Next app for TI's DLP is large touchscreens

"Digital light processor technology developed by Texas Instruments 25 years ago has been used to bring big-screen cinema to the digital age is now being used in picoprojectors for smartphones, cameras and tablets, company officials said. By this time next year, they predict DLP technology will powering large touchscreens. 

DLPs are based on micron-sized mirrors that turn a pixel on or off by deflecting light either to the screen or off to one side at a rate of 10,000 times per second. The technique enable a wide array of projection applications like 3-D TV along with metrology, spectroscopy, medical diagnosis, industrial inspection and other applications. Now TI is targeting large touchscreens.

A few startups are adapting scanning lasers for picoprojector applications, but TI counters that it has already developed MEMS scanning lasers for printing applications, and the company insists that DLP works better.

"TI is agnostic with regard to the source of illuminations [since] we can support lamps, LEDs, lasers, whatever," said Kent Novak, TI’s senior vice president for DLP. "Our patent portfolio for DLP is already deep, and we are making a concerted effort to expand it further into new application areas."

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TI is currently showing a prototype to auto manufacturers as an ultra-inexpensive alternative to dashboard touchscreens. The demo shows an entire center console turned into an interactive touchscreen with no size limit. Dashboards or wall kiosks could be made into a DLP touchscreen. TI said the first applications will begin appearing in 2013." via EE Times

The Phoenix Group Expands Its POS Products & Solutions Portfolio With Ingenico's Devices Designed to Handle NFC Mobile and EMV Payments

"Ingenico, a leading worldwide provider of payment devices and services, and The Phoenix Group (TPG), the largest independent distributor of POS terminals and solutions in the U.S., today signed a new multi-year distribution agreement, enabling TPG to market and sell Ingenico's next generation Telium series point-of-sale (POS) devices to independent sales organizations (ISOs) in the United States. In the wake of accelerated demand for innovative products capable of securely accepting traditional magstripe, emerging EMV chip-based, contactless, and NFC-based payments both companies are making a strategic investment to offer the latest Telium POS technology and solutions to ISOs.

Under the agreement, TPG will market and distribute Ingenico's complete Telium range of products including iPP220 & iPP320 PIN pads, iCT220 & iCT250 countertop terminals, and iWL220 & iWL250BL (bluetooth) wireless devices. In addition, TPG will house a swap pool of the Telium devices in an effort to provide the most comprehensive customer service and a timely response to customer service requests. As part of their repair and services, TPG will perform key injections and downloads.

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"The new Telium range of products only reinforces Ingenico's global leadership in POS hardware and software manufacturing. It allows customers, regardless of their vertical markets, to transform a traditional point-of sale into a point-of-service by offering reinforced payment security, more options for payment, and multiple value-added applications," said Bernie Frey, senior vice president of Acquirer Sales, Ingenico, North America. "To have a great product is one thing, but to be able to market and sell it effectively requires a different set of expertise. We are very pleased that TPG has chosen to market and sell our entire Telium line of products to their extensive customer base in the U.S. With this partnership in place, we'll be able to leverage their two distribution centers, logistics and customer-service expertise in order to meet the most demanding business needs of their customers." via Market Watch

CMI wins Outstanding Photonics Product Award 2012 for its 50" 60Hz Frame Repeating 3D Direct-Type LED panel

"Chimei Innolux Corporation (CMI) has granted “the Outstanding Photonics Product Award 2012” by the Photonics Industry & Technology Development Association (PIDA) for its 50" 60Hz Frame Repeating 3D Direct-Type LED panel, fully demonstrating the company’s superior capabilities of integrated R&D and it leadership on innovative technology.

“CMI has pursued technology independence since founded, by aiming to offer the best display solutions as the core value for business sustainability. CMI also continues to focus on product optimization and production innovation. Perceiving the fast-trend of 3D LCD panels worldwide, CMI not only becomes the pioneering leader in this industry but also commits to dedicate more R&D efforts and mass production of 3D display technology since 2007. CMI endeavors themselves to provide customers and end users with the best 3D display solutions, while effectively optimizing customers’ cost and time-to-market competitiveness. “This is special honor and greatest recognition to CMI’s R&D team”, said Mr. Chung-Kuang Wei, Associate Vice President of CMI, while receiving the awards on behalf of CMI, “ this is not  the end, but a big step for the future milestone.”

