Becker Autoradio

Harman Becker Automotive Systems GmbH, commonly known as Becker, is a manufacturer of automotive electronic equipment. It is part of the car division of the American manufacturing company, Harman International Industries, a subsidiary of South Korean company Samsung Electronics.

The present company goes back to the German car radio and navigation systems manufacturer, Becker. This firm was founded in 1949 from a repair workshop in the Baden town of Pforzheim. Its founder was Max Egon Becker [de] (died 1983). In 1953 the first car radio with automatic search for stations was launched. In 1955 Becker started manufacturing aircraft radios. In 1987 Boris Becker launched a CD car receiver. In 1995, the US concern, Harman International, took over the firm (apart from the aircraft avionics division, Becker Flugfunkwerke GmbH (later Becker Avionics, which as of 2016 remained under the control of Roland Becker, the son of the founder)).At the time Becker had 1,300 employees and two plants.

The company, with its head office in Karlsbad near Karlsruhe and other bases in the USA and Hungary, developed and integrated complete infotainment systems worldwide. Its product range runs from navigation systems, voice control and human-machine interfaces to audio and entertainment technologies. From its earliest days, Harman Becker Automotive Systems was a supplier to Mercedes-Benz,but also supplies other marques such as Audi, Peugeot, Hyundai and also Luxury Marques Ferrari, Rolls-Royce, BMW and Mini. Worldwide, Harman Becker has 28 bases in Germany, USA, Great Britain, France, Sweden, Hungary, Canada, Mexico, South Africa (to 2008), Japan, South Korea and China. Since 11 January 2010 Harman Becker Automotive Systems has pulled out of the market for mobile navigation. The trademarks Becker Traffic Assist, Becker Traffic Assist Pro etc. were transferred to United Navigation. Under the latter’s roof, the brands Falk and Becker continue to run.

(Refrence: Wikipedia)

Blaupunkt

Blaupunkt GmbH

was a German manufacturer of mostly car audio equipment. It was owned by Robert Bosch GmbH from 1933 until 1 March 2009, when it was sold to Aurelius AG of Germany. It filed for bankruptcy in late 2015[1] with liquidation proceedings completed in early 2016.[2][3] The brand is now managed by GIP Development SARL of Luxembourg and is used on various product groups worldwide.

Blaupunkt Founded in 1923 in Berlin as “Ideal,” the company was acquired by Robert Bosch AG in 1933. In 1938 it changed its name to “Blaupunkt”, German for “blue point” or “blue dot”, after the blue dot painted onto its headphones that had passed quality control.

After the World War II, Blaupunkt moved its headquarters and production to Hildesheim.

Blaupunkt took over a former Philips/Grundig factory in Portugal to produce automotive head units. It is still owned and operated by Bosch, used exclusively to produce OEM units for car manufacturers and 24V (e.g. Coach) AV equipment. Later, factories were set up in Tunisia (speakers) and Malaysia (speakers and electronics).

In 1949, Blaupunkt advertised the first FM-capable car radio. By the 1960 and 1970s, Blaupunkt had become one of the leading German manufacturers of car radios and car audio equipment. In 1983, it began selling an in-dash CD player.

After the 2011 take-over, Blaupunkt became a managed brand name with all production outsourced to China.

Blaupunkt was involved in the development of the Autofahrer-Rundfunk-Informationssystem traffic-information system for car radios, and provided this feature on their German-market car radios from the late 1970s. The company attempted to have ARI used in the United States, but had only a few radio stations per major city involved.

For many years, Blaupunkt car audio equipment models often carried the name of a city somewhere in the world, e.g. “London RDM126”. In Blaupunkt model nomenclature, this can be translated as “An RDS CD player capable of controlling a Multichanger, rated at 4×30 W RMS (4 × 30 = 120) from model year 1996″. High-end models typically had German place names.

