistral Solutions has released the AM65x industrial
System-on-Module (SoM), which is easy-to-use,
compact and lightweight, providing very high
processing power
for industrial control
and communication
applications. The SoM
is based on Texas
Instrument’s AM6548
SoC, which features
a 64-bit quad-core
ARM Cortex-A53 at
63 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz
1.1GHz and a dual-core ARM Cortex-R5F MCU sub-
Components
system. With 2GB DDR4 memory on the SoC, and a
wide range of crucial industrial interfaces enabled via
inter-board connectors, the SoM supports industrial
communication through the PRU-ICSS sub-system on
the SoC supporting protocols like ModBus, OpenCAN,
ProfiNET, ProfiBUS, Ethernet/IP, EtherCAT, EnDAT/
EQEP, CCLink IEField and cycle-by-cycle PWM
control. Mistral has partnered with Port Industrial
Automation GmbH for real-time protocols.
Contact: Mistral Solutions, www.mistralsolutions.com
Synchronous DC-DC converters
STMicroelectronics’ L6983 38V/3A synchronous
DC-DC converters maintain high efficiency at all
loads with a maximum value of 95 per cent. They
are highly integrated with synchronous MOSFETs
on-chip to save on external components and to
simplify design. The L6983 converters have an
extremely low quiescent current of just 17µA.
Low current consumption (L6983C) and low-noise
(L6983N) variants are available. The L6983C enters
pulse-skipping mode when the load current is below
0.6A while the L6983N, suitable for noise-sensitive
applications, stays in PWM (pulse-width modulation)
mode at all loads to minimise electromagnetic
disturbances.
Contact: STMicroelectronics, st.com
Microcontrollers
STMicroelectronics has introduced the STM32L5x2
series of ultra-low-power microcontrollers (MCUs)
featuring security as a highlight. To provide better
security for IoT connected applications, the STM32L5
series of MCUs has a clock frequency of up to
110MHz and is based on the ARM
Cortex-M33 32-bit RISC processor
core with built-in ARM TrustZone
hardware. STMicroelectronics has
incorporated the capability to add
or delete each I/O pin as well as
peripheral, Flash or SRAM storage
area, at will, in the TrustZone
isolation and protection area to completely isolate
sensitive work tasks to the maximum extent. These
features improve the safety and security levels of the
equipment.
Contact: STMicroelectronics, st.com
 New
Products
Test & Measurement
Modules
Automated 5G testing system
Anritsu Corporation has announced that the
ME7873NR, a product launched via its collaboration
with Samsung Electronics’ system LSI business
on 5G New Radio (NR) standalone (SA) mode,
has received approval of key test scenarios by the
Global Certification Forum (GCF) and the PCS Type
Certification Review Board (PTCRB). The ME7873NR
is an automated system for 3GPP TS38.521/TS38.533-
defined 5G NR RF/RRM tests. It supports both 5G NR
SA and NSA modes, when combined with Anritsu’s
CATR anechoic chamber, MA8172A. It covers all 5G
frequency bands, including FR1 (sub-6GHz) and
FR2 (mmWave). A flexible system configuration
allows customisation of the ME7873NR for specific
measurement conditions. ME7873LA is available
to create a cost-effective RF test system that meets
emerging test conditions and protects investments
made by existing customers.
Contact: Anritsu, www.anritsu.com
Modules
SiC MOSFETs
Infineon Technologies AG continues to expand
its comprehensive silicon carbide (SiC) product
portfolio with 650V devices. With the newly
launched CoolSiC MOSFETs, Infineon is addressing
the growing demand for energy efficiency,
power density and robustness in a wide range of
applications. Amongst them are server, telecom
and industrial SMPSs, solar energy systems, energy
storage and battery formation, UPS systems, motor
drives as well as EV-charging. The CoolSiC MOSFET
devices are rated from 27mΩ to 107mΩ. They are
available in classic TO-247 three-pin as well as TO-
247 four-pin packages, which allows for even lower
switching losses. Just like all previously launched
CoolSiC MOSFET products, the new family of 650V
devices is based on Infineon’s state-of-art trench
semiconductor technology.
Contact: Infineon Technologies, infineon.com
Motor controllers
Infineon Technologies AG has released the new
IMC300 motor controller series. These controllers
combine the iMOTION motion control engine (MCE)
with an additional microcontroller based on the
ARM Cortex-M0 core. The MC300 complements
the IMC100 series and aims at variable speed
drives that require very high application flexibility.
Both families, IMC100 and IMC300, share the
same implementation of the MCE 2.0 providing
ready-to-use motor and, optionally, PFC control.
Applying the MCE for controlling the motor,
customers can focus on their system application
64 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz
that runs independently on the embedded ARM
microcontroller. Infineon’s MCE 2.0 implements
highly efficient field oriented control (FOC) of
permanent magnet synchronous motors (PMSM).
Contact: Infineon technologies, infineon.com
Miniature DC-DC converters
Flex Power Modules has introduced new families
of miniature DC-DC converters for industrial
applications —the PUA-A, PUC-B and PUB-M.
The new devices are all isolating
converters providing output
power of up to 1W,
with no minimum load
required. Efficiency
is typically 84 per cent
(PUA-A), 80 per cent (PUC-B)
and 81 per cent (PUB-M) – all at full
load. Input-to-output isolation voltage is
2000V (PUA-A), 6000V (PUC-B) and 3000V
(PUB-M).
The new converters deliver the reliability and
ruggedness needed for the harsh environments found
in industrial applications, and have a mean time
between failures (MTBF) rated at 17.9 million hours
(Mh) for the PUB-M, 15Mh for the PUC-B and 13.1Mh
for the PUA-A.
Contact: Flex Power Modules, flex.com
Power module
Texas Instruments has introduced what it claims is
the industry’s smallest 36V, 4A power module in a
quad flat no-lead (QFN) package. The TPSM53604
DC-DC buck module’s 5mm x 5.5mm footprint
enables engineers to shrink the size of their power
supply by 30 per cent while reducing power loss by
50 per cent, when compared to similar competing
modules. The new power module comes with a
single thermal pad to optimise heat transfer, enabling
engineers to simplify board mounting and layout.
The TPSM53604 can operate in ambient temperatures
as high as 105°C to support rugged applications in
factory automation and control, grid infrastructure,
test and measurement, industrial transport, and
aerospace and defence.
Contact: Texas Instruments, www.ti.com
Charging controller
ON Semiconductor has announced a pair of novel
devices that are fully compliant with the USB-C
PD 3.0 standard. The FAN6390 adaptive charging
controller brings ease of integration of the USB-C
PD 3.0 programmable power
supply (PPS) standard
into systems, while the
NCP12601 is a highly
integrated multi-mode
flyback controller for
rugged, high-performance,
offline power supplies such as adapters. The new
devices greatly simplify USB-C PD 3.0 based power
supply designs, provide a higher level of integration
and reliability, and enable designs of higher power
density for applications such as smartphone chargers,
AC-DC power adapters and auxiliary housekeeping
power supplies for various electronic devices.
Contact: ON Semiconductor, www.onsemi.com
RF module
Insight SiP, the specialist in ultra-miniature
RF modules, has introduced the ISP3010 RF
module, which combines smart Ultra-Wide Band
(UWB) and Bluetooth Low Energy
(BLE) capabilities with a MCU
(microcontroller unit), each with
its own antenna. Both antennas
are integrated into the module.
This highly miniaturised LGA
module measures only 14mm x
14mm x 1.5mm, making it a good
standalone module solution for applications that
require precision, real-time location systems and
long-range wireless communication. The ISP3010
RF module enables wireless communication with
highly precise localisation, accurate to within 10cm
over a range of up to 50m, claim company sources.
For applications with ranges of upwards of 50
metres, the ISP3010 can be used in conjunction with
external optimised UWB antennas with the same
precision, depending on the antenna configuration.
Contact: Insight SiP, www.insightsip.com
To read more stories about
electronics manufacturing
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65 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz
Railway-grade DC-DC converters
Modules
The THN 10WIR series is a family of rugged 10W DC-DC
converters for high reliability in harsh environments. The
converters have a wide 4:1 input range and increased
resistance against electromagnetic
interference, shock/vibration and
thermal shock. They come in a
six-side shielded 2.54cm x 2.54cm
metal package. The innovative design
provides high efficiencies of up to 90
per cent and thus enables an operating temperature
range from -40°C to +80°C without derating. The
approvals based on the converters’ compliance with
the EN 50155 and EN 61373 standards qualify them for
railway and transportation systems.
Contact: Traco Power, www.tracopower.com
Miscellaneous
5G isolator
RFMW has announced design and sales support for
coaxial, mmWave, 5G isolators from DiTom Microwave.
The D3I3743 isolator covers 5G infrastructure frequencies
from 37GHz to 43GHz with 14dB of isolation. Being a
single-junction design, insertion loss is
only 1.2dB maximum, preserving
precious power in the mmWave
bands. Average power handing
is 5W (2W reflected power). The
D3I3743 is offered with 2.92mm (K)
female connectors with a maximum
VSWR of 1.35:1 and is available with any combination
of male or female connectors on the input/output. With
operating temperatures from -20°C to +65°C, these
isolators are suitable for in-box applications or bench-top
testing applications. The isolator body measures 1.27cm
x 17.78cm and weighs only 25.5146gm. RFMW offers
DiTom isolators ranging from 26.5GHz to 43.5GHz in
both narrow and wide-band frequency ranges.
Contact: RFMW, rfmw.com
Log on to
 Lighting Ahead
Business Publication for LED Industry