CMI has taken the lead in the optoelectronics R&D field by developing the 50-inch FHD LCD panel. Its generation-7.5 panel with glass-utilization has demonstrated its efficiency up to 96%. Moreover, its proprietary Direct-Type LED module and integrated 3D signal-control design allows a more competitive price compared to the par with the 46-inch panel, while the LCD panel enables consumers to enjoy the best visual performance than ever. This highly competitive 50-inch 3D LED panel has received positive reviews and has been widely praised by customers." via CMI

UAS Operators Save Lives In Combat

Image via Defense Industry Daily

"Sgt. Christopher Harris was conducting a routine reconnaissance mission in Kunar Province, Afghanistan, in 2009, when the Puma unmanned aircraft system, or UAS, he was operating showed nearby, real-time footage of insurgents planting an improvised explosive device, or IED, along a U.S. Army convoy route.

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The Puma UAS is a 13-pound, portable, hand-launched unmanned aircraft system, known as a UAS, with a wingspan of 9.2-feet and electro-optical/infrared, or EO/IR, sensors able to beam back real-time imagery from combat-relevant locations.

The EO/IR sensors on Harris’ PUMA UAS showed live, real-time images of the insurgent activity on his one system remote video terminal, or OSRVT. The OSRVT is a laptop-like display screen and antenna able to give Soldiers like Harris advance warning of nearby threats.

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There have been hundreds, if not thousands of instances similar to this throughout the last ten years of war in Iraq and Afghanistan, wherein UAS technology has been proven to bring a game-changing, life-saving capability to forces in combat; in fact, the number of UAS in theater has grown exponentially since the start of the wars, expanding from a handful of systems in 2002 and 2003 to more than 4,500 UAS aircraft in service today.

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“We are able to see a difference in ground that has been freshly dug, versus something that has been there a while. So, when you see that, you then have EOD units go to the site to verify if it is, in fact, an IED,” Avalos said.
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UAS also assist with what is called “negative terrain analysis,” wherein operators look to see whether elements of the terrain have changed, Avalos added.
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UAS training spans the entire gamut of activity, from systems engineering, UAS sensors, deployment and interference training, Avalos said. While UAS operators have a slightly different role compared to UAS maintainers, each student learns every skill during training so as to ensure students are aware of all the nuances involved in UAS deployment." via DefenceTalk

The Touch-y Subject Of Touch Tech For Digital Signage

Images via Sixteen:Nine

"There are at least a dozen different touch technology categories out there right now, and almost 200 companies selling their own variations on them.

By far, the big boy is Projected Capacitive, or P-Cap, or The Touch Thing That’s Most Like My Smartphone screen. The numbers of companies doing that has grown sharply, and the same with companies doing “multi-touch” – which by most definitions could be any number of the categories listed above, including P-Cap.

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Then again, Colegrove says “Touch for Digital signage/public displays will have steady growth in the next several years, from 9 million units in 2011 to about 16 million units in 2017.”" via Sixteen:Nine

MGM / Four Winds Digital Signage Case Study

Global LCD TV Shipments Fall for the First Time Ever in Q1’12

"Worldwide TV shipments fell almost 8% Y/Y in Q1’12, the steepest rate of decline since Q2’09. Total TV shipments for the quarter were 51M units, according to the latest release of the NPD DisplaySearch Advanced Quarterly Global TV Shipment and Forecast Report. The biggest contributor to this decline was a slowdown in shipments of LCD TVs, which fell year-on-year for the first time in the history of the category, declining just over 3%, to 43M units.

“Soft demand and cautious expectations about the upcoming year in many parts of the TV supply chain have led to a slowdown in shipments,” noted Paul Gagnon, NPD DisplaySearch Director of North America TV Research. Gagnon added, “Key component prices, such as LCD panels, are not expected to decline much in 2012, and many brands are concentrating on improving their bottom line. Both of these trends will contribute to slowing unit volume among a price conscious consumer market.”

LCD TV shipment share fell slightly from Q4’11, due to a seasonal shift to emerging markets where CRT demand is higher, but is up four percentage points from a year ago, to 84.2%. LCD TV is capturing market share at 40” and larger screen sizes because of a sharp decline in plasma TV demand. The average LCD TV screen size increased 5% Y/Y in Q1’12, passing 35” for the first time, with gains in both emerging and developed markets. The share of LCD TVs with LED backlights also rose sharply, from 51% in Q4’11 to almost 56% in Q1’12, 20 percentage points higher than a year ago because more affordable direct-type LED-backlit sets began shipping in Q1’12.

Plasma TV unit shipments continued to decline, falling 18% Y/Y in Q1’12 after an 8% decline in Q4’11. The popularity of plasma TV among consumers is waning, and a large majority of the recent shipment volume remains centered on low-priced 2D HD models, indicating consumers are buying on price when shopping for plasma.

