Autoliv Selects Infineon Automotive Power Semiconductors for Innovative Seatbelt Pretension Systems
October 28 2008 - 12:59PM
Marketwired
Autoliv Inc. (NYSE: ALV) (STKM: ALIV) and Infineon Technologies AG
(FRANKFURT: IFX) (NYSE: IFX) today announced that Autoliv has
selected Infineon as sole supplier of power semiconductors for its
next-generation seatbelt pretension systems, called Active
Seatbelts. The Infineon power chip, capable of controlling an
electrical motor with a relatively high current for a very short
period of time, is a member of the NovalithIC(TM) family recently
launched in volume quantities. Autoliv, the world's largest
automotive safety system supplier, uses an electrical motor and
electronics to improve occupant safety by starting to tighten the
seatbelt a few milliseconds before an imminent crash. Infineon's
chip has a crucial role in controlling and powering the electrical
motor. Autoliv is ramping up production of these active seatbelt
systems which are currently used in premium cars.
Innovative Active Seatbelts for added safety and comfort in
cars
Autoliv's Active Seatbelts use a small motor device containing
the Infineon NovalithIC power chip, which enables additional safety
and comfort features in cars. For instance, if a collision is
anticipated, an occupant's seatbelt will be automatically tightened
to remove any existing belt slack before a collision, thereby
reducing the risk for rib fractures and other injuries. Autoliv's
innovative seatbelt pretension system has the capability to adapt
the restraint force to the severity of the crash and weight of the
occupant. The seatbelt pretensioners also facilitate buckling up
and improve comfort by softly tightening the seatbelt when buckling
up. Finally, unlike regular pyrotechnic seatbelt pretensioners,
Active Seatbelts can be tightened to minimize the G-forces when
driving through curves.
"The combination of our many years of experience in innovative
safety systems and Infineon's expertise in semiconductors has
resulted in this new approach for Active Seatbelt pretension
systems," said Steve Rode, President of Autoliv Electronics. "We
selected Infineon, which has been a supplier to us for many years,
because of Infineon's continuous focus on high quality level
automotive solutions."
"Automotive safety electronics is a key area for Infineon. Our
automotive chips support the European Union's goals to cut the
number of traffic accidents in half by 2010. It is Infineon's
objective to provide more intelligent automotive chips to help make
cars safer, more convenient and more energy efficient," said Claus
Geisler, Senior Vice President and General Manager at the
Automotive division of Infineon Technologies. "Our NovalithICs
combine our core competencies in automotive power chip technologies
with the latest advanced assembly technologies using chip-on-chip
and chip-by-chip schemes."
Up to 70 small motors in a car using power chips
On average, a mid-range car today contains about 40 to 50 small
motors used to change the position of various features in the car
including a driver's wheel, seats, window-lifts and sun roof. In
the premium car segment, there are about 70 motors per car.
According to the May 2008 report of the market research company
Strategy Analytics, Infineon is the world's second largest and
Europe's largest provider of automotive semiconductors with a
global market share of 9.4 percent of the total USD 19.3 billion
automotive semiconductor market in the 2007 calendar year. Autoliv
accounts for more than a third of the global seatbelt market. Last
year, the company sold more than 110 million seatbelt systems.
Almost half of them had regular non-reversible pyrotechnic
pretensioners that tighten the belt at the onset of a crash.
Technical information on NovalithIC
The NovalithIC combines three integrated circuits -- two power
chips and one logic circuit to control and monitor the power stage
-- in one small package of approximately 1 square centimeter in
size, using the latest chip-by-chip as well as chip-on-chip
technologies. The NovalithIC family provides a fully integrated
high current half-bridge for motor drive applications. The devices
cut by half the space needed on a printed circuit board for power
electronics driving motor applications with industry leading
currents of up to 70 Ampere (A). Power output varies continuously
depending on application need -- a feature that slashes energy
consumption by as much as 80 percent. As the on-state resistance is
typically just 16 mOhm and the quiescent current just 7 �A the
device is very energy efficient. Available in lead-free (green)
packages, NovalithICs serve a broad range of applications, from
smaller motors such as fuel pumps and windshield wiper drives in
automobiles to more power-hungry equipment such as drills,
air-conditioning systems and engine cooling fans. The NovalithICs
in Autoliv's Active Seatbelts are lead-free.
Further information on Infineon's automotive power
semiconductors and NovalithIC chips is available at
www.infineon.com/automotivepower and
www.infineon.com/novalithic
About Autoliv
Autoliv Inc., the worldwide leader in automotive safety systems,
develops and manufactures automotive safety systems for all major
automotive manufacturers in the world. Together with its joint
ventures, Autoliv has more than 80 facilities with approximately
43,000 employees in 32 vehicle-producing countries. In addition,
the Company has technical centers in 12 countries around the world,
including 21 test tracks, more than any other automotive safety
supplier. Sales in 2007 amounted to US $6.8 billion. The Company's
shares are listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: ALV) and
its Swedish Depository Receipts on the Stockholm Stock Exchange
(STKM: ALIV). Further information is available at
www.autoliv.com
About Infineon
Infineon Technologies AG, Neubiberg, Germany, offers
semiconductor and system solutions addressing three central
challenges to modern society: energy efficiency, communications,
and security. In the 2007 fiscal year (ending September), the
company reported sales of Euro 7.7 billion (including Qimonda sales
of Euro 3.6 billion) with approximately 43,000 employees worldwide
(including approximately 13,500 Qimonda employees). With a global
presence, Infineon operates through its subsidiaries in the U.S.
from Milpitas, CA, in the Asia-Pacific region from Singapore, and
in Japan from Tokyo. Infineon is listed on the Frankfurt Stock
Exchange and on the New York Stock Exchange (ticker symbol:
IFX).
Further information is available at www.infineon.com.
This news release is available online at www.autoliv.com and at
www.infineon.com/press/
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Worldwide Headquarters Monika Sonntag +49 89 234 24497
monika.sonntag@infineon.com U.S.A. Mitch Ahiers +1 408 503 2791
mitch.ahiers@infineon.com Press contact at Autoliv: Mats �dman
Phone: +46 8 587 20 623 E-mail: mats.odman@autoliv.com
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