Q. What parameters determine product requirement for a specific market?
A. Basically, we are doing the finishing of the product at quiet a high level, one product to fit one market or several markets. Products are defined in terms of technology and peripherals required. Actually, its not the same set of peripherals required if you want to do a metering application or you want to do a motor control for fans or if you are talking about consumer appliance applications like a washing machine. So, first the product requirement for any market is done and then those needs and trends are consolidated to maximize the chance of a product on the market and trying to make this product compatible for more markets.
Q. Which new industrial segments are coming up with demands for MCUs?
A. Lighting is very good area for us where both the families are popular STM8 as well as STM32. The markets where price is actually the criteria with low-end applications, 8 bit products find their applications in such markets but for the high end applications where you need smart features, for example smart street lights where you need a communication to be done by the controller, STM32 fits well.
Also, we are growing with BLDC fan applications. It is a huge market for India but there is a tradeoff between the consumers and the government policies.
Q. What is the government’s role in BLDC market?
A. Electronics is not the only key element in this technology; it is a blend of motors and electronics. If we talk about the ceiling fan market today, one fan can be available in a few hundreds to thousand rupees, but as you shift to BLDC technology the cost gets three times higher but at the same time the power requirements are reduced to one third. Favourable policies from the government can enable manufacturers bring the costs down and the consumers will think of buying such fans to save upon the cost in the longer run.
Q. With the huge portfolio of MCUs available, is there any exciting development that allows one to select which MCU suits for a specific application?
A. We have developed an Android and iOS app where you can map the requirements of features to get the right product. It has variety of options like you can do a parametric search or you can do a peripheral search and the app keeps on updating the new products. It is available on the Google and App Store and open to all.