Despite the weak results on a unit basis, demand for larger sizes continues to grow. The market share for 40” and larger TVs increased from just under 31% a year ago to more than 37% in Q1’12 with total unit shipments for 40”+ rising 12% Y/Y. Larger sizes have become much more affordable with 40-44” LCD TV average prices below $600 and new 50” LCD TVs selling for less than $1000, joining 50”-class plasma TVs that have been selling for less than $700 for several quarters now." via DisplaySearch

Inside the MacBook Pro Retina-display

Image via ZDNet

"Apple has managed to pack five times as many pixels into this panel compared to the older standard-display MacBook Pro notebooks, while still managing to shave a fraction of a millimeter off the thickness. To do this Apple has had to do away with the front glass on the panel — which has the advantage of cutting down glare — and used the aluminum case itself as the frame for the LCD panel.

This has essentially turned the notebook lid into a single, non-repairable unit. If you break the display, or if anything inside the panel dies — and both of these things happen more often than you’d like to believe — then the entire panel has to be replaced because the display is too fragile to be removed or handled outside of the frame.

Even the experts at iFixit, who are used to removing and handling fragile screens, managed to break the Retina display when attempting to remove it." via ZDNet

Chinese Suppliers Shine in Large-Sized LCD Panel Market in Q1

Image via iSuppli

"Although the major South Korean brands continued to dominate, Chinese suppliers represented the fastest-growing contingent of the large-sized liquid crystal display (LCD) panel market in the first quarter, capitalizing on rising production and strong domestic demand for 32-inch televisions.

No. 5 Beijing Optoelectronics Technology Co. Ltd. (BOE) of China achieved first-quarter shipment growth of 18.6 percent, the best performance among the Top 10 suppliers, according to preliminary results from a new IHS iSuppli LCD Market Tracker report from information and analytics provider IHS (NYSE: IHS). No. 7 player Infovision Optoelectronics Co. Ltd. (IVO), also of China, increased its own shipments by a slightly smaller 18.3 percent, the second-best results for the Top 10.

However, it was two newer Chinese entrants that were not ranked among the Top 10 that saw the most explosive growth in the first quarter. CEC achieved a 63.5 percent expansion, while China Star Optoelectronics Technology more than doubled its shipments with a 103.3 percent increase, by far the largest growth in the market.

“The Chinese players are cashing in on the country’s fast-growing demand for 32-inch panels used in televisions,” said Sweta Dash, senior director for liquid crystal displays at IHS. “Meanwhile, the Chinese suppliers are ramping up production, allowing them to expand shipments at a fast pace. Both BOE and China Star have new 8.5-generation fabs, which will allow them to compete with other suppliers that possess similar next-generation fabrication facilities, especially in the television market. The Chinese manufacturers also are benefiting from new tariffs levied by their government, which are creating challenges for their overseas competitors.”" via iSuppli

Delphi Display Systems Introduces Industry’s Most Reliable Order Confirmation System

Image via Delphi Display Systems

"Delphi Display Systems, Inc. ("Delphi") today introduced its latest model Order Confirmation Display technology for improving order accuracy and speed-of-service at drive-thru Quick Service Restaurants. Named Endura for its durability, the new product line sets the standard for performance and reliability with the longest warranty available in the industry today. Delphi is a leading designer and manufacturer of reliable and rugged outdoor digital signage solutions. 

At the heart of the Endura product is a 15" LCD with a proprietary LED backlight system that is designed to last for 70,000 hours MTTH (Mean Time to Half-brightness) - representing eight years of continuous operation. This is the longest life backlight on the market today and 40% greater than the industry standard. In addition, the electronics and packaging have been redesigned to further improve reliability over ambient temperatures from -40°F to +140°F (-40°C to +60°C). Delphi is so confident in the reliability of its new Endura product line that it comes with a standard 5-Year warranty including Advanced Exchange service and free technical support.

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There are two versions of Endura available. Endura E-Net™ contains an embedded industrial computer and software that interfaces directly with the Point-of-Sale (POS) system and stores all content locally in flash memory. Endura V-Net™ utilizes Delphi's proprietary VGA over CAT-5 transmission technology to transmit video over standard CAT-5 network cable over distances of up to 1000 feet - enabling the computer to be located in the store." via Delphi Display Systems

Digital out-of-home media: Outdoor key to U.S. growth, but China is catching up fast

"The U.S. remains the biggest market for digital out-of-home media, but China is closing on it rapidly – and American growth is largely driven by digital billboards, rather than place-based digital signage networks, according to latest reports.

