From the receiver to the transmitter to analyze the wireless charging chip industry

Apple's iPhone X, iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus are all equipped with a wireless charging function that enables up to 7.5 watts of charging power using Qi wireless technology. Samsung has promoted wireless charging since the Galleon Galaxy S6, and later the Galaxy S/edge and Galaxy Note smartphones have integrated wireless charging capabilities. At the end of 2017, the M7 Plus announced by Jin Li joined the wireless fast charging function, charging power up to 10W. We expect Xiaomi, Huawei, VIVO, OPPO and other domestic brands of mobile phones will closely follow the pace of Apple innovation, one after another in the next generation flagship machine to join the wireless charging function.

Four catalysts advance together, and wireless charging usher in an inflection point:

Wireless charging scenes for consumer electronics such as mobile phones have been formed. Wireless charging standards have gradually converged and wireless charging technologies have gradually matured. Samsung's flagship computers have introduced wireless charging functions. These four factors will jointly catalyze the inflection point in the mobile wireless charging industry. According to IHS, there will be 325 million wireless charging products in 2017. The global wireless charging market will grow from 1.7 billion USD in 2015 to 15 billion USD in 2024, with a compound annual growth rate of 27%.

The industrial chain gradually matured and the division of labor was clear. The coil scheme became mainstream:

The wireless charging includes the transmitting end or the receiving end, and the industrial chain mainly includes several links such as the design of the scheme, the power chip, the magnetic material, the transmission coil, and the module manufacturing. The design of the program is usually made by the terminal manufacturer. The design of the solution plant is very difficult. The chip link refers to the power management chip, which has high requirements for the design and manufacture of the chip. The magnetic material can increase the magnetic flux on the one hand, and can achieve magnetic shielding on the other hand. At present, magnetic materials commonly used include ferrite, nanocrystalline and the like. The transmission coil needs to be built into the terminal, which has high requirements for low loss and thinning. With the iPhone converting from FPC to dense coil, the coil scheme is expected to become mainstream. Modules are less difficult to manufacture, but they have higher requirements for thinness and miniaturization.

Many domestic manufacturers cut into coils, magnetic materials and modules :

In the aspect of program design, currently there are many overseas manufacturers, and it is very difficult. The domestic letter-dimensional communication has strong power in the field of consumer electronic wireless charging. In terms of power management chips, overseas giants such as Qualcomm, TI, Intel, and IDT are the main players. In terms of magnetic materials, Japan's TDK, Murata, and Sun Yutaka have strong strengths. Domestic Hengdian East Magnetic also has strong strength. In the transmission coil segment, domestic Lixin Precision, Xinwei Communication, and Socket have strong competitiveness, and Dongshan Precision has advantages in the new FPC field. In the module link, domestic Lixin Precision and Xinwei Communications all have mass production capabilities. In addition, Tanaka Seiki can supply wireless charging coil winding equipment, and Tony Electronics can supply copper wires for wireless charging coils.

1. The brand manufacturers have been in succession, wireless charging trend

1.1, Apple 8/X supports wireless charging, domestic brands quickly follow up

The latest iPhone released by Apple on September 13, 2017 includes three new products, the iPhone X, the iPhone 8 and the iPhone 8 Plus. All of them are equipped with a wireless charging function. With Qi wireless technology, a maximum of 7.5 watts of charging power can be achieved. Not only can the three iPhones and Apple Watch be wirelessly charged, AirPods also have wireless charging capabilities. Belkin and Mophie have also developed two new wireless chargers specifically for the iPhone.

In addition, Apple officially released the new Air Power charging pillow, which will be available in 2018. The Air Power charging pillow can charge up to three compatible devices at the same time, such as the latest iPhone, Apple Watch, and Air Pods, and it doesn't need to be in a fixed position when charging, just place them anywhere on the surface of the charging pillow. .

In fact, wireless charging was firstly focused on by the market. The new Apple Watch was launched in September 2014 by Apple. It uses the MagSafe magnetic charging method to charge wirelessly. Users only need to attract the bottom of the watch to the charging base to charge the watch. No data interface will appear. Since then, wireless charging has become the standard for wearable devices in order to eliminate the unattractive charging holes and reduce the chance of entering water or dust.

