The market for ac-dc power supplies will continue to grow, but the rate and trajectory of that growth are being altered by numerous factors. In the near term, growth will slow as result of the current economic downturn. However, the impact of todays economic troubles will vary widely from potentially devastating to hardly noticeable, depending on the specific market segment and product category being considered. One of the accomplishments of this current analysis is to identify the varying intensities of these changing economic dynamics. Critical and often subtle longer-term trends are also identified and discussed.
Among the areas examined in this report are the technology, architecture and packaging trends affecting the industry, as well as a thorough discussion of new and emerging technologies and materials, potential threats and the latest regulatory developments and standards. Over 25 tables, graphs and illustrations are presented depicting a variety of power system schematics and comparisons, architectural standards, product introductions, packaging solutions, efficiency standards and other relevant information. The focus of this comprehensive analysis provides decision makers with an insightful look into the current and future opportunities and threats available in the embedded ac-dc power supply market.
Executive Summary
Over the next few years, ac-dc power supplies will represent a faster growth opportunity than board-mounted dc-dc converter modules. This is a major development and marks a significant departure from past patterns. Historically, power converter makers have turned to dc-dc converter modules for high growth rates. That will no longer be possible. As a result of numerous factors, ac-dc power supplies now represent a better long-term growth opportunity than dc-dc converter modules (see Graphs 1-3).
Despite a global economic slowdown, the outlook for the worldwide embedded ac-dc power supply market is expected to remain strong. Evolving powering architectures, packaging trends, and global standards for improvements in energy efficiency are combining with developments in advanced components and new markets for ac-dc power and to create new opportunities for makers of ac-dc power supplies.
Two particularly significant technological and architectural trends include the continued move towards single-output power supplies and the further adoption of front-end power supplies. Evidence of this can be seen in the complexity of todays electronics applications, which use an increasing number of voltage rails, making multiple-output power supplies impractical in many devices. This can be seen in applications ranging from personal computers and plasma TVs to servers and Ethernet switches. Higherend devices present even more opportunities, as modern telecommunications and data communications are deploying ac front ends as the primary means of converting ac mains voltage to the more useable voltages required by logic devices, auxiliary/peripheral devices, and/or alternate point-of-load regulators and dc-dc converters. Hot swap capability and the need to parallel ac-dc front ends for redundancy in mission critical facilities will also act as a driving factor.
The emergence of LED lighting as a major application area is another instance where single-output power supplies will have a strong positive impact on the market. More and more often, high-power LEDs are leaving their niche in small displays and are used in mainstream lighting applications requiring power levels of 100W or greater. At the same time, demand for lower-wattage LED power supplies will also remain strong. Given this increasing demand for LED lighting applications, a growing number of companies are introducing ac-dc power supplies designed exclusively for high-brightness LED lighting applications.
Digital power management and control have also made significant strides in ac-dc power supplies over the past several years. Digitally controlled architectures for power conversion and power management have emerged as an accepted technology. Used primarily in higher-end applications, digital power has created a number of new design opportunities. Digital power is also more efficient in applications featuring power factor correction, because these applications often require voltage and current profiling and are better implemented in digital rather than in analog. Digital power conversion has become a mainstream technology and is being used as a source of product differentiation by more and more makers of ac-dc power supplies.