The tech trends in LEDs that

will dominate the lighting industry
The lighting industry has been evolving at a rapid pace over the last few years. With significant
improvements in technology, LEDs are now a great option to traditional lights.

By Potshangbam July

L
EDs have become ubiquitous
electronic products by virtue of
their energy efficiency, versatil-
ity and environment-friendly nature.
They are in demand as the number
of advantages offered by them beat
those offered by traditional incandes-
cent bulbs and compact fluorescent
lamps (CFLs). There have been tre-
mendous advances in LED technolo-
gies in the past few years, with rapid
changes in product designs, features,
efficiencies, etc. As a result, LEDs are
expected to change the dynamics of
lighting in every sector, including
industrial, residential, healthcare and
automotive.
Let’s discuss some significant tech-
nological trends that will create a host
of opportunities in the lighting market.
The Internet of Things (IoT)
The IoT not only connects computers
or smartphones, but also other gadg-
ets that are Internet-enabled, includ-
ing lighting fixtures like LEDs. To be
more connected and efficient, LEDs
need to add a few sensors or cameras,
as well as data connections. This
enables users to remotely regulate the
lights as per their requirement, or to
program the lights to switch on and
off at specific times.
Products that are IoT enabled also
give users updates on the whole op-
eration, by collecting data and record-
ing usage patterns to create a better
lighting experience. The embedded
sensors and automated control func-
tions can monitor and control the
brightness and colour temperature of
the LED lights. Besides, they respond
to an occupant’s presence/move-
ments, and to the changes in ambient
daylight levels.