Samsung is the representative of wireless charging for smart phone applications. Samsung has been fully promoting wireless charging since the Galaxy S6. The Galaxy S/edge and Galaxy Note smart phones have integrated wireless charging functions and become an important aspect of Samsung smartphones. Samsung's new series of display products (SE370) integrates a mobile wireless charging module on its base. In addition, Sony Xperia Z4v, Google Nexus 6, Motorola Droid Turbo, Nokia Lumia 930, YotaPhone 2, OPPO Find 9 all use wireless charging.

With Apple's Samsung mobile phone supporting wireless charging, it will further catalyze the application of wireless charging in mobile phones, and mainstream mobile phone manufacturers will quickly follow up. On the evening of November 26, 2017, the M7Plus announced by Jin Li joined the wireless fast charging function, charging power up to 10W.

In addition, we expect Xiaomi, Huawei, VIVO, OPPO and other domestic brands of mobile phones will closely follow the pace of Apple innovation, one after another in the next generation flagship machine to join the wireless charging function. According to the wireless charging research institute, the Huawei P11 and Xiaomi 7 to be released in 2018 will be equipped with wireless charging functions.

1.2. The four major catalysts advance together and the wireless charging industry usher in a turning point

In addition to Apple's Samsung leading the trend, mobile phone and other consumer electronics wireless charging scene has been formed, the gradual integration of wireless charging standards and the gradual maturity of wireless charging technology, these four factors will jointly catalyze the mobile phone wireless charging industry usher in an inflection point.

Consumer electronics wireless charging scenarios such as mobile phones have been formed. In addition to IKEA's desk lamp base, Starbucks bar, and family convenience store, which can wirelessly charge mobile phones, according to AppleInsider reports, at the end of 2017, Apple released a new supporting document that lists car brands that are compatible with the iPhone 8 wireless charger. Including Audi, BMW, Chrysler, Ford, Honda, Mercedes-Benz, Peugeot Citroen, Toyota, Volkswagen and Volvo. In addition, the latest ES8 released by Weilai Motor also features the WPC Qi wireless charging function, which can be used to charge Apple, Samsung and other flagship models.

Wireless charging standards gradually converge, from the three pillars to the two strong patterns. At present, the mainstream wireless charging routes on the market include electromagnetic induction, magnetic resonance, radio wave, and electromagnetic coupling. The most commonly used methods are electromagnetic induction and magnetic resonance. At present, the most widely used mobile phones are magnetic induction and magnetic resonance, but the microwave mode may be a wireless charging method for the future world.

WPC and AirFuel have formed two strong formats for wireless charging standards. After years of development, wireless charging technology has formed three major standards organizations, namely A4WP, PMA and WPC. The Qi Standard launched by WPC was established in 2008. It is the earliest organization in the industry, with the largest number of users and members, and it is in the leading position of commercialization. Both PMA and A4WP were established in 2012 and are relatively backward. In the three camps, A4WP uses magnetic resonance technology and WPC and PMA use magnetic induction technology. The WPC uses an electromagnetic wave frequency of 100-205 kHz, while the PMA uses an electromagnetic wave with a frequency of 277-357 kHz.

In 2015, A4WP and PMA announced their merger and changed their name to the AirFuel Alliance, joining hands to fight the wireless charging market. At this point, the debate on wireless charging standards has also evolved from a three-footprint (WPC, A4WP, PMA) pattern to a two-strong competition (WPC, AirFuel).

The WPC Alliance’s Qi standard requires a charging pad, which then needs to be aligned to charge. In terms of user experience, the alignment and insertion lines are similar. The standards of the AirFuel Alliance, led by Qualcomm and Intel, hope to be charged on a large scale, but the technology is immature and there is no product adoption yet. The WPC Alliance is currently the mainstream technology direction, and may be improved into the AirFuel Alliance in the future. The technical characteristics of the free position. The size of the WPC alliance is now large. At the same time, in February 2017, Apple joined the WPC Alliance, bringing many products closer to the WPC team, including applications such as Audi and BMW, and home product applications.

