EPN Automotive Electronics Blog

In the aftermarket

Modern cars are practically heaps of electronic components, and various interfaces allow for diagnostic access of the subsystems. One of the consequences is that it has become increasingly difficult to conduct even small repairs yourself, another is a booming service tools market. A market everyone wants a share of.

Between sun and light

Remember the development of the Laser? At first, it was a »solution looking for a problem«, then it replaced traditional components and today, most of modern technology wouldn’t be possible without it. The OLED – organic LED – seems to be on a similar track; since these are not the sixties however, it’s going much faster and the categories blur. The thin lines between nonsense, good idea and outstanding innovation are hard to make out, even when you’re looking up to your car’s roofliner.

The second world strikes back

We got used to car and semiconductor manufacturing migrating from Europe to China, and subcontractors and EMS providers moving to obscure post-soviet states. A few years ago, Chinese companies started building infrastructure in Africa in a way, legions of western development workers weren’t able to, European and US governments ask for financial help and now the unheard-of happens: a Chinese car manufacturer opens a plant in a European low-wage country.

Ethernet drive

Happy new year, dear readers - welcome to the future! One vision of the future is the ‘connected car’, and many drivers seem to want that. As consumer demand for in-vehicle connectivity continues to grow, automotive manufacturers are under pressure to deliver competitive, innovative features while minimizing cost. A major stumbling block is cabling - it’s heavy, difficult to design and expensive.