| Abstract |
Conventional construction technology for electronic power supplies, based on theassembly of pre-manufactured discrete components, has matured to such an extentthat it has become very difficult to reduce unit costs and enhance the power density further. The manufacturers of electronic circuit components such as capacitors, resistors and wire-wound magnetics are operating at very small profit margins. The situation for manufacturers of control IC’s and power semiconductor devices is better, however margins still restrict R&D budgets. As a result, the technologies are driven deeper into maturity and fractions of a cent become important when the profit margin is calculated. Everybody has to play by the same rules and it becomes increasingly difficult for power supply manufacturers to achieve a competitive edge. |
