Replacing silver with aluminium gives DP Patterning a cost case for flexible circuits as interior electronics spread through cars
DP Patterning has embedded its flexible circuits in a car’s A-pillar trim, creating a blind spot warning light with Artifex Systems, part of Tata AutoComp, and ams OSRAM. On show at electronica in Munich from 10 November 2026, the demonstrator was made in Sweden apart from its LEDs.
The patented Dry Phase Patterning process cuts circuit patterns mechanically from solid copper-clad aluminium on a roll-to-roll line, with no etching chemicals, printed silver or water. Swapping silver for aluminium lowers material costs.
The firm’s 3,500 square-metre Norrköping plant opened in September 2026, with annual capacity above 10 million square metres. The process already serves heaters and antennas, and curved trim lighting gives it a tougher, near-production test.
Artifex, which moulds door panels and pillar trims, started the project to embed electronics in its parts. Lighting partner ams OSRAM, a collaborator since 2025, supplies the LEDs, AS1163 driver chips and lighting design.
“The hardest thing for a new manufacturing technology is not making it work,” Erik Berggren, Business Development Manager at DP Patterning, said. “It is getting customers to trust it in production. A light built into a car pillar is a demanding application, and we have built it with almost the whole chain in Sweden.
“That gives companies with simpler applications a good reason to trust us. European automotive is under pressure, and this shows that new technology can make local production competitive.”
Source: DP Patterning
Source: www.automotiveworld.com
