The Display Industry News Roundup For 10.16.2012

Image via PC World

Fingerprints everywhere! Are we ready for 4 million dirty Windows 8 touchscreens? "Researchers pursue two strategies for making better oleophobic screens (oleophobic literally means “lacking affinity for oils”). Some scientists try to advance the chemical treatment approach now used by Apple and others, while others work on applying new physical textures on screen surfaces, textures that are unfriendly to oil and liquid." via PC World

3D displays: three centuries in the making (interview) "3D technology already existed in the 19th century. However it really took off in 2009. The reason for this was on the one hand the technological possibilities of digital processing / media, availability of content (Avatar), and display technology. It started in digital cinema where the difficulty to create a high-quality 3D image was presented. It then got to the TV market with high refresh rates making it possible to introduce active glasses, especially on Plasma." via Display Alliance

Display technology from AU Optronics stolen and given to Chinese firm, alleges investigation "The two former executives, surnamed Li and Wang, worked in developing panels and OLED technology for AU Optronics, but were lured away with new positions from TCL's China Star Optoelectronics Technology business unit, which also builds displays, according to MJIB. In exchange for supplying the technology, both Li and Wang were also compensated with annual salaries of over US$1 million. ...While China Star Optoelectronics has yet to reach the influence of international rivals AU Optronics, Samsung SDI and LG Display, the company is gradually building up the technology to compete on a wider-scale." via IT World

The 8.5G LCD panel project of China Star Optoelectronics Technology reaches full capacity earlier than scheduled "China Star Optoelectronics Technology Co Ltd., a business union of TCL Corporation -- a world leader in consumer electronics industry, announced that its 8.5G LCD panel production line has reached full capacity three months ahead of the original schedule. ...The success of China Star Optoelectronics Technology is a realization of TCL's strategic goal to completely build its entire LCD display industry chain. Reaching full capacity is also a demonstration of Shenzhen's production speed and quality to the world." via Melodika

Fraunhofer and POG co-developed micrometer-coated OLED structures on glass "The advantage the new design is that the active luminous area is integrated directly into the glass substrate which results in a better field of view, and the whole system is much more simple - and hopefully will result in cheaper designs." via OLED-Info

AUO to take on tablet panel leaders "LG Display and AUO are the two major display suppliers for the iPad mini, the research company said. The mainstream in-plane switching technology was from LG Display, while the advanced hyper-viewing angle technology was from AUO, it added." via The China Post

Possible 2013 Tax Hike May Hit Digital Signage "The new Section 179 of the IRS tax code enables businesses to deduct the full purchase price of qualifying equipment and/or software purchased during the tax year. Previously, depreciations were spread out over multiple years. ...In other words, it makes it easier for them cost-justify digital signage deployments. However, the law is set to expire at the end of 2012." via Digital Draw

Do you need display panels? Email jason@displayalliance.com to source with Mass Integrated, Inc.

Micro Optics Display, The Screen In Your Glasses "The MOD (for Micro Optics Display) is straight from the future. It's a mini-screen that clips into your ski goggles and gives you real-time stats about your performance (speed, jump height...) in your field of view, as though it were 14 inches big and 5 feet away." via Digital Versus

Next-gen touchpads respond to pressure "Synaptics gave the forcepad to more than two dozen academic research groups, which were challenged to come up with novel uses for the device. It's like a touchpad, but in addition to the usual swiping gestures it can sense how much pressure is being applied, adding another dimension for control. ...Another project took a novel approach to puppetry, with a marionette controlled not by a puppeteer but by a forcepad." via PC World

The tech defining next-gen computing "Of the different autostereoscopic technologies we've seen, parallax barrier has the most traction, and can be found in the likes of the Nintendo 3DS and LG Optimus 3D. It uses an array of slits in front of the display that mean that each eye views a different set of pixels - a systems that works reasonably well with handheld devices, but is a little less convincing on larger displays like TVs." via Tech Radar

China pushes local adoption to support LCD industry expansion "One such factor that increased domestic panel consumption is the adjustment in the open-cell import tariff that China imposes on 32in and larger LCDs. From 3 percent, it was raised to 5 percent beginning April this year, hitting most panel suppliers as they ship their products in this configuration. This has benefited homegrown companies such as CSOT and BOE Technology Group Co. Ltd. Both provide panels in this size, with BOE also offering 37in units." via Global Sources

Want to submit news to Display Alliance or be interviewed? Email jason@displayalliance.com.

$3 million for Liquid Crystal Institute at Kent State "The award will be used for development of new liquid crystal technologies at the Kent State University Liquid Crystal Institute in collaboration with regional businesses. The Liquid Crystal Institute was founded in 1965 and is a comprehensive research and educational center. Kent State will collaborate with four local companies: Kent Displays Inc., AlphaMicron Inc. and Crystal Diagnostics Inc., all of Kent, and Akron Polymer System Inc. of Akron. " via Recordpub.com

Panasonic to Display Smart Solutions and Eco Innovations at GITEX 2012 "GITEX Technology Week 2012 takes place at the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre from 14-18 October. ...A key focus for Panasonic this GITEX is its projectors. Panasonic projectors are true multifaceted, multimedia tools, featuring breakthrough innovations such as daylight view technology, and easy-to-use LCD and DLP technology models. Plug-and-play projectors ideal for classrooms, conference rooms or bigger venues like auditoriums will also be on display." via Panasonic

Carl Zeiss Cinemizer 3D OLED Head Mounted Display Starts Shipping "Carl Zeiss explains: “Rich colors OLED displays create crisp images with very vibrant colors, true black and thus very good contrast. Wearing comfort Emphasis was given to a low weight and optimal wearing comfort during development of the cinemizer OLED..."" via Geeky Gadgets

Magic Finger turns any surface into a touchscreen "Created in collaboration with the University of Alberta and the University of Toronto, the Magic Finger relies on a high resolution RGB micro camera and an optical sensor to allow contextual actions to be carried out based on the particular surface being touched. " via Eureka Magazine

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