Abov to supply more automotive MCU this year

Abov Semiconductor said on Thursday that it will supply three new microcontroller units (MCU) aimed at automobiles this year.

These will be a lidar MCU (A31Q213), a passenger assistance system MCU (A94Q216) and a mobile device charging MCU (A94Q427).

A Abov spokesperson said the company will start promotions for its automotive MCU products in earnest this year.

The company was also aiming to launch a single MCU that integrates all these features in the next two years, they said.

Abov has focused on the home appliance MCU market so far. Last year, home appliance and mobile MCUs each accounted for 28% of its sales. MCUs for remote controls, charging, motors and mass consumers accounted for 14%, 9%, 8% and 7%, respectively.

The lidar MCU was launched in the fourth quarter last year, and was co-developed with its local customer. The MCU is Arm Cortex M0+-based. It has 4-channel Time of Flight and can sense objects up to 200 meters away. It also has ISO26262 ASIL-B, AEC-Q100, and PPAP certifications.

The passenger assistance system MCU was developed as a national project. The chip helps with calculations of the ultrasonic sensor on the automobiles that are used to detect obstacles on its sides and rears. The charging MCU is an upgraded version of Abov’s USB-Type C charging MCU launched two years prior aimed at consumers. The charging MCU will launch in the fourth quarter this year and will be supplied to a local tier-1 automotive component company.

Abov is also pushing specific absorption rate (SAR) sensors for smartphones and wireless earphones. It is also developing a smart MCU with edge artificial intelligence technology applied. The company recorded 144.1 billion won in sales last year, an increase of 13.6%. Its operating income was 17.6 billion won in the same year, a jump of 26.6% from 2019.