66 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz

 LED
Bazaar Lighting Ahead
Li-Fi (Light-fidelity)
Li-Fi and Wi-Fi both transmit data
electromagnetically. Li-Fi uses light
whereas Wi-Fi depends on radio
waves to transmit data wirelessly.
However, Li-Fi systems are much
faster than Wi-Fi. In the case of Li-
Fi, light bulbs are used as routers to
enable data transfer at speeds of over
220GB per second. Li-Fi enabled LEDs
are used as visible light transmitters
since they are much more effective for
higher speed wireless networking and
illumination. Yet, despite the benefits,
Li-Fi has a few disadvantages, such
as the total reliance on the light for
the smooth operation of the Internet,
some security issues, signal restriction
when passing through walls, not being
too efficient during daylight (natural)
hours because it disperses light beams
emitted by LED lighting, etc. Neverthe-
less, the combination of Li-Fi and LEDs
for ultra-fast wireless data transfer has
a potential to change the dynamics of
the LED lighting industry.
Human-centric lighting
LED-based human-centric lighting is
controllable and tunable across a spec-
trum of correlated colour temperatures
(CCTs), and can have a positive impact
on indoor environments. Such lighting
is capable of stimulating particular
biological responses in us as it is based
on our circadian rhythm. In the case
of human-centric lighting, users can
adjust the light colour, intensity and
colour temperature in tune with the
Earth’s natural cycle of day and night.
For indoor environments, the light ap-
pears with more blue components or
higher colour temperatures, to mimic
the daytime circadian cycle outdoors.
And as evening sets in, the light has
higher amber and red components, to
mimic the night-time circadian cycle.
This tuning of lights can improve the
mood, concentration, energy, and
sense of alertness of an individual.
Human-centric lighting has multiple
applications – in the industrial sec-
tor, to minimise fatigue and errors; in
the healthcare industry, to improve
patients’ overall sense of well-being;
and in educational settings, to increase
students’ alertness during class hours.
Wireless lighting
Wireless lighting technology is pick-
ing up fast, by which LED lighting
fixtures can be controlled without
68 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz
cabled connectivity. Such fixtures are
recommended for green outdoor light-
ing, and especially for retrofit projects.
They consume very little energy, and
at the same time, release minimal heat,
which helps in controlling the carbon
dioxide produced by the lights.
Reverse-wired LED cooling
An interesting development with
respect to LEDs is that they can be
used to cool heat sources that are close
by. This new application has been
demonstrated by researchers at the
University of Michigan. They used an
infrared light-emitting diode (IR LED)
with its electrodes reversed to cool
another device just nanometers away.
The reverse connection can not only
control the LED from emitting light,
but can also induce the LED to curb
the thermal radiation that it would
be emitting. Researchers claim that
this can help to cool down electronic
devices, such as wearables and mobile
devices. This approach will be very
effective in taking the heat away, par-
ticularly in cases that include various
small devices and transistors in small
enclosures, where heat dissipation
is critical and needs to be fast. With
improvements in cooling rates, the
new approach can result in efficiency
and enhanced performance of these
devices.
LED material
Graphene is one of the revolution-
ary new materials that has emerged.
With the addition of graphene, LED
lights have a better brightness qual-
ity and are able to last 10 per cent
longer. Besides, graphene is effec-
tive in dissipating heat, and helps
in reducing energy use. Research-
ers say that the high conductivity
property of graphene makes the
light more bright, longer-lasting and
more efficient.
Smart LED bulbs
Smart LED bulbs are equipped with
various features, though every smart
bulb does not work in the same
manner. Different types of bulbs of-
fer different functions and work on
diverse formats. Some LEDs require
a hub to connect while some work
on Wi-Fi or Bluetooth. They can also
be connected to Amazon’s Alexa,
Google Assistant, Apple’s Homekit,
etc. With voice commands, they can
control home lighting with ease and
convenience. In most cases, smart
lighting systems do not need any new
or additional fixtures; the bulbs can
be screwed into the existing fixtures.
Based on recent developments in
the lighting industry, consumers will
soon be able to integrate LEDs into
security cameras, and other electronic
devices.
Going forward
Lighting has come a long way from
the intense white light emitted from
a regular tubelight or the dull yellow
light of an incandescent bulb. Today,
LEDs have changed the concept of
lighting. These changes are being
fuelled by constant technological
advances. The capital cost of LEDs
is much higher compared to con-
ventional lighting options, but the
price points are gradually dropping,
making these lights affordable and
accessible.
Besides, LEDs are available in
a wide range of designs, functions
and sizes, which make it possible to
use them in varied applications. As
per a report by technavio, the LED
market will grow by US$ 25.78 bil-
lion during the period 2020-2024. To
sum up, LEDs are slowly but surely
replacing traditional lights, and will
continue to do so at a quicker pace in
the future, thanks to the tech trends
listed above.
 LED
Bazaar Sourcing Mantra

Thermal management
solutions for LED displays
Digital LED signage is rapidly becoming mainstream due to its low power consumption.
Its life span and reliability are dependent on how its temperature is controlled, especially in
outdoor signage applications. If not properly managed, UV and IR rays from the sun can
pose a big risk for an outdoor digital screen. Indoor displays can also be prone to excessive
heat even in temperature-controlled environments, such as in an office or factory.

By Deepshikha Shukla

T
he right outdoor digital signage solution should
come equipped with the proper heating and
cooling elements, which have been expertly
designed to accommodate all screen sizes and in-
corporate precise thermal management technology.