Technical problems such as efficiency, power, heat generation, and ultra-thinness have gradually been overcome. At present, Ti, IDT, and Panasonic introduce a molding solution that can achieve a charging current of 800mA and an efficiency of 70% or more with an appropriate induction coil. Multi-modeling reduces the threshold of industrialization without changing the two major standards. Qualcomm, Intel, MediaTek and other processor manufacturers, Texas Instruments, Broadcom, IDT and other independent fabs, as well as Zhi Shen and Shi Yan, and other module manufacturers, are promoting the multi-mode wireless charging system compatible with magnetic induction and magnetic resonance receivers. The chip (SoC) is looking forward to seizing the business opportunities in the wireless charging market.

High power reduces charging time and improves user experience. The existing multi-mode chips have already supported the maximum output power exceeding 7W, and the Qi standard has achieved continuous breakthrough from 5W to 9W to 15W. At present, Samsung S8 supports 9W wireless charging, Apple's new machine supports 7.5W charging, and the future table wireless charging power will be further improved.

In addition, high-quality magnetic separators can effectively shield magnetic flux, prevent eddy current generation, and reduce heat generation problems; the application of ultra-thin coils, flexible ferrite, and FPC can further reduce the thickness of wireless charging modules.

It is estimated that by 2024, the scale of the wireless charging market will reach 15 billion U.S. dollars. According to the IHS data, in 2016, global wireless charging receivers shipped more than 200 million products, of which more than 160 million were shipped from smartphone-related receivers, and more than 80 million wireless charging transmitters were placed with them. It is estimated that there will be 325 million wireless charging products in 2017, among which there are about 300 million smartphones, and Qi wireless technology is used in its wireless charging function. In addition, the launch end has a scale of about 75 million. It is estimated that by 2020, the wireless charging receiver will exceed 1 billion units in shipment volume, and the launch terminal will reach a scale of about 500 million units in 2021. According to IHS forecasts, the global wireless charging market will grow from 1.7 billion U.S. dollars in 2015 to 15 billion U.S. dollars in 2024, with a compound annual growth rate of 27%.

2. The industrial chain gradually matures, and domestic manufacturers cut into the coil magnetic module

Wireless charging is divided into transmitter and receiver. The transmitter includes chips, oscillators, power amplifiers, coils, PCBs, passive devices, electronic transformers, and structural components. The receiver can be divided into two major parts: chip and module.

The wireless charging industry chain mainly includes design, power chips, magnetic materials, transmission coils, and module manufacturing. Power chips, magnetic materials, and transmission coils are the three most important parts of the entire wireless charging product, whether it is technology content or product added value is relatively high. In contrast, the technological content of the module manufacturing process is relatively low, and the manufacturing process is not much different from other electronic components. Domestic manufacturers have always had advantages in this aspect and can quickly enter.

The main profit centers in the wireless charging industry are program design companies and power management chip vendors. Among them, the profit of scheme design company reached 32%, the profit of power management chip company accounted for 28%, the profit of magnetic material company accounted for 20%, the profit of transmission coil company accounted for 14%, and the module manufacturer The proportion of profits is only 6%. If the calculation is made by the transmitting end and the receiving end, then the profit is mainly in the transmitting end, and the profit of the transmitting end accounts for more than 60%, while the profit of the receiving end accounts for only about 30%.

2.1. Chips: Multi-model development, monopoly of foreign manufacturers

The power chip mainly includes a transmit end Tx and a receive end Rx chip, and Tx is responsible for sending the input power to the other party according to the radio signal of a specific frequency band (Qi, PMA, A4WP specifies different frequency bands), and Rx is responsible for converting the radio signal into electric energy. This completes the charging process.

At present, IDT has been able to provide various standard solutions such as Qi, PMA, Qi+PMA, and Airfuel; TI was primarily based on the Qi standard and currently supports the Qi1.2 standard. It also provides the WPC protocol's transmit end. Receiver and PMA receiver solutions; MTK has corresponding solutions for WPC's Qi standard and Airfuel's Rezence standard.

