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Worldwide DC-DC Converter Modules Forecasts: Power Architectures, Product Types, Voltage Trends, and Applications, Eleventh Edition
Darnell Group, June 2011, Pages: 91
The dc-dc converter module market is being driven by different factors than the dc-dc converter IC market. Although the two “converge” in many applications, their functions are still specific enough to keep the module market healthy for many years to come. As a result, the total worldwide revenue market for dc-dc converter modules is expected to reach approximately $4.3 billion by 2016.
Over the previous years, dc-dc converter modules have become increasingly efficient and costeffective, with designs that are able to meet very specific system requirements. As a result, most of the problems posed by these “internal” challenges have been addressed. For example, increased package integration and digital control, which led to reduced parts count and increased efficiency of regulated converters, means that there is very little difference in cost or efficiency between regulated and unregulated converters, allowing customers to choose based on system needs. Due to these developments, the focus has now shifted to more “external” factors that are driving the market, such as new power architectures and new materials.
On the one hand, however, this shift to external drivers could inadvertently create new internal opportunities. External factors could even drive internal markets, as companies look for “emerging” solutions at this level. New power architectures are being designed with digital power management in mind, for instance. Internal loop control can be the value-added internal factor that differentiates these applications, accelerating digital adoption.
Changing power architectures are also having a strong impact on the design of dc-dc converter modules. These changes come from evolving system power demands, system architectures, developments in digital power technology, and new materials. The emergence of the Centralized Control Architecture (CCA) and the Dynamic Bus Architecture (DBA) is expected to be as significant as the earlier replacement of the Classic Distributed Power Architecture by today’s Intermediate Bus Architecture (IBA).
Digital power technology has been responsible for the growth of the CCA and the DBA in power system architectures. Such technology has brought further cost reductions and performance enhancements to equipment designers. Due to its “emerging” status, the DBA market is not expected to have significant sales until later in the period forecasted in this report. By 2016, however, worldwide unit sales could reach approximately 5.5 million, a CAGR of 82.1%. Most of these sales are projected to be in communications and computer applications, where the advantages of this digital power architecture are the greatest.
Looking at new materials, Gallium-nitride (GaN) is targeting the dc-dc converter module market and is expected to be a game changer for these products. National Semiconductor introduced what it says is the industry’s “first 100V half-bridge gate driver optimized for use with EPC’s enhancement-mode GaN power field-effect transistors (FETs) in high-voltage power converters.” This is a major step in reducing costs and increasing efficiency in commercial products.
Changes are occurring in dc-dc converter input voltages, as well. For the foreseeable future, 48V is expected to continue being dominant. However, 12V power buses are closing the gap, reflecting the continued growth in IBA and (to a lesser degree) CCA architectures. The most typical IBA input voltages fall within the 12V segment, which is growing through the forecast period, and will eclipse 48V and be the largest segment after 2014. And, although input voltages in general are moving down, some current trends are pointing toward higher voltages. For example, the EMerge Alliance is developing a 380Vdc power standard for inclusion in its hybrid alternating current (ac) and dc microgrid platform. This open architecture focuses on reducing or eliminating inefficient ac to dc conversions that occur between power sources and digital devices in commercial buildings by converting and distributing power in dc form. Japan’s NTT Facilities is already using 380Vdc data center power, and CTC is offering a hybrid ac- and dc-distribution system. Netpower Labs AB has a 400Vdc UPS, and Valadis DC Systems LLC has a 575Vdc distribution system. The market seems to be standardizing at 380Vdc-400Vdc, however. These higher input voltages are trends to watch in the future.
The non-isolated dc-dc converter market is experiencing some of the greatest changes in the dcdc module market. Multi-core CPUs and low-power microprocessors have been successfully introduced and have reversed the trend toward higher currents. There is still strong and growing demand for currents up to 100A; the higher levels are often used to feed banks of memory chips. The peak amperage levels are going down, however, with increasing demand for embedded solutions. In addition, the replacement of dc-dc modules by embedded converters, and the increasing difficulty of efficiently producing low-noise, tightly-regulated outputs at increasingly lower voltages, has led to higher growth in the low output voltage ranges.
Applications are strongly correlated with input voltages, with implications for dc-dc converter design such as isolation and non-isolation. The Communications segment is dominated by 48V, for instance, with 12V slowly catching up. The 12V input voltage is dominant in Computer applications, while the Industrial segment mainly uses 24V input. Medical input voltages are found in the 3.3V, 5V, 12V and 48V ranges, while higher input voltages are dominant in the Mil/Aero market.
Historically, the dc-dc converter module market has been driven by sales in the Communications segment. That began to change with the emergence of the IBA, when the Computer segment began to grow rapidly, catching up with the Communications segment in terms of dominance. Applications continue to drive sales of dc-dc converter modules, however. System sales are coming from the demand for energy efficiency, lower cost, smaller size, and configurability. The worldwide economy is slowly recovering, and most of the applications discussed in this report are showing improved orders and sales. The business climate is still cautious, however, with some application segments showing more improvement than others.
Standards also affect the design and sales of dc-dc converter modules in certain applications. Power-over-Ethernet (PoE) consumes a significant quantity of low-wattage (<25W) isolated converters, for example. AdvancedTCA™ is an open standard for the implementation of telecom computing and data center systems. Its shelf structure has up to 16 hot-swappable boards (blades), and each blade can demand up to 200W of power and must accommodate dual -48Vdc voltage sources for redundant powering. And in late 2010, the Distributed-Power Open
Standards Alliance (DOSA) approved specification standards for the “third generation, highdensity, non-isolated MICRO converter.” The standard applies to both analog and digital nonisolated point-of-load converters.
So, even as the dc-dc converter module market moves from internal to external drivers, the changes provide opportunities that power supply companies can capitalize on. Demand for dc-dc modules is expected to be strong over the next five years. The forecasts – and the trends they reflect – will create a competitive, integrated environment for dc-dc module makers to introduce new designs and offer cost-effective, innovative solutions.
This report provides a detailed and quantitative analysis of the global market for dc-dc converter modules. In many instances, unit sales, dollar sales and pricing trends are discussed. See the listing of Figures for a complete description of the Tables included in this unique and extensive analysis.
Topics covered include:
DC-DC Converter Module Forecasts
Power Architecture Forecasts
Factors Driving Digital Bus Converters
Input Voltage Forecasts
Output Voltage Forecasts
Product Type Forecasts
Isolated DC-DC Converter Module Forecasts
Wattage Forecasts
Output Voltage Forecasts
Non-Isolated DC-DC Converter Module Forecasts
Amperage Forecasts
Output Voltage Forecasts
DC-DC Converter Module Application Forecasts
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