The importance of thermal management

One of the biggest problems about LED signage is
maintaining its internal temperature within the optimal
temperature range, as the LED screen is often exposed
to harsh conditions such as the sun (solar loading),
dust, rain, smoke, steam, excessive temperatures, and
much more. These elements affect the performance and
longevity of digital LED signs.
Cooling solutions come in two basic forms—
passive and active. Passive cooling generates no
noise, doesn’t usually fail suddenly, and requires
no power source. Active cooling offers more rapid
and efficient temperature reduction, but there are
disadvantages linked to the size of the equipment,
power requirements, noise and cost. The most
popular active cooling solutions, fans and blowers, Thermostatic ventilation fan (Source: https://www.flickr.com/photos/headrotor/8638703827)
are widely used to increase the flow of air directly
above a heat-generating component or a passive cooling A similar method of enclosure cooling is to use a
device, such as a heat-sink. thermostatically-controlled mixing fan. This is often
There are four ways to manage digital screen heat used in conjunction with ventilation fans. It helps
build-up. circulate air within the enclosure to maintain an even
Proper placement of LED displays: Make sure the LED temperature within the LED signage unit and prevents
screen is installed where there are no obstructions in the ‘hot spots’. It also helps the enclosure dissipate tem-
display’s ventilation openings. The installation should allow perature to the external environment to cool the in-
the free movement of air in and out of the display and in ternal electronics. Thus, it reduces premature wearing
areas surrounding the unit. The ideal location should not out and part replacement costs for both outdoor and
only be visible to your audience but preferably be in an area indoor LED signs.
that will receive shade throughout the hot summer months. Most outdoor signage is fitted with either air condition-
Ventilation and thermostatically-controlled fans: ing/thermoelectric cooling or air-to-air heat exchangers,
Ventilation fans are generally used to cool an LED sign, as needed, because of relatively high heat dissipation re-
preventing it from internal temperatures that are damag- quirements. For lower heat generation levels, flow-through
ing. Systems that are well designed do not use these fans fan cooling is sufficient.
continuously but turn them on only when needed. A good Software thermal management: Thermal manage-
design allows fans to keep the system well within the rated ment algorithms ensure that the system is able to disperse
temperature range. heat away from the LEDs and power supplies, which in

70 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz

 LED
Bazaar Sourcing Mantra
Thermal Interface Materials (TIM)
Surface Temperature of the Package
Effect of thermal interface materials (Source: https://www.whatech.com/market-research/materials-chemicals/archive/557501-thermal-interface-materials-market-size-is-
projected-to-be-worth-usd-3-57-billion-by-2025)
turn keeps the digital sign running optimally for a longer
period of time.
For optimal heat management of an outdoor LED
display, the electrical components used should be smart.
A good system uses smart LED control devices to moni-
tor the temperature within the LED sign enclosure. It is
designed for setups where ventilation and mixing fans are
not enough to keep the LED signs’ internal temperature
within the operating range.
There are several factors that force LED signs to operate
at the high end of the temperature range for extended pe-
riods of time such as poor filter maintenance and extreme
content display, forcing the sign to run too brightly by not
allowing auto-dimming. In such instances, an LED sign
will need software based dimming to reduce the bright-
ness of the sign slightly. This reduces the electrical load
on the entire system, generating less internal heat and
thus, cools down the LED sign.
Thermal interface materials: The oldest and most
widely used passive heat transfer methods are heat-sinks
and heat spreaders. Typically, a heat-sink uses a thermally
conductive metal, such as aluminium or copper, which is
physically mounted to a heat-generating component. Heat
is transferred from the component to the heat-sink through
conduction and then dissipated through the heat-sink’s
surface into the ambient air via natural convection. Heat
spreaders are frequently applied as a backing plate to
printed circuit boards (PCBs) containing heat-generating
components to improve heat flow. All types of heat spread-
ers provide excellent temperature management.
Thermoelectric coolers (TECs) are thin and compact
devices typically inserted between a heat source and a
heat-sink to enable rapid heat dissipation. When voltage
is applied to a TEC, a temperature differential is formed
72 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz
Heat Sink
Package
Heat Source
Without TIM
(Direct Contact)
With TIM
between each side of the device, allowing heat transfer
to take place via conduction.
Heat pipes take advantage of their lower total thermal
resistance to shift heat from internal hot spots to less
critical areas, quickly and reliably. The heat generated
by a component boils the liquid at one end of the pipe,
which then travels down to the cool end. The vapour
quickly condenses and returns to the heated end of the
heat pipe via the capillary action of gravity. Heat pipes
are typically constructed out of a thermally conductive
metal that can either be laid flat or be bent into complex
shapes, which makes the approach highly suitable for use
in space-restricted PCBs.
A synthetic graphite sheet uses a new type of thermal
interface material made of polyimide. It is a thermally
conductive film with a unique lattice orientation designed
to dissipate the heat generated by the regular operation
of electronics into the environment, to improve their reli-
ability and prevent premature failure.
Thermally conductive interface pads with high ther-
mal conductivity and dielectric strength can be cut to fit
LED applications. A range of high-performance thermal
greases that are designed to provide efficient and cost-
effective transfer of thermal energy from the heat source
to the heat-sink is available to meet devices’ needs for
high power LEDs and more.
The design also plays an important role in effective
heat mitigation. Carefully planned PCBs, configured to
optimise thermal management, can lower internal tem-
peratures with little or no cost or performance overhead.
Adding extra layers of solid ground or power planes to a
PCB, connected directly to heat sources with multiple vias
between layers, is a technique that’s frequently used to
increase the effective surface area for heat dissipation.
 LED
News
LED
Bazaar

Tamil Nadu police continues drive to stop usage of

dangerous auxiliary LED headlights
A recent video posted on social media carries footage of police personnel of the Erode district in Tamil Nadu
breaking the illegally fitted after-market
auxiliary LED headlights. The police were
seen smashing these lights with hammers
and big stones of hundreds of such bikes that
had been seized. These auxiliary LED lights
can be extremely hazardous as they are over-
bright and are not designed to illuminate the
roads properly; instead, they hamper drivers
from seeing oncoming vehicles and the road
properly. According to the police, these lights
are illegal in India and vehicle owners can
also be fined for installing them. After-market
LED auxiliary lamps create a high-intensity
light, even creating flashes of light like Representational image

strobes. The police further clarified in the video that drivers can use these lights only on their private property
and not on public roads because they could cause temporary blindness to others on the road, leading to a
higher number of accidents.

Krish LED bags new
contract to install LED
streetlights in Odisha’s
rural areas
Domestic LED light manufacturer,
Krish LED, headquartered in
Bhubaneshwar, Odisha, offers a vast
range of LED solutions and products
that covers commercial lights,
industrial lights, outdoor lights,
streetlights and architectural lights
catering to the home as well as
business needs of customers. It also
offers solar lights, solar lanterns,
solar inverters, solar panel lights,
LED TVs and CCTV surveillance
systems. Recently, the company
bagged a contract to install LED
streetlights in the rural and semi-
urban areas of Odisha, at the block
and panchayat levels.