Whether it is the receiving end or the transmitting end, the chip market is mainly monopolized by foreign chip manufacturers, such as Qualcomm, Broadcom, TI, IDT, NXP, and Taiwan's MTK. For example, the Samsung S7 uses the IDTP9035A chip as the transmitter control chip. The receiver uses the IDTP9221 chip. According to the report of charge head network, it is expected that Xiaomi and Huawei will also adopt the IDT wireless charging scheme. The iPhone 8 wireless charging transmitter chip is provided by the TI company. It is worth mentioning that on the receiving end, the chips of processors such as Qualcomm and MTK are integrated in the processor, while IDT, NXP, TI, and Broadcom are mainly used as a single chip. The receiver chips for iPhone X, iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus are supplied by Broadcom.

2.2. Charging coil: single-coil to multi-coil transmitter, receiver FPC to dense

Both the receiving end and the transmitting end of the wireless charging need a charging coil, and the receiving end requires more volume, and the transmitting end considers more power and heat dissipation. The receiving end coils are divided into FPC and copper wire wound coils, in which the FPC is relatively thinner and smaller in size, but the power is low, and the copper wire winding scheme product size is larger, but it can achieve higher power, charging efficiency Also higher.

The number of transmitter coil layers is divided into single layers and multilayer layers. The coils are divided into single coils and multiple coils, and the magnets mainly include soft magnets and permanent magnets. By using a magnetic attraction scheme to improve alignment accuracy, the coverage of wireless charging is increased by increasing the full size and number of lines.

The Samsung S8 receiver adopts the FPC+ coil scheme and the transmitter adopts the copper wire winding scheme. The Samsung launcher upgraded from the original Samsung S6 5W to Note5 9W, and then upgraded the single-coil design to the S7 dual-coil 9W design until the newly released S8 again upgraded to a three-coil design, implementing a foldable wireless charging board design. Consumer wireless charging experience is more convenient.

Apple iPhone 8/X wireless charging receiver uses the FPC+ coil solution. Apple's upcoming Air Power charging pillow can support multiple devices to charge. It is speculated that there should be multiple coils inside. These coils cover most of the charging area. In 2018, Apple's next-generation iPhone wireless charging receiver is expected to use the coil scheme.

The design and manufacture of wireless charging transmission coils are closely related to the wireless charging efficiency. The design of the coil needs close cooperation with the upstream and downstream, and has a very high customer customization characteristics. The main barriers to entry are the level of precision machining and the ability to connect upstream and downstream.

Good foreign companies that coils do include TDK, MURATA (Murata), Panasonic, etc. Representatives of domestic companies include Lixun Precision, Xinwei Communication, and Sunlord Electronics. In addition, CNC winding equipment is needed in the manufacturing process of coils. In this regard, Tanaka Seiki's products have a close level of processing and can meet the needs of customization.

2.3, magnetic material: soft and ultra-thin ferrite or nanocrystalline

The magnetic materials mainly used in wireless chargers include: NdFeB permanent magnets, NiZn ferrite thin magnetic sheets, MnZn ferrite thin magnetic sheets, flexible ferrite magnetic sheets, and various kinds of magnetic ferrite materials As a main component of the wireless charging technology, a magnetic separator plays a role in increasing the induced magnetic field and the shielding coil interference in the wireless charging device. The wireless charger has higher requirements on soft ferrite material performance, product size and reliability, and the receiving end has higher requirements.

According to the placement mode of the receiving end, the wireless charging transmitting end is divided into a fixed position type, a single coil free position type, and a multi-coil free position type. The requirements for the ferrite products of these emission terminals are not the same.

Fixed-position chargers use NdFeB permanent magnets for positioning. Terminal devices need to be placed in a fixed location for charging and maximum charging efficiency. The Qi design delineates this kind of design working frequency in 110kHz~205kHz. The fixed-position charger has a relatively high resonant frequency, and the general-purpose charger has a NiZn ferrite sheet with small loss and good high-frequency magnetic shielding effect as a magnetic separator.