Blaupunkt also used the brand “Velocity” to sell products aimed at the top, audiophile end of the market. Audi, Volkswagen, Porsche, Mercedes, Proton, Vauxhall, Pontiac, Holdenand BMW all fit Blaupunkt (now simply Bosch) products into their cars, often branded with the car manufacturer’s own mark (e.g. The VW Gamma, Audi Symphony or BMW Business CD lines), with Fiat using them, occasionally unbranded but generally unmodified. Some later Holden Astra models are fitted with Blaupunkt systems (with others being produced by Delphi Automotive). Blaupunkt also specialised in coach installations, selling TVs, multiple-speaker setups and PA equipment to that industry. That part of the business has remained with Robert Bosch Car Multimedia GmbH, a 100% subsidiary of Robert Bosch GmbH, and the Blaupunkt branding is no longer used, even on ‘hidden’ stickers.

(Reference:Wikipedia)

Delco Electronics

Delco Electronics Corporation was the automotive electronics design and manufacturing subsidiary of General Motors based in Kokomo, Indiana, that manufactured Delco radios and other electric products found in GM cars. In 1972, General Motors merged it with the AC Electronics division and it continued to operate as part of the Delco Electronics division of General Motors. The name Delco came from the Dayton Engineering Laboratories Co., founded in Dayton, Ohio, by Charles Kettering and Edward A. Deeds in 1909. Delco was responsible for several innovations in automobile electric systems, including the first reliable battery ignition system and the first practical automobile self-starter.

In 1936, Delco began producing the first dashboard-installed car radios. By the early 1970s, Delco had become a major supplier of automotive electronics equipment. Based in Kokomo, Indiana, Delco Electronics employed more than 30,000 at its peak. In early 1956, Delco produced a transistorized hybrid signal-seeking car radio, which used both vacuum tubes and transistors in its radio’s circuitry. Transistors were used to replace the radio’s audio output vacuum tubes and also the vibrator. This transistorized hybrid radio was available as an option on the 1956 Chevrolet Corvette car modeIn 1957, Delco produced an all-transistor signal-seeking car radio that was available for the 1957 Cadillac Eldorado Brougham car models.

(Reference: Wikipedia)

Ford aerospace

Ford Aerospace was the aerospace and defense division of Ford Motor Company. It was based in Newport Beach, Orange County, California, and was active from 1956 through 1990, when it was sold to the Loral Corporation.

The company was established in 1956. It was renamed to Ford Aerospace and Communications Corporation in 1976, and then to Ford Aerospace Corporation in 1988.

The 99 acres (40 ha) Engineering and Research Center campus was located on Jamboree Road at Ford Road, overlooking the Santa Catalina Strait of the Pacific Ocean in Newport Beach.[1][2] The facility’s master plan and main buildings were designed by Modernist architect William Pereira in 1958.[3] The operation was moved to Newport Beach in 1960.[4]

A partial company timeline includes:

  • 1956 Aeronutronic becomes a Ford Motor Company division.
  • 1961 Ford Motor Company acquires Philco Corporation, later named Philco-Ford Corporation.
  • 1963 Ford Motor Company folds Aeronutronic into Philco, strengthening Ford Motor Company’s overall participation in space and defense markets.
  • 1975 Philco-Ford becomes Aeronutronic Ford Corporation
  • 1976 Aeronutronic Ford Corporation becomes Ford Aerospace & Communications Corporation.
  • 1981 FACC starts a new sister division to Aeroneutronics in Southern California named DIVAD (Division Air Defense) for the production of the M247 Sgt. York armor tracked vehicle (named in honor of legendary World War I sharpshooter and medal of honor recipient Sergeant Alvin York) which incorporated F-16 search-and-track radar directed twin 40 mm Bofors gun systems in Newport Beach and Lake Forest, CA. David division dissolved in 1984 when Defense Secretary Caspar Weinberger canceled the production contract and all existing Sgt. York units were dismantled for scrap. (D.V. Barker)
  • 1988 Ford Aerospace San Jose CA location working on NATO Airbase SATCOM (NABS) Skynet control facilities
  • 1990 Ford Aerospace sold to Loral Corporation. The sale did not include the lease of land for the Newport Beach plant that the buyer was required to vacate within five years.[4]

(Reference: Wikipedia)