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By contrast, China is the fastest-growing market, with total DOOH revenues jumping nearly 40 percent in 2011 to $1.44bn. China and Japan are also the next biggest after the U.S. in terms of current size, while Britain leads the European market and Brazil in Latin America. Thailand and Brazil have the highest penetration of DOOH into the overall out-of-home market, with digital accounting for half of all out-of-home revenues in the former and a third in the latter." via Flatvision Industry News

Microsoft renames its old Surface computer as PixelSense

Image via CrazyEngineers

"The table-top, multitouch computer that Microsoft unveiled in 2007, which was largely relegated to retail outlets, hotel lobbies, and museums, has been rebranded as PixelSense.

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But the new name is a bit of return to the product's roots. The device's panel features 2 million sensors that have been built into the panel, between the pixels, and that trade off between picking up visible or infrared light. The technology that powers the recognition of that data, which was around 1 gigabit per second, is something Microsoft called PixelSense.

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Priced at $7,600, the newer version sported a 40-inch-wide, 4-inch-thick screen that offers full HD 1080p, with a 16:9 aspect ratio and 1920x1080 resolution." via C|Net

Sharp Aquos HDTV Has A Huge 90″ Screen; Making It The World’s Largest LED 3DTV

Image via Sharp

"Sharp, the company who just launched the Feel UX – the customized Android UI, has a new announcement to make. The japanese tech-giant is launching the huge 4 feet tall and 6 feet and 8 inches wide LED LCD HD 3DTV. Last year we told you aboutSharp’s 85″ Direct View LCD and now we can see that the company has set out to break its own records. With this TV set-up in your living room, you won’t feel the need to go to a theater to watch the 3D movies on the big screen ever again.

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With the package, you get two two 3D glasses and a technology called ‘AquoMotion 240′ that makes it possible to display fast-action motions appear blur-less and seamless,

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The AQUOS LC-90LE745U is now available at home entertainment retailers in the US for a price of $10,999. How do you like it?" via Crazy Engineers

Microsoft Announces Its First Tablet: Surface

"Monday, at an invitation-only media event in Los Angeles, Microsoft got the tech press to do something almost unprecedented: wait with eager anticipation for a Microsoft product announcement.

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The ARM-powered Windows RT model is one millimeter thinner than the latest iPad. It has a 10.6-inch screen with a 16:9 HD resolution, compared to the iPad’s 9.5-inch screen with a 4:3 aspect ratio. The larger display on the Surface means more weight—24 grams extra, to be precise, or just under an ounce more than its rival from Cupertino.

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In the private demo area after the event, Joshua Topolsky of The Verge and I peppered Microsoft reps for details on specs like screen resolution, but we got no definitive answers. The press release says the Windows RT model has a “ClearType HD display,” while the Pro model has a “ClearType Full HD display.”

In his onstage introduction of the Pro model, Microsoft’s Mike Angiulo noted its “1080 resolution,” which would explain the “Full HD” label. Based on my inspection of the Windows RT version, I suspect it’s a 1366×768 device, which can handle 720p HD content.

Still, we shouldn’t need to ask for basic specs like this." via ZDNet

Universal Display, L-3 Display Systems deliver ruggedized knee-mounted display prototype for pilots to U.S. Air Force

Image via OLED-Info

"L-3 Display Systems (L-3 DS) and Universal Display Corp. (NASDAQ:PANL) delivered an AMOLED display system prototype—a knee-mounted display system with an unbreakable, full-color, phosphorescent OLED display on a plastic substrate—to the U.S. Air Force for use on a pilot’s knee in tactical cockpits. The ejection-safe electronic flight bag (EFB) system, designed with touch functionality by L-3 DS and Universal Display’s UniversalPHOLED technology and materials, replaces paper maps and checklists traditionally held on the pilot’s knee.

The system’s flexible OLED technology can mitigate the hazards of traditional glass-based displays. “OLED technology is driving a new, brighter era in thin, lightweight, and unbreakable displays. Our collaboration has forged advances that can improve pilots’ capabilities and their safety during flight, which may, in turn, benefit a myriad of consumer display products in the future,” says Steven V. Abramson, president and chief executive officer of Universal Display." via Military & Aerospace Electronics

Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Displays, But Didn't Know Whom to Ask

Image via Forbes / E Ink

"A few weeks ago, around the time Pebble was breaking records on Kickstarter, I happened to be exchanging emails with Sriram Peruvemba, a veteran of the display industry and currently CMO at E Ink Holdings.  It struck me that there was probably a bigger story to be told in the world of display, with things like Pebble being just the tip of the iceberg.

