Market Trends of Europe Digital Signal Processor Industry
Growing Applications in Automotive Industry
Digital signal processors find widespread usage in the automotive sector for manufacturing vehicle surveillance equipment and vehicle parts. Location-based service vendors use these processors for remote diagnostic, alignment, and intelligent transportation systems to fine-tune engine performance, track vehicles, and control traffic flow.
Digital signal processors are often used in in-cabin infotainment and control systems, which have demanding signal-processing performance needs. These processors involve specialized features such as high memory bandwidth, fast multiply-accumulate hardware, and instructions that combine multiple operations.
Further, an increase in the requirement for safety boosts the usage of digital signal processor-controlled braking, collision avoidance systems, and airbags in vehicles. Thus, contributing to the growth of the market.
For instance, according to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders stats, Automotive-related manufacturing contributes EUR 67 billion in turnovers, and EUR 14 billion value added to the United Kingdom economy and typically invests around EUR 3 billion each year in R&D.
Several heavy-duty truck manufacturers in Europe have been investing in integrating novel technology to meet the zero-emission objective from 2025 onwards to avoid paying high penalties for non-compliance with EU norms. The European Union has established carbon-neutrality goals and criteria for heavy-duty vehicles. These include a 15% decrease beginning in 2025 and increasing to 30% by 2030, with zero emissions by 2050.
High usage of digital signal processor chips in consumer electronics will boost market
- The demand for these digital signal processors is increasing. The growing popularity of high-definition video has increased the pixel rate that video processors must handle, both at the set-top and on mobile devices. Similarly, high-definition audio with surround sound has increased the precision and performance demands on digital signal processors used in audio processing.
- Moreover, with the introduction of features such as image stabilization and automatic face detection, even relatively simple systems such as digital cameras are expanding their requirements. For instance, according to Ericsson, 5G subscriptions in Western Europe are expected to reach 433 million by 2027. In 2022, there were 68.6 million 5G subscriptions in Western Europe.
- Furthermore, the proliferation of these digital signal processors is being facilitated by Internet convergence. Television set-top boxes, Internet Protocol (IP) telephones, cameras, gaming systems, and media players are combining in various ways, exchanging data and connecting to the Internet as a whole. As standalone consumer devices evolve, their core digital signal processing functions will require enhancement to handle wireless communications and the new media they must now manage.
- Additionally, an accelerator coprocessor is common in applications with relatively stable, well-bounded digital signal processor functionality requirements. In a DVD player, the microcontroller that handles the user interface and system control can be assisted by coprocessors that handle demanding functions such as video and audio decoding. These engines are typically digital signal processor-based, but they are designed to meet specific application requirements through a combination of integrated peripherals.
