Kwak Hyung-chan, the manager of the Automotive Optics Team at Samsung Electro-Mechanics’ Optical Communication Solutions Division, discussed the competitive edge of Samsung Electro-Mechanics’ camera module business during a technology briefing held on March 14. He highlighted the company’s “independent technological capability in designing and manufacturing core components such as lenses and actuators” and mentioned, “We are currently developing and mass-producing high-reliability automotive camera modules, and expanding our transactions with global automobile companies.”
Manager Kwak introduced an all-weather automotive camera module equipped with water-repellent coating technology and heating functionality. He stated, “As vehicle performance advances, the demand for cameras, which serve as the eyes of the automobile, is also increasing. We plan to dominate the automotive camera module market with a hybrid lens and lens heater designed to maintain performance despite external temperature changes.” Samsung Electro-Mechanics plans to mass-produce this automotive camera module within the year.
The newly developed product, equipped with a heating function, can melt frost or snow on the camera within a minute and maintain a constant temperature to prevent camera malfunctions. This product incorporates water-repellent coating technology that maximizes the water repellent angle (angle of droplet inclination) allowing water droplets to easily blow away. The lenses that apply this coating technology have a lifespan more than six times longer than existing products and are highly resistant to wear.
An automotive camera module equipped with an iris was also introduced. Manager Kwak mentioned, “This is the world’s first automotive camera module equipped with an iris that controls the amount of light, and we will provide new solutions to our customers.”
While mobile camera modules with an iris mostly operate at room temperature, those for automotive use must function flawlessly in harsh conditions, from minus 40 to plus 50 degrees Celsius. Samsung Electro-Mechanics stated, “Based on the internalization of core components and our unique mechanism design technology, we have developed the world’s first highly reliable automotive IRIS camera module.”