The coil inside the single-coil, free-position charging device has a driving device that can move in the plane. It automatically detects the placement of the terminal device and moves the coil to this position, so that the position of the coil is consistent with the terminal receiving position. In order to achieve charging and improve the charging efficiency, this type of design allows the terminal to be charged anywhere on the charging board. The Qi scale defines the operating frequency of this type of charger as 140 kHz. Because the coil needs to move, the magnetic separator is required to have high reliability. Therefore, the magnetic separator is generally applied to a flexible magnetic sheet produced by a casting process.

The multi-coil, free-position charger can charge multiple terminals at the same time, and has multiple coils arranged inside. These coils cover most of the charging area. Thus, the terminal can be placed relatively freely on the charging stand, and the charger will automatically select several coils that can efficiently transmit power. Qi-scale delineation, multi-coil free position type charger operating frequency of 105kHz ~ 113kHz, separator magnetic separator with high Bs and low loss characteristics of MnZn power materials.

In addition to ferrite, iron-based amorphous and nanocrystalline can also be used for wireless charging. Both MnZn ferrites and iron-based amorphous and nanocrystals can be used at the emitting end or the receiving end, while NiZn ferrites are only suitable for the receiving end. The magnetic permeability and charging efficiency of iron-based amorphous and nanocrystalline materials are higher than that of ferrites, and they can be soft and ultra-thin, which has great potential for application in wireless charging in the future.

In addition, magnetic materials may also serve as a positioning function in wireless charging, that is, magnetic induction wireless charging. For example, the Apple watch's charging head and watch have a small magnet inside. The purpose of the small magnet is mainly to locate, so that the charger and watch can be more accurately aligned.

Magnetic materials are highlighted by Japan's TDK, Murata, Murawa, Amotech and Taiyo Electric Co., etc. Domestic Hengdian East Magnetics, Xinwei Communications, and Sunlord Electronics are relatively strong. Hengdian Dongxu and TDK are suppliers of ferrite cast sheets for Apple's new wireless charging function. Samsung is the first company in the industry to use nanocrystals as a shielding material and is supplied by Hitachi and German companies.

2.4, module manufacturing: low barrier at the transmitter, test design at the receiver

Since the size and material of the emitter (charging board) are not limited and the barriers are very low, there are many manufacturers who can do it. The technical content and added value of the transmitter module manufacturing are relatively low, and it is the easiest link to enter. Lixun Precision, Xinwei Communication, Masterbatch, Sunlord Electronics and several foundries can complete it.

Under the trend of thin and light smartphones, the internal space of mobile phones is getting smaller and smaller, and the integration of components has become higher and higher. This has imposed higher requirements on the design of mobile component manufacturers and the level of integrated manufacturing. The receiver module requires a small size and high integration. When designing, the interior electromagnetic compatibility of the mobile phone must be taken into account. The design of the mobile phone housing must also be taken into account. Therefore, it is difficult to design and manufacture the module. In terms of the manufacturing of receiver modules, Lixun Precision and Xinwei Communications have integrated advantages.

Samsung S7, S8 receiver is "NFC + MST payment + wireless charging" triple wireless charging module, which can simultaneously achieve wireless charging and Samsung pay features, and Samsung pay is using NFC / MST two communication trading technology.

3, related to the subject

Wireless charging scenes for consumer electronics such as mobile phones have been formed. Wireless charging standards have gradually converged and wireless charging technologies have gradually matured. Samsung's flagship computers have introduced wireless charging functions. These four factors will jointly catalyze the inflection point in the mobile wireless charging industry.

3.1. Xinwei Communication: RF Antenna Faucet, Samsung Wireless Charging Vendor

The company is the leader of the smartphone antenna and has a clear logic of growth. In the short-term, the company's horizontal depth layout based on the antenna will increase the value of the terminal. The antenna design of mobile phone manufacturers has gradually changed from a single antenna to a MIMO antenna or even an array antenna. The standalone value of the antenna in mobile phones will obviously increase. In addition, the company has deployed radio frequency isolation, RF connectivity, NFC wireless charging modules, audio, and filter product lines around the antenna to achieve a tenfold increase in standalone value. At the same time, the company's product line is also actively infiltrating the tablet and laptop terminals, the value of which is many times higher than the mobile phone antenna.