This picture is a good motif for why the future of displays is a fascinating subject. When I saw this, my first thought was “I’d like an insulated coffee mug (the kind that’s usually opaque) wrapped in e-paper, connected to a level and temperature sensor, showing a fake level/heat visualization.” Yeah, silly first-world-problem type of idea, but that’s the kind of possibility now being opened up by advances in display technology. A market that is currently dominated by LCD (to the tune of 90%) and a few key applications is undergoing some rapid evolution, in terms of both technologies on offer, and the range of applications becoming possible.

I figured the things I was discussing with Sriram might interest a broader audience, so we decided to turn the email conversation into an interview. So here we go, everything you ever wanted to know about the display industry, but didn’t know whom to ask.

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Q8: What are you personally most excited about, in terms of future developments in display technology?

I am excited about lifelike images on displays, taking concepts to the next stage. I am excited about the use of non-rectangular displays on non-flat surfaces, creating unique designs. I am excited about libraries moving into children’s backpacks in the remotest parts of the world revolutionizing education like never before. I am excited about electronic displays in applications that never had displays, creating huge new markets for the display industry. Finally, I would like to see a resurgence in the display industry right here in the USA." via Forbes

Digital Signage Advertising Hits Its Stride

"2011 was a great year for digital out-of-home advertising, and this year is setting up to be even better. Data from PQ Media released in April show that global digital place-based networks, billboards and signage operators saw revenue grow by 15.3 percent to $6.97 billion last year. This year, the revenue figure is projected to be even better, growing 19.2 percent.

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The latest revenue tally from PQ Media is another in a growing string of positive developments over the past couple of years for the digital signage industry. Together, they wins demonstrate that digital placed-based media is a viable and being taken seriously by companies with products to sell and the advertising agencies they hire.

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Going forward, the next big test for this medium will likely be whether or not those responsible for buying ads will reallocate dollars from television to digital place-based media.

With the possibility of too few available commercial slots on TV in the second half of the year, there might be a hint as to whether digital place-based media can begin taking on the “800-pound gorilla” and winning." via Keywest Technology

Next up for Apple's Retina Display: 13.3-inch MacBook Pro

"Now that the laptop world has been set ablaze by the new MacBook Pro with Retina Display, what’s next for the pixel-packing screen technology? According to a KGI research analyst, Apple could be preparing a version for a new 13.3-inch MacBook Pro, which would launch in the fall before the holiday shopping season.

The analyst told AppleInsider that this new MacBookPro would have a resolution of 2,560×1,600 pixels, lose the optical drive and hard disk in lieu of solid state storage, and be slightly thinner than its 15-inch sibling." via ZDNet

The Phone Designed By Nature: Hands On With the Samsung Galaxy S3

"Upon a cursory glance of the phone, which weighs 133g and comes in at 8.6mm, the first thing one will notice is the screen: At 4.8 inches, it’s vividly bright and rich in a captivating way.

“The screen is a hallmark. It’s something we’ve established. It harkens to our other consumer electronic products like our TVs. The OLED technology has the best blend of brightness, contrast, usability in outdoor conditions.”

Part of the reason this screen leaves such an impressive first impression is because Samsung has opted for enhanced PenTile technology. PenTile AMOLED displays use green pixels (the colour that the human eye is most sensitive to) interleaved with alternating red and blue pixels.

Samsung promises that time won’t have the same ravaging effects on PenTile screens as it does traditional AMOLED screens.

Pentile does, however, have a downside – due to the nature of subpixel layouts white colours will have a slight blue or yellow tinge to them." via Hardware Canucks

Does Auto Layout In iOS 6 Mean A Larger iPhone Screen Is Coming?

"First though, a bit of background. Auto Layout allows developers to create a set of constraints that define how UI elements are displayed on-screen. Instead of using the standard “springs and struts” positioning method, Auto Layout allows those elements to shift and move depending on a prioritized list of rules — think “the left side of one button should always be 30 away from the right side of another button.”

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The jury, it seems, is still out on whether or not Auto Layout is a clear indicator of an iPhone with a larger display being prepared for launch. That said, its inclusion into the mix definitely doesn’t hurt — as one last developer put it, Auto Layout “is neither a sufficient or necessary condition for a different device… but if Apple is bringing out a 4-inch iPhone they would be crazy not to provide [it].”" via TechCrunch