Acuity eldoLED launches

DALI-2 DT8 to support
multi-channel LED drivers
Acuity Brands Inc. announced that
eldoLED, a world leader in designing
and manufacturing intelligent drive
solutions for LED-based lighting
systems, has received the first Digital
Illumination Interface Alliance
(DiiA) certification for DALI Device
Type 8 (DT8) colour type Tc drivers.
Such drivers are generally multi-
channel products; yet, a single DALI
address and command stream will
control two or more driver outputs.
Solid-state lighting (SSL) systems
that use DT8 products typically have
Representational image precise and independent controls

74 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz


Representational image
of chromaticity and intensity in
channel outputs. Meanwhile,
eldoLED has already supplied the
DUALdrive DT8 drivers to a project
at the Form Groningen shopping
and entertainment facility in the
Netherlands. The Device Type 8
(DT8) designation means that a
single DALI input and address
will still enable complete control
of multi-channel LED drivers for
white-point and colour-tuneable
applications. Acuity has initially
implemented the DT8 capability in
the DUALDrive 562 model; such
a product may be referred to as a
DALI 209 driver, referencing the
Section 209 part of the standard
for testing and certifying colour-
tuneable drivers.
Signify provides rooftop
lighting to the new
Motera cricket stadium in
Ahmedabad
The Motera cricket stadium at
Ahmedabad, the world’s largest,
has been illuminated by 580
rooftop luminaires to support
night-time action and full HD
broadcasting. According to Signify,
the connected lighting systems
company responsible for the job,
the installation of the lights was
completed in January as a sub-
contractor to Larsen & Toubro,
the Mumbai-based construction
firm that completed the massive
expansion of the stadium. The
Signify lighting solution makes this
75 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz
the first cricket stadium in India
that will meet the broadcasting
standards set by ICC. Signify also
offers Internet-connected controls
networking technology known as
Interact Sports for such purposes,
and typically also uses centrally-
controlled LED scenes for outside
façade lighting. According to a
Signify spokesperson, the Motera
lighting project was strictly
restricted to field illumination.
Hackers can easily access
and hack Wi-Fi enabled
smart LED lights, say
experts
Wi-Fi lighting is one of the best
innovations in the smart home
industry. But, with technology
comes corporate responsibility.
Handling customer data and
keeping it safe is important but
it is a security practice that is
Representational image
commonly ignored. The security
concerns raised by industry experts
are related to the use of infrared
technology, which makes use of a
wave spectrum that can be remotely
controlled. Hackers can potentially
hack into the infrared network used
by home-owners to connect to their
Wi-Fi lighting and steal sensitive
information. Anything that is stored
in a computer connected to the same
Wi-Fi network as smart lights can be
potentially stolen. Smart lights were
scarce in the Indian market prior to
2019, but a sudden drop in prices
due to cheaper means of production
and increased awareness about the
products has led to wider adoption.
Smart bulbs currently account for
a global turnover of US$ 8 billion,
and this is expected to grow to
US$ 28 billion within the next nine
years. It is important to invest in
good security practices, and Indian
manufacturers are slowly addressing
the security concerns raised by
experts.
Youngsters from the Earth
Day Network replace
traditional streetlights with
LED lights in Kolkata
Youngsters from the Earth Day
Network (EDN) have replaced all the
traditional streetlights on Asutosh
Mukherjee Road in Kolkata with
sophisticated LED lights. According
to the local energy department
officials, this has made a huge
difference because one LED bulb
consumes less than 5 per cent of the
energy consumed by conventional
bulbs. The Kolkata Municipal
 LED
Bazaar News
Corporation has already commenced
replacing conventional streetlights
with modern LED lights across
different parts of the city. Ajay
Mittal, director, EDN, India and
South Asia, told TOI, “Our idea was
to do something to fight the climate
challenges in our small way. We
replaced 200W bulbs with 14W LED
bulbs, and made the hawkers pledge
to switch to LEDs.”
LED streetlight project to be
initiated in Jhajjar soon
Numerous important localities of
Jhajjar, Haryana, are now expected to
be lit up with smart LED streetlights.
The municipal corporation has
undertaken the task of replacing
conventional tubelights with LEDs,
and installing a total of 5,500 new
LED lights at different points in all 19
municipal wards of the city. To initiate
the project, around ` 15 million
will be spent by the municipality, a
move that will also reduce electricity
consumption of the area by almost
25 per cent. Currently, around ` 1.8
million is the electricity bill paid by
the municipal body for streetlights
alone. Numerous streets in Jhajjar
plunge into darkness after sunset as a
majority of the lights are out of order.
This new initiative will hopefully
change things for the better.
Deolali Cantonment Board in
Maharashtra to install 250
new LED streetlights
Deolali’s Cantonment Board has
finally started the process of
mending 3000 non-functional
streetlights in the cantonment area.
The officials of the board have
mentioned that along with repairing
the non-operational streetlights
they will also install around 250
new LED streetlights with poles at
numerous places in the city. Ajay
Kumar, the board’s chief executive
officer, said to the ET, “We have
started identifying the obsolete
streetlights and repairing them in
the cantonment area. This will make
commuting at night easier. There are
3,314 existing streetlight poles that
we are examining during the night
and repairing during the day in case
they are faulty.” The officials added
76 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz
that they would use more than ` 4
million for the repair, maintenance,
and installation of old and new LED
lighting.
Power theft and wastage
are the two major problems
of installing LED lights
India is home to over 27 million
streetlights. The use of LED street
lighting can lead to a massive drop
in power expenses and help the
country meet its energy demands.
But implementing LED lighting has
its fair share of problems. Power
theft and power wastage are the
two biggest problems that stand
in the way of implementing LED
street lighting. Currently, there are
no ways to calculate the amount of
electricity that is consumed by each
streetlight. There are no measures
to calculate the power usage per
phase in an area either. IoT and
analytics need to be implemented
to alleviate the problems of
power being siphoned off illegally
by citizens. Power wastage is
also a problem in the country.
There are no proper measures to
control streetlights either, that
are sometimes left on during the
day. This leads to an unnecessary
amount of power wastage. Yet
again, proper analytics tools can
be implemented to alleviate the
problems. If the right measures
are taken, Indian smart cities with
LED street lighting can be a cost-
efficient affair.
Representational image
LED market is growing
across the world
As people become more aware of
the rapidly growing energy crisis, the
adoption of energy-efficient products
has been on the rise. Moreover, the
governments of several countries
are also focusing on reducing their
consumption of energy. These factors
are leading to an increasing demand
for energy-efficient lighting solutions,
such as high-power light emitting
diodes (LED).
Several countries, such as
Australia, the US, China, and India,
have started focusing on projects that
will enable the complete transition of
their general lighting lamps, primarily
in outdoor lighting applications, to
LEDs. For example, as per the US
Department of Energy, the city of Los
Angeles saved approximately US$ 9
million annually by completing the
citywide street lighting replacement
programme, under which 215,000
LED streetlights were installed. As
per research conducted by P&S
Intelligence, in 2018, the global
high-power LED market reached a
value of US$ 12.65 billion and is
expected to grow at a 5.3 per cent
CAGR in the near future. The reason
for this is that LEDs are witnessing
large-scale adoption in several
applications—most commonly,
in outdoor and indoor lighting
systems in industrial, residential,
and commercial areas, such as retail
display lighting, architectural lighting
and channel lighting.
 New Products
LED
Bazaar

