Makers of 7-segment LED displays eye smart home applications

Initiatives for the 7-segment display line in China are directed at boosting SMD output and emphasizing customization to cash in on the home automation trend.

Mainland China suppliers of 7-segment LED displays are angling for terminal applications in the home spawned by the Internet of Things, in addition to traditional markets in household appliances, instruments and advertising. They continue to highlight manufacturing flexibility to disparate requirements and complement this with further product improvements.

Companies are boosting output for SMD types to update their predominantly DIP selections and pursuing greater miniaturization. On the agenda are units with a profile of less than 4mm. Some makers have started presenting such superthin models. Shenzhen Zhengmian can offer variants as slim as 3mm. Dongguan Tongcan has a range of common-anode kinds measuring 19x12.4x3.75mm.

Customization will still be the underlying factor driving R&D efforts as this strategy continues to win orders. More than 60 percent of shipments of local enterprises are based on OEM and ODM projects. For suppliers such as Shenzhen Guangzhibao Technology Co. Ltd, deliveries are entirely of OEM and ODM products.

This manufacturing approach is expected to hold in the years ahead, especially as applications and corresponding specifications emerge in the electronics industry. The home automation trend, in particular, is anticipated to expand opportunities that are already available in established markets such as household appliances for the 7-segment LED display segment.

Besides openness to customization, domestic companies have signified production readiness for any increase in demand. Some have been bolstering output by 5 percent annually and foresee this rate in one or two years more. Xiamen Hualian Electronics Co. Ltd targets about 10 percent rise in yield in 2018, anticipating a higher volume of shipments overseas. The majority of local suppliers export products mainly to Europe, the US and Asia.

More than 300 companies make up the manufacturing segment for 7-segment LED displays in the mainland. The category has between 10 and 80 percent share of deliveries, which for all enterprises also include SMD LEDs, and LED modules and displays.

Over two-thirds of the suppliers are locally owned and the rest have outside investment, mainly from Hong Kong and Taiwan. Most congregate in the electronics hubs such as Guangdong, Zhejiang and Jiangsu provinces, with half of the total in the first area.

Competition is particularly intense, keeping new players from joining and forcing some small enterprises to exit the line.