In recent years, with the rapid development of mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets, the proportion of built-in microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) has been increasing. At present, our company's annual shipment of sensors has exceeded tens of millions of pieces, and the business growth rate has been around 40% in recent years. As a sensor manufacturer, the company entered the Chinese market eight years ago and promoted temperature and humidity sensors to Chinese manufacturers.
Our products are mainly used in three major applications in the Chinese market: security monitoring; second, energy saving, widely used in home appliances, automobiles, and other fields; third, comfort, mainly used in the field of consumer electronics. In 2009, Shengsirui Company launched a small digital humidity and temperature sensor in the world at that time - SHT21, which attracted widespread market attention.
Throughout the promotion of temperature and humidity sensors, great emphasis has been placed on promoting the concept of comfort. Previously, customers only had the concept of temperature, not humidity. In fact, relative humidity is closely related to temperature, and only by collecting data on humidity and temperature at the same measurement point can the accuracy of relative humidity be guaranteed. Paul Chia said that the comfort sensing space of the human body for air humidity is relatively narrow, so sensors are needed to sense humidity and replenish or reduce moisture at any time.
In 2009, the company launched the SHT21, which was then the world's smallest digital humidity and temperature sensor, attracting widespread market attention. Sheng Sirui is a manufacturer in the industry that integrates temperature and humidity sensors together. We not only provide a sensor, but also integrate temperature compensation and calibration data into one circuit. Our temperature and humidity sensors are calibrated before leaving the factory, and customers only need to communicate with the microcontroller to directly collect data.
”It is reported that as a composite technology of electronic technology and physical and chemical principles, hardware factors account for only 50% of temperature and humidity sensors, while another important factor is calibration. If we want to ensure that the measured values are accurate, we need to ensure that the calibration values for each detection are always within a fixed range, which is very difficult to achieve. Generally speaking, since calibration requires a large amount of data for testing, the greater the product shipment, the better the product stability. Due to the small shipment volume of some small IC manufacturers, it is difficult to ensure the stability and accuracy of measurement data.
It is understood that temperature and humidity sensors are currently mainly divided into two types: resistive and capacitive. Relatively speaking, capacitive sensors have better temperature and sensing speed, but they are prone to oxidation under the erosion of moisture. Due to the use of * electrode distribution and coating technology, the sensor not only does not oxidize, but also quickly absorbs water molecules. Basically, every manufacturer has a problem with their humidity sensors, which are easily damaged by water ingress.
Our sensors can quickly recover after water evaporation, which resistive sensors cannot achieve. ”Paul Chia believes that the lack of applications in the mobile phone market is a major obstacle, and the future sensor market, especially in areas such as consumer electronics and the Internet of Things, has broad prospects. Of course, in specific applications, there are also some problems that need to be solved. "In terms of the Internet of Things, customers hope that a button battery can power sensors for up to 4 years, and the networking and wireless transmission methods of multiple sensors are also a problem." However, in the process of promoting the mobile phone industry, Paul Chia realized that the main reason hindering smartphone manufacturers from adopting temperature and humidity sensors may not come from the sensors themselves. Our product can provide temperature and humidity parameters, but how can we convert them into favorable information for mobile phone users? "In Japan, the development of temperature and humidity sensors has taken the lead.
The temperature and humidity sensor has been applied to a certain brand of mobile phones in Japan. The author speculates that the relevant data may be sold by operators such as NTT and DOCOMO to meteorological stations or businesses for analysis. In China, mobile phone manufacturers including Haier and Lenovo have also begun some attempts, launching phones that can display temperature and humidity for the rural market, which can help farmers understand climate change more conveniently. In the future, we may also add temperature and humidity sensors to some handheld devices designed for the elderly, reminding them to replenish moisture and adjust the temperature and humidity of the space in a timely manner. In the field of consumer electronics, the traditional applications of temperature and humidity sensors are weather forecasting and indoor monitoring, such as the "weather station" developed by SenseTime in Hong Kong three years ago, which displays date, time, temperature, and humidity through a display screen. If only this type of application is integrated into the mobile phone, are consumers willing to pay for the increased cost? In the process of contacting domestic mobile phone customers, they are actually very optimistic about our products, but the only question is that mobile phones still lack relevant applications.
Unfortunately, domestic second - and third tier mobile phone manufacturers would not have rashly attempted to use it without a large brand mobile phone manufacturer. ”Paul Chia revealed that he has recently visited the top ranked smartphone manufacturers and IDH companies in China, but ultimately decided to start cooperating with several brand manufacturers in Japan, South Korea, Europe, and America. He also stated that with the addition of API support for temperature and humidity sensors in Windows 8 and Android 4.0, related third-party applications will be able to develop a large number of application software on this basis. And once a few companies apply it, it will quickly form a more complete ecosystem in China.
Of course, if we want to target the Chinese mobile phone market, cost is a factor that must be considered. Currently, temperature and humidity sensors are still too expensive in terms of cost. We also realize that the 'excitement point' in the mobile phone industry is often below $1, and currently the prices of similar products in the industry have not yet reached the excitement point. Therefore, we are also developing products with smaller size, lower power consumption, and lower cost. Paul Chia said that the accuracy of sensors used in consumer electronics products may not need to be as high, and he believes that 5% humidity accuracy and 0.5 ℃ temperature accuracy can already meet customer needs. With the continuous decrease in sensor prices, it is believed that in the future, not only smartphones, but also mid to low end smartphones will consider adding this feature.
Temperature and humidity sensors are a type of sensor network product. In 2009, the world's small digital humidity and temperature sensors attracted widespread attention in the market. Not just providing a sensor, but integrating temperature compensation and calibration data into one circuit. The temperature and humidity sensors are calibrated before leaving the factory, and customers only need to communicate with the microcontroller to directly collect data. Nowadays, temperature and humidity sensors are basically circulating in this mode on the market, and the pursuit of smaller and more convenient integrated circuits is the direction that future temperature and humidity sensor manufacturers need to research.
As a composite technology of electronic technology and physical and chemical principles, hardware factors account for only 50% of temperature and humidity sensors, while another important factor is calibration. If we want to ensure that the measured values are accurate, we need to ensure that the calibration values for each detection are always within a fixed range, which is very difficult to achieve. High precision and stable performance have always been the hard indicators of temperature and humidity sensors.