LED fixture
Orion Lighting has introduced its bacteria-fighting LED fixture for public areas, called the ISON LDRMH1.
The product features the Britex anti-microbial fixture coating, along with
an option to add VioSafe anti-microbial light technology. The Britex coating
inhibits the growth of bacteria, fungus, mold, and mildew on the lighting
fixture. The coating comes standard on its ISON LED retrofit modular
LDRMH1 fixture, which is targeted at healthcare and other at-risk facilities.
The VioSafe anti-microbial white light technology offers a continuous
24/7 disinfection option powered by patented technology from Orion’s
partner Vital Vio. This is an added option in the LDRMH1 product line.
VioSafe technology uses white light to continuously protect environments from harmful bacteria, keeping
occupants safe. Unlike UV lights which cannot be used when humans are present, VioSafe lights are
harmless to humans and animals and safe for continuous 24/7 usage. VioSafe technology is installed
in conjunction with conventional LED lighting systems and can be retrofitted in any facility seeking
continuous antimicrobial protection, as the technology integrates easily with existing network systems and
controls.
Mike Altschaefl, CEO of Orion, commented, “In response to growing customer awareness about the
potential environmental dangers, we are raising awareness about Orion’s innovative and proven solutions
to combat a range of bio-contaminants. We believe our Britex fixture coatings and VioSafe white light
technology provide compelling solutions for high risk, high traffic environments.”

Contact: www.orionlighting.com

UVC LEDs inputs. With its proprietary ON-BBL LED structure,

Crystal IS, a subsidiary of Asahi Kasei, has
announced production improvements to its Klaran
line of germicidal
UVC LEDs.
The advanced
technology will
enable manufacturers to apply germicidal UVC to
combat water, surface and airborne pathogens.
In addition to its existing Klaran 60mW UVC
LED, the company is adding a 70mW UVC LED for
immediate production use and an 80mW engineering
sample to its WD series. The company stated that the
new products were developed at an enhanced in-house
production facility, using lower forward voltage to
deliver a tighter wavelength specification of 260nm to
270nm, which is regarded as the ideal germicidal range.
“The completed production and technology
improvements fulfil the promise of Crystal IS’ proprietary
aluminium nitride substrates, and high yields of high
output devices at deep UV wavelengths,” said Eoin
Connolly, VP, product management, Crystal IS.
Contact: www.cisuvc.com
the colour range of ZIGEN’s tunable white COB LED
product, the ZG7BGXL5W00, is set from a 2000K sunset
colour temperature, preventing the middle colour from
becoming pinkish.
Luminaire manufacturers have to take care of the
Duv value (deviation from the BBL) in the middle colour
when designing a tunable white application by two
channels of warm white
LEDs and cool white
LEDs. Thus, the colour
temperature ranges in
most of the tunable
white LED applications
are set from 2700K or
above, where the BBL is
relatively straight.
Tomokazu Nada, CEO of ZIGEN Lighting Solution,
said, “A colour temperature range down to 2000K should
be necessary for human-centric lighting applications,
considering the market success in dim to warm LED
lighting and research in circadian rhythm lighting.”
Contact: www.zigenls.com

COB LED Human-centric LEDs

ZIGEN Lighting Solution has launched a tunable white Samsung Electronics has unveiled its first human-
COB LED product, which changes luminous colour centric LED packages, collectively known as LM302N.
following the blackbody locus (BBL) by two channel Engineered with carefully created light spectra, the