In terms of wireless charging, the company cuts into magnetic materials and transmission coils, and at the same time exerts its integration advantages to cooperate with terminal manufacturers and chip manufacturers to complete the program design, and is responsible for the final module manufacturing. At present, the company is already one of the Samsung S8 wireless charging suppliers.

Looking at 5G for a long time, Xinwei Communication has completed the entire industrial chain layout from antenna to RF, from passive to active, from materials to technology, which will lay a solid technical foundation for Xinwei Communication in the 5G era, allowing Xinwei to lead the company. The advantage is more obvious.

The company will benefit from the increase in the value of the single-ended smartphone antenna. Based on this, the company's pre-depth layout of RF isolation devices, acoustics, NFC, wireless charging, and filters will continue to blossom.

3.2, Lixun Precision: connector leader, wireless charging has first-mover advantage

Lixun Precision is a technology-oriented company. The company focuses on the development, production and sales of cables and connectors. The products are mainly used in 3C (computers, communications, consumer electronics) and automotive, medical and other fields.

The company’s core product PC connectors have established a leading position. Desktop PC connectors cover more than 20% of the world's desktop PCs and rapidly expand the production of notebook PC connectors. Meanwhile, the company is gradually entering automotive connectors, communication connectors and high-end consumption. In the field of electronic connectors, the new product market was expanded and its own competitive advantage was established.

As early as 2015, the company began mass production of wireless charging products, with a first-mover advantage. As wireless penetration continues to increase in the smart phone industry, we expect wireless charging business will bring greater performance increase to the company.

3.3, Sunlord Electronics: Chip inductors, charging coils have significant advantages

Sunlord Electronics is the largest chip inductor manufacturer in China. The product line focuses on multilayer chip inductors and wound chip inductors. Through the series layout, the company is gradually changing from a simple electronic component supplier in the past to an overall solution provider offering higher integration. The company's product line extends to varistors, LTCC products, electronic transformers, NFC magnetic disks, wireless charging coil components, etc., and is widely used in communications, consumer electronics, computers, LED lighting, security, smart grid, medical equipment and automobiles. Electronics and other fields.

The chip inductor business industry has a competitive environment, and the growth momentum is transformed from the increase in the downstream product volume to a double-click increase in the number of downstream single-machine inductance applications and value, and the development of new downstream areas. The company took advantage of the substitution trend of localization of electronic components, continuously expanded its production capacity, and its market share continued to increase.

The progress of automotive electronics is very smooth. This is an important growth point in the coming years. The company’s electronic transformers have received orders from Bosch, Valeo and Waterma and will be available in the second half of 2017.

Wireless charging is a potential flash point for the company. The company laid out in advance and made adequate preparations for the transmission coil segmentation. The company focuses on the development of ultra-thin wireless charging coils. The advantages of Sunlord in the coil scheme are very obvious. It can be widely used in smart wearables, mobile phones and other fields. It is expected that it will start supplying domestic brands in 2018.

As a leader of chip inductors, the company continues to expand its product lines, and its automotive electronic transformers are progressing smoothly. The company has deployed wireless charging coils.

3.4, Tanaka Seiki: Wireless charging coil automatic winding equipment supplier

The company is a provider of automation system integration solutions based on CNC automated winding equipment. Directly downstream is the manufacture of inductors and other electronic components. At the end of 2016, the company acquired and invested in the domestic first-line Jing Diao Machine Co., Ltd. by way of cash payment to expand its consumer electronics equipment business.

Ocean's precision carving machine performance and 3D glass bending technology are all ahead of industry standards. Thanks to the expansion of glass manufacturers under the trend of double-sided glass and 3D glass, the company's carved machine sales are expected to increase further. Ocean Xiangrui has completed the research and development of 3D glass bending machines and has reached mass production requirements. Currently, it has obtained sales orders. As the downstream 3D glass gradually becomes mainstream on smart phones, the bending machine is expected to become the next important growth point of performance. .

Automatic winding equipment is a field that the company has been deeply cultivating. At present, the company has completed the research and development and trial production of a new generation of mobile phone wireless charging coil production equipment, which will soon be put into the market in batches. With the popularization and promotion of wireless charging in the smart phone industry, the company is expected to benefit first from the profound accumulation in the field of CNC winding equipment.