Breakthroughs have been made in key auto parts, and the electronic handbrake controller has been localized, with 100% independent research and development
Another key parts of the automobile have been localized. In the first period of time, Wuling Automobile Industry made a major breakthrough in the EPB system, successfully equipped with a number of models for verification, and achieved a leap from scratch.
The so-called EPB is the electronic parking brake system, which refers to the use of electronic control to replace the original part of the mechanical manual operation such as the parking brake handle and the cable, so as to complete the entire parking brake process, which is usually called the "electronic handbrake".
There are two main forms of EPB technology, namely cable-based EPB and caliper integrated EPB, and caliper integrated EPB is the mainstream configuration widely used in the automotive field at present, and will not undergo major changes for a long time in the future, with large market demand and great development potential. However, in this field, the mainland has long been in a situation of being controlled by others and is heavily dependent on imports.
The EPB system has many advantages over the traditional mechanical handbrake. For example, with better braking performance and precise control, it can respond faster to braking commands and provide more reliable braking results. Secondly, the EPB adopts the structure of electronic controller and actuator assembly, which can realize automatic control and automatic release functions, which improves the safety and reliability of the vehicle.
Of course, there are disadvantages to EPB systems, such as the relatively high cost, which requires a lot of electronics and sensors, and is difficult and expensive to repair and maintain.
For example, according to the statistics of the International Automobile Association, in 2022, a total of about 85.02 million cars will be produced in the world, of which China will produce 27.02 million, accounting for 31.8% of the global total, the United States ranks second, producing 10.06 million vehicles, and Japan is third, with an output of 7.84 million vehicles, with a global total of 9.2%. In other words, the production of the United States and Japan is not as large as ours. It can be seen how much the demand for EPB system is in the mainland.
According to the "2021-2025 Electronic Parking Brake System (EPB) Industry In-depth Market Research and Investment Strategy Recommendation Report", it is expected that from 2020 to 2025, the global EPB market will grow at a growth rate of about 4.6%, and the market size will reach about 64 billion yuan by 2025. It is expected that from 2020 to 2025, China's EPB market will grow at a growth rate of about 10.2%, and the market size will reach about 23 billion yuan by 2025. Therefore, if the domestic EPB system can achieve technological breakthroughs, it will produce huge social value.
The good news is that Wuling Automobile Industry has made a technological breakthrough this time, and the EPB controller, software and hardware developed by it are full-stack self-developed and developed, and the electronic control core chip and other materials are 100% domestic, with a functional safety level of ASIL-B, with 100% independent intellectual property rights, and cost-effective, with strong market competitiveness.
At present, this EPB controller has passed the bench foundation test, bench durability test, and has been successfully equipped with a number of models for verification, and its parking brake performance is much higher than the regulatory requirements. In addition, in addition to strong driving capacity, it also has the characteristics of low static power consumption and long service life, which can meet the service life of 15 years or 250,000 kilometers of the whole vehicle, and has a wide range of applications, including passenger cars, commercial vehicles, special vehicles and other different models. I have to say, the performance aspect is quite good.
In short, with the development of the automotive industry, electronic handbrakes have become the mainstream trend of the industry. It can be said that the future market is a blue ocean, especially under the rapid development of new energy vehicles, the domestic EPB system needs to be raised in time to escort the growth of the new energy vehicle industry in the mainland. One day, the EPB of Chinese manufacturers can go to the international market and enter the models of many foreign brands.