77 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz

 LED
Bazaar New Products
LM302N family helps human bodies adjust the
melatonin levels indoors, making people feel more
energetic or relaxed depending on their daily life
patterns.
“The benefits of using Samsung’s LM302N
reach beyond the basic lighting function of visual
recognition, by improving the non-visual biological
effects of lighting on people,” said Un Soo Kim, senior
vice president of the LED business team at Samsung
Electronics. He added, “Our LED solutions are
ushering in a whole new human-oriented approach
of using artificial lighting to enhance productivity and
relaxation, benefiting modern-day indoor lifestyles.”
LM302N uses precisely designed light spectra
with optimised amounts of cyan to accommodate
lighting needs to
the extent desired
at any given point
in time—the
LM302N DAY
improves alertness
and the LM302N
NITE enhances
relaxation.
Standardised at
3.0mm x 3.0mm, these offerings can fit in a wide
range of lighting fixtures and are protected against
humidity and heat.
According to Samsung, the LM302N DAY can
suppress the body’s melatonin level more than 18
per cent below that of conventional LED lighting.
The package is available in a variety of colour
temperatures from 3000K to 6500K for a diverse range
of indoor applications to enhance an individual’s
sense of wakefulness and energy levels. The LM302N
NITE can provide the appropriate level of brightness
without hindering the release of melatonin, helping
people to maintain their hormone levels as if they
were in a calm natural atmosphere at night. The body
releases about 5 per cent more melatonin under lights
with the LM302N NITE packages than conventional
LED packages, hence increasing relaxation.
Contact: www.samsung.com
Automotive LED lamp
Osram has introduced a new LED product, the Synios
P2720 converted red (CR), which improves driving
safety on
dull days
and provides
visibility under
dense fog. The
Synios P2720
provides many
benefits to
manufacturers
of rear
combination
78 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz
lamps, such as enabling more compact rear fog lamp
designs.
Both head lamps and rear combination lamps
require more compact and efficient components.
The new LED Synios P2720 CR LED addresses this
trend of miniaturisation. And in spite of its small
dimensions, it offers good performance.
Besides, the Synios P2720 CR addresses the
main issue with monochromatic LEDs for rear fog
applications. There is an enormous loss of brightness
(often called degradation) of about 50 per cent at
operating temperatures of 60°C - 70°C. The new
Synios P2720 CR can reduce this loss of brightness to
around just 10 per cent.
Contact: www.osram.com
LED driver
Upowertek has unveiled a new product—a 600W
compact constant current LED driver with 95 per
cent efficiency. The product’s size is only 237mm
x 125mm x 43mm, which the company claims is
as small as its competitors’ 480W driver in the
sport lights, bay lights, grow lights, and pole lights
markets.
This new 600W design covers an output current
from 2A up to 11A, and
supports a very wide
programming output range
to reduce SKUs. Users can
program the output current
plus other features by
using an NFC programmer
or smart cellphone.
The product boasts of a 100,000-hour life and
10kV surge protection to ensure reliability. Besides,
the flicker-free performance and low output current
ripple of < 5 per cent provide users with a steady
light output and comfortable environment. Isolated
dimming has also been included in this 600W design.
It still supports multiple dimming protocols including
‘dim-to-off’. Constant lumen output and NTC thermal
feedback are optional.
Contact: www.upowertek.com
LED based goniometers
Gamma Scientific has released its 940 LED-1200
series of goniometers. This product is optimised to
provide precise measurements of angle-dependent
spatial radiation properties of large LED luminaires,
lamps and modules, with models optimised for
measuring different sample sizes.
The 940 LED-1200 measures samples up to
1250mm in diameter and 30kg in weight, and complies
with CIE, DIN and IES standards. The product features
an angular range of ±160° on the horizontal and
vertical axes, with a 1mW, Class 2 alignment laser
mounted in the centre of the vertical axis.
 New Products LED
Bazaar

Complete goniometric years, etc. They support nominal

measurement systems light output optimised
vary by customer to align with traditional
requirements—two standard lamp standards. They also
options include the have optical and mechanical
Gamma Scientific GS-1220 consistency with previous
spectroradiometer with a 2m generations, enabling
flexible fibre-optic couple a seamless upgrade
and a cosine collector, or path leveraging existing
the UDT S400 flexOPM ecosystem components.
optical meter with a diffused The three series come with
photometric sensor. a broad range of COB sizes
and performance options from LES
Contact: www.gamma-sci.com 8mm to LES 29mm. In addition, the
products have improved alignment
LED chip-on-board products with industry standard drive currents, enabling the use
Bridgelux has launched its eighth generation of of economical LED drivers to further reduce costs.
LED chip-on-board (COB) products delivering up to Tim Lester, CEO of Bridgelux, said, “Bridgelux is
185lm/W across its V Series, Vero series and Vero SE a technology partner for our customers that remain
series of products at a nominal drive current. This committed to lighting. Our expanded portfolio further
performance is benchmarked at the popular 3000K enhances our ability to support our customers in
80 CRI colour point, with efficacies above 200lm/W navigating the market transition towards human-centric
possible at other colour points across the industry’s lighting—offering the right light, in the right place, at
broadest range of COB products, company sources the right time. We look forward to working with our
claim. customers to expand their product portfolios, ensuring
The products come with various features, such as innovative, market leading, lighting products.”
efficacy improvements of up to 10 per cent, up to 3x
overdrive capability, a standard warranty of up to 10 Contact: www.bridgelux.com

79 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz


Client name Page No.
Asian Electronics (www.asianelectronics.co.in)........................... 73
Bid Ocean Consultancy (www.bidocean.biz)............................... 80
Cirkit Electro Components Pvt. Ltd.............................................. 69
Componix India............................................................................ 71
Digi-Key Electronics (www.digikey.in)............................................ 5
Dolphin Electronics ..................................................................... 83
E Control Devices........................................................................ 82
EFY Group of Publications: Subscription Scheme........................ 7
advertisers’ index
Client name Page No. Client name Page No.
EMST Marketing Pvt Ltd (www.emstonline.com)........................ 15 Panasonic India Pvt. Ltd. 
Evolute Solutions Pvt. Ltd. (www.evolute.in)............................... 81 (https://industrial.panasonic.com/ww)..............................Gatefold
Heet Electro Devices................................................................... 73
Premier Industries....................................................................... 80
HK Wentworth (India) Pvt Ltd (www.electrolube.in)..................... 19
Rebutor Electronics Pvt Ltd......................................................... 21
IIE Semiconductors Pvt. Ltd. (www.iiespl.com)........................... 82
Sakthi Accumulators Private Ltd.................................................. 80
India Electronics Week................................................................ 85
SEKI Controls Co. Ltd. (www.sekicon.com)................................ 21
LWI Electronics Inc. (www.livewireinfo.com)............................... 23
National Controlling & Equipments.............................................. 83 Uniq Power Solutions (www.uniqbatteries.com).......................... 83

