The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA), Government of India, introduced the Smart Cities Mission in 2015 to promote the development of inclusive and sustainable cities that offer a decent quality of life and a clean environment to its citizens. With these cities, the Ministry aims to promote the application of smart solutions, which require light sensors in abundance. Likewise, the Cloud Valley project in China aims to use wi-fi connected devices and sensors to gather data on pollution and weather in the cities.
Thus, the surging focus of governments, especially of developing countries, on the construction of smart cities will drive the light sensor market at a CAGR of 9.5% during the forecast period (2020–2030). According to P&S Intelligence, the market was valued at $1,456.2 million in 2019. The market growth can also be ascribed to the mounting demand for consumer electronics, on account of the growing global population. The United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA) predicts that the world population will surge from 7.6 billion in 2017 to 9.8 billion by 2050.
Presently, light sensors are used for ambient light sensing, proximity detection, infrared (IR) detection, gesture recognition, and red green blue (RGB) color sensing in devices and equipment used in vehicles, consumer electronics, and medical devices. Light sensors used for various functions provide output in digital or analog form. In recent years, digital sensors are being increasingly used in the healthcare, consumer electronics, and automotive sectors due to their ability to detect light intensity.
The end user segment of the light sensor market is categorized into industrial, healthcare, entertainment, consumer electronics, automotive, and others, such as agriculture and aerospace and defense. Under this segment, the automotive category is expected to demonstrate the fastest growth during the forecast period. This will be primarily on account of the increasing integration of advanced assistance systems (ADAS) in vehicles. The surging adoption of ADAS can be credited to the growing prevalence of road traffic crashes, as it detects light for part assist and various other applications in vehicles.
In recent years, light sensor manufacturers have launched a plethora of products to improve their portfolio and lure more customers. For example, in October 2019, ams AG introduced the TCS3408 color sensor, which can detect photometric flicker and measure the brightness and identify the color of ambient light. Other manufacturers engaging in such strategic measures include Panasonic Corporation, Maxim Integrated Products Inc., STMicroelectronics N.V., ROHM Co. Ltd., Everlight Electronics Co. Ltd., Vishay Intertechnology Inc., Broadcom Inc., Sharp Corporation, and Texas Instruments Incorporated.
Globally, the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region accounted for the largest share in the light sensor market during the historical period (2014–2019) due to the expanding automotive sector, mounting demand for consumer electronics, and increasing population of the regional countries, such as India and China. The automobile industry of the region is primarily driven by the burgeoning sales of electric vehicles (EVs) in China and Japan, owing to the strong government support being provided toward the EV sector. Light sensors are deployed in light control and parking assistance systems of EVs as light-sensing is essential for them.
Thus, the increasing construction of smart cities and the rising penetration of consumer electronics will augment the global production of light sensors in the near future.