Electronics Industry Directory...................................................... 33 NMTronics India Pvt. Ltd. (www.nmtronics.com)...........Back Cover ViscoTec India Private Limited (www.viscotec-india.com)........... 11

Leading suppliers’ Index

Products Page No. Products Page No. Products Page No. Products Page No.
Batteries & Power Supplies Heet Electro Devices..................................... 73 NMTronics India Pvt. Ltd.................Back Cover PCBs, Assemblies & Sub Assemblies
Rebutor Electronics Pvt Ltd........................... 21 Cirkit Electro Components Pvt. Ltd................ 69 ViscoTec India Private Limited....................... 11 EMST Marketing Pvt Ltd................................ 15

Sakthi Accumulators Private Ltd.................... 80 LWI Electronics Inc........................................ 23

Uniq Power Solutions.................................... 83
Components (Including Active & Passive)
Componix India.............................................. 71
Digi-Key Electronics........................................ 5
Dolphin Electronics........................................ 83
Evolute Solutions Pvt. Ltd.............................. 81
SEKI Controls Co. Ltd................................... 21
Consumer Electronics & Appliances
Panasonic India Pvt. Ltd.......................Gatefold
Industrial & Manufacturing Equipment
National Controlling & Equipments................ 83
Materials (Including Chemicals &
Consumables)
HK Wentworth (India) Pvt Ltd........................ 19
Premier Industries......................................... 80
Optics & Optoelectronics
Asian Electronics........................................... 73
Reseller and Distributors
Componix India.............................................. 71
Digi-Key Electronics........................................ 5
IIE Semiconductors Pvt. Ltd.......................... 82
Test & Measurement Equipment (Including
Indicators & Monitors)
SEKI Controls Co. Ltd................................... 21

Organisations Covered in This issue

Companies
ABB India................................................. 14, 57
Acuity eldoLED.............................................. 74
Allegro MicroSystems,................................... 62
Amara Raja Electronics ................................ 12
Anritsu........................................................... 64
Astrum........................................................... 26
BAG Electronics Pvt Ltd.................................. 8
Best Power Equipments................................ 20
Binay Opto Electronics Pvt Ltd........................ 8
Bridgelux........................................................ 79
ChargePoint,.................................................. 57
Chunghwa Telecom ...................................... 14
CISUVC......................................................... 77
Deki Electronics Pvt Ltd................................... 8
Desai Electronics Pvt Ltd................................. 8
Digital Circuits Pvt Ltd..................................... 8
Electropreneur Park....................................... 31
Ericsson......................................................... 14
Flex India....................................................... 37
Flex Power Modules...................................... 64
Gamma Scientific.......................................... 79
Hero MotoCorp.............................................. 16
iNETest Technologies India Pvt Ltd............... 54
Insight SiP,..................................................... 65
Intel................................................................ 12
ITP Group........................................................ 8
ITW EAE........................................................ 52
Jabil India........................................................ 8
Jakson Group ............................................... 14
Juki India................................................... 8, 20
Keysight technologies...................................... 8
Krish LED...................................................... 74
Kwality Photonics Pvt Ltd................................ 8
Kyoritsy Electric (India) Pvt Ltd........................ 8
leaptech Corporation..................................... 46
Leviton Manufacturing,.................................. 57
Magenta Power................................. 57, 58, 52
MediaTek....................................................... 49
Mistral Solutuons................................. 8, 39, 63
Mycronic........................................................ 53
NMTronics India Pvt Ltd.................................. 8
Nokia....................................................... 12, 14
Nordson ASYMTEK................................. 53, 54
ON Semiconductor,....................................... 65
OnePLus........................................................ 16
Oppo.............................................................. 16
Orion Lighting................................................ 77
Osram............................................................ 79
Philips Lumileds............................................... 8
Rabyte Electronics Pvt Ltd............................ 35
Rashmi Rare Earth Limited........................... 20
RECOM................................................... 62, 63
RFMW..................................................... 62, 65
Rohde & Schwarz India Pvt Ltd....................... 8
Rosy Electronics.............................................. 8
Sahasra Electronics......................................... 8
Salom Electric ............................................... 12
Samsung................................................. 16, 77
Schneider Electric,......................................... 57
SGS Tekniks Manufacturing Pvt Ltd................ 8
Siemens AG................................................... 57
Siglent Technologies...................................... 62
Signify............................................................ 75
Silicon Lanbs................................................. 63
SLN Technologies Pvt Ltd............................... 8
STMicroelectronics,................................. 63, 63
Tata Power..................................................... 14
Tesla.............................................................. 57
Texas Instruments......................................... 64
Traco Power.................................................. 65
TransTechnology..................................... 40, 53
UNISOC......................................................... 44
Upowertek..................................................... 79
XNRGI .......................................................... 10
ZIGEN Lighting Solution................................ 77
People
Christopher J. Fussner................................ 40
Eric Zhou.................................................... 44
Kuldeep Malik............................................. 49
Manish Misra............................................... 42
Manoj Kumar Pansari.................................. 26
Maxson Lewis,............................................ 58
Paul Galota................................................. 59
Pawan Munjal............................................. 16
Praveen Madan .......................................... 22
Praveer Sinha............................................. 14
Rajeev Ramachandra................................. 38
Rajiv Batra.................................................. 34
Rohit Suri.................................................... 14
Sanjeev Chopra.......................................... 31
Sekaran Letchumanan................................ 36
Sundeep Gupta........................................... 14
Sunil Patwari............................................... 24
Suresh Nair................................................. 46

Infineon technologies............................... 64, 64 Panasonic India............................................. 42 Victor Component Systems Pvt Ltd................. 8 Tommi Uitto................................................. 12

84 • Electronics Bazaar • May 2020 • https://